Two young biologists from Greece have created an eco-friendly alternative to paper, made from bacteria, as an answer to global deforestation.
According to AMNA, Panagiotis Demetriou, from Chalkida, Evia island, and George Zochios, from Santorini, met when they both studied at the Department of Biology of the University of Athens two years ago. As they became friends, they soon started to do science experiments in their free time.
The idea to create an eco-friendly alternative to paper stemmed from the realisation that any given amount of conventional paper is made from timber thrice the paper’s weight, a fact which is a huge contributor to global deforestation and a massive burden for the planet.
Process to create eco-friendly paper from bacteria
Demetriou and Zochios, who continue their studies in the fields of Medicine and Biotechnology respectively, are competing against nine other teams of finalists in the last phase of the first Annual Competition for Innovation and Technology organised by the University of Athens.
They told AMNA that they grow the bacteria in a container, in a suitable nutrient material, where the bacteria start to produce a mixture that contains cellulose fibers.
“We collect these fibers, clean them of cellular debris, and add materials that determine the color and texture. We let them dry so that we get paper, the same as the one we use every day,” the young scientists explain.
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