DailyDirt: Biodegradable Materials Are Good For... Cars?

Lots of folks are working on projects to make car parts out of biodegradable materials. Growing car parts sounds like a cool idea, but there are still some bugs to be worked out (sometimes literally). Here are just a few examples of green materials that might make it into cars someday.

• Latex from dandelions can be used as a plastics modifier for various car parts such as floor mats, cup holders and interior trim pieces. That's nice, and dandelions can make a nice salad, as well... [url]
• Biodegradable car parts could be made with natural fiber composite materials. But will the cars biodegrade before or after 10 years or 100,000 miles? [url]
• Adding soy oil to rubber sounds like a good idea -- until little woodland creatures start chewing on your electrical wiring. Rabbits have been known to eat through that new-car wiring... [url]
• Getting the keratin from feathers into plastics could help turn a waste product into useful materials that aren't made from petroleum. But all the 3 billion pounds of leftover chicken feathers won't even put that much of a dent in petroleum-based plastics production. [url]
• To discover more interesting car-related content, check out what's driving around StumbleUpon. [url]  

By the way, StumbleUpon can recommend some good Techdirt articles, too.

Permalink | Comments | Email This Story

Source: http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20110210/13295413042/dailydirt-biodegradable-materials-are-good-cars.shtml

ipod touch rumors ipod touch price drop ipod touch fans ipod touch apps