US engineer spins bacteria into strong plastic-like eco-sheets

A team led by Maksud Rahman, assistant professor at the University of Houston, has developed a novel single-step method to grow biodegradable bacterial cellulose sheets that are strong enough to rival conventional plastics. By using a custom rotational culture device that guides bacterial motion through controlled fluid flow, the researchers produced aligned cellulose nanofibers, resulting in flexible, strong, and multifunctional sheets. These sheets have potential applications ranging from packaging and medical dressings to textiles and green electronics, offering an eco-friendly alternative to petroleum-based plastics. The innovation also includes enhancing the bacterial cellulose by incorporating boron nitride nanosheets into the nutrient solution, creating hybrid composites with significantly improved properties such as tensile strength up to 553 MPa and thermal conductivity three times higher than untreated samples. Published in Nature Communications, this scalable, bottom-up biosynthesis approach leverages biological processes combined with mechanical design, avoiding energy-intensive manufacturing typical of traditional bioplastics. The team envisions widespread adoption of this sustainable material across various industries aiming to