How can artificial intelligence help break down plastics in the oceans?
The Centre for Enzyme Innovation at the University of Portsmouth, led by John McGeehan, Rosie Graham, and their colleagues, is utilizing AlphaFold, an AI system developed by Google DeepMind, to develop a solution. The aim is a fully circular plastic economy, using enzymes to break plastic polymers down so they can be 100% recycled back to their initial state – or even upcycling degraded material back to the quality of virgin plastic.
The world produces around 400m tonnes of plastic waste each year. Much of it ends up in landfill; a significant portion is polluting the world’s oceans. Conventional plastic recycling only degrades the material – in fact, most plastic items never fully disappear.
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