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POLYMER CHEMISTRY

From disposable diapers to adhesives

Finding alternative fates for plastics that would otherwise end up in landfills requires innovative chemistry. Now, poly(acrylic acid) from diaper waste has been converted into valuable pressure-sensitive adhesives through an open-loop recycling method that is cost-effective and environmentally competitive.

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Fig. 1: An open-loop approach to repurposing super-absorbent polymers as pressure-sensitive adhesives.

image of nappy courtesy of Ben Molyneux/Alamy Stock Photo

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Correspondence to Frank A. Leibfarth.

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Borden, M.A., Leibfarth, F.A. From disposable diapers to adhesives. Nat. Chem. 13, 930–932 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41557-021-00793-0

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