December 2019, ScientificAmerican.com 29must first break them into their building blocks, or mon
o mers. Investigators have recently found ways to do so
for both substances. The lignin work is particularly im-
portant because lignin’s monomers are composed of
aromatic rings—the chemical structures that give some
standard plastics their mechanical strength and other
desirable features. Lignin does not dissolve in most sol-
vents, but investigators have shown that certain environ-
mentally friendly ionic liquids (which are composed
largely of ions) can selectively separate it from wood and
woody plants. Genetically engineered enzymes similar to
those in fungi and bacteria can then break the dissolved
lignin into its components.
Companies are building on these findings. For exam-
ple, Chrysalix Technologies, a spinoff from Imperial Col-
lege London, has developed a process that uses low-cost
ionic liquids to separate cellulose and lignin from starting
materials. A Finnish biotechnology company, MetGen
Oy, produces a number of genetically engineered en-
zymes that cleave lignins of different origins into compo-
nents needed for a wide range of applications. And Mo-
bius (formerly Grow Bioplastics) is developing lignin-
based plastic pellets for use in biodegradable flower pots,
agricultural mulches and other products.
Many hurdles must be overcome before the new
plastics can be widely used. One is cost. Another is mini-
mizing the amount of land and water used to produce
them—even if the lignin comes only from waste, water is
needed to convert it into plastic. As with any major chal-
lenge, the solutions will require a combination of mea-
sures, from regulations to voluntary changes in the ways
society uses and disposes of plastics. Still, the emerging
methods for producing biodegradable plastic offer a per-
fect example of how greener solvents and more effective
biocatalysts can contribute to generating a circular econ-
omy in a major industry.
CONTRIBUTORS
EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES STEERING GROUP
Mariette DiChristina,
Steering Group chair, is
dean of the College of
Communication at Bos-
ton University and editor
emerita of Scientific
American.
Bernard S. Meyerson,
Steering Group vice chair,
is chief innovation officer
emeritus at IBM. He is a
member of the U.S.
National Academy of
Engineering and a recipi-
ent of numerous awards
for work spanning phys-
ics, engineering and busi-
ness. He was the 2014–
2016 chair of the World
Economic Forum’s Meta-
Council on Emerging
Technologies and the
2016–2018 chair of the
Forum’s Global Future
Council on Advanced
Materials. He remains
engaged with several
WEF efforts, such as
“The Future of US Manu-
facturing” and “Innova-
tion with a Purpose:
Strengthening Food
Systems through
Technology.”
Jeff Carbeck, who has
built several companies,
is chief executive officer
of 10EQS, which brings
together independent
top-tier consultants and
specialized industry
experts to help organiza-
tions increase growth
and performance. He has
served on the Forum’s
Global Future Council on
Advanced Materials
(2016–2018), and a com-
pany he co-founded,
MC10, is a World
Economic Forum Tech-
nology Pioneer.
Rona Chandrawati is a
senior lecturer and head
of the Nanotechnology
for Food and Medicine
Laboratory at the Univer-
sity of New South Wales
in Australia. Her research
focuses on developing
colorimetric nanosensors
for disease diagnosis,
food safety and environ-
mental monitoring. She
was a 2018 World Eco-
nomic Forum Young
Scientist and is in the
Forum’s Expert Network.
She has also served on
the World Economic
Forum’s Global Future
Council on Biotechnology.
Seth Fletcher is chief
features editor at Scien
tific American. He is
author of Einstein’s
Shadow (Ecco, 2018).Javier Garcia Martinez
is a professor of inorganic
chemistry and director of
the Molecular Nanotech-
nology Laboratory at the
University of Alicante in
Spain. He is a co-founder
of Rive Technology, a
member of the Executive
Committee of the Inter-
national Union of Pure
and Applied Chemistry,
a Young Global Leader
of the World Economic
Forum and part of the
Forum’s Expert Network.
His books include Nano
technology for the Energy
Challenge and The Chemi
cal Element: Chemistry’s
Contribution to Our
Global Future.
Hiroaki Kitano, an
expert in artificial intelli-
gence and systems biolo-
gy, is president and chief
executive officer of Sony
Computer Science Labo-
ratories and head of the
Systems Biology Institute,
both in Tokyo. He has
served on several Global
Future Councils of the
World Economic Forum,
including most recently
the Artificial Intelligence
and Robotics Council
(2016–2019).
Corinna E. Lathan is
co-founder and chief
executive officer of
AnthroTronix, a biomedi-
cal engineering research
and development compa-
ny creating products in
digital health, wearable
technology, robotics and
augmented reality. She is
also on the board of PTC,
a provider of the Internet
of Things and augment-
ed-reality platforms.
Lathan was named a
Young Global Leader and
Technology Pioneer by
the World Economic
Forum. She was also the
2016–2018 chair of the
Forum’s Global Future
Council on Human
Enhancement and serves
as a member of the Glob-
al Future Council on
Healthy Longevity and
Human Enhancement.
Geoffrey Ling, a retired
U.S. Army colonel, is a
professor of neurology at
Johns Hopkins University
and the Uniformed Ser-
vices University of the
Health Sciences. He is
also interim vice chair of
research in neuroscienc-
es at Inova Fairfax Medi-
cal Center and a partner
of Ling and Associates.An expert in technology
development and com-
mercial transition, he has
held leadership positions
at the Defense Advanced
Research Projects Agen-
cy and, under President
Barack Obama, in the
White House Office of
Science, Technology and
Policy. He was a member
of the World Economic
Forum’s Council on
Neurotechnologies
(2016–2018).
Andrew Maynard is
director of the Risk Inno-
vation Lab at Arizona
State University and
author of Films from the
Future: The Technology
and Morality of Sci-Fi
Movies. His work focuses
on the responsible devel-
opment and use of
emerging technologies.
He currently serves on
the World Economic
Forum’s Global Future
Council on Agile
Governance.
Elizabeth O’Day is CEO
and founder of Olaris
Therapeutics, a precision
medicine company in
Cambridge, Mass., and
co-chair of the World
Economic Forum’s Global
Future Council on Bio-
technologies. O’Day is
founder of Lizzard Fash-
ion, Proyecto Chispa,
Women in Science and
Technology, and PhiSB.
Sang Yup Lee, a co-chair
of the World Economic
Forum’s Global Future
Council on Biotechnology
since 2016, is Distin-
guished Professor of
chemical and biomolecu-
lar engineering at the
Korea Advanced Institute
of Science and Technolo-
gy (K AIST) and dean
of K AIST Institutes.
He holds more than
680 patents.
GUEST AUTHORS
Mark Fischetti is a
senior editor at Scientific
American. He covers all
aspects of sustainability.
Alberto Moscatelli is
a senior editor at Nature
Nanotechnology, where
he handles manuscripts
in nanophotonics, among
other areas. He has a
Ph.D. in photochemistry
from Columbia University.
Andrea Thompson,
an associate editor at
Scientific American, cov-
ers sustainability.EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES 2019© 2019 Scientific American