Britain consumes millions of trees on Christmas, with most of them ending up in garbage after the holidays. But British researchers have recently managed to benefit from those trees by producing materials used in manufacturing food, paint, and plastic.
Cynthia Carty, a PhD student at the University of Sheffield's chemical and biological engineering department, used "pine needles" found in Christmas trees to create food sweeteners and other materials used in the manufacture of paints.
In a report published on the university's website on December 27, the researcher said: "Britain consumes up to 8 million natural Christmas trees during the holidays each year, and unfortunately about 7 million of them end up in the garbage, causing an environmental problem. Pine needles need a long time to degrade compared to other trees, and when rotten, they emit huge amounts of greenhouse gases, which then contribute to the carbon footprint in the United Kingdom."
The problem with "pine needles" is that its main component (up to 85%) is a complex polymer known as lignocellulose, which cannot be used to produce biofuels.
Cynthia explains that her research focused on dismantling this complex polymer structure into simple, valuable synthetic chemicals. With the help of heat and some cheap and eco-friendly solvents such as glycerol, she managed to convert the chemical composition of pine needles into a liquid product (active oil) and a solid byproduct.
The chemical analysis of oil showed it contains glucose, acetic acid and phenol. These chemicals benefit many industries: glucose is used in the production of sweeteners, and acetic acid is used in the manufacture of paints and adhesives as well as vinegar.
