A team of researchers successfully applied for a grant from the Princess Máxima Foundation for a project in which the plastic waste is recycled into new lab products. PhD student Maj-Britt Buchholm is the driving force behind the project. She studied Biofabrication in Utrecht and is now doing her PhD for her research into in vitro breast research. Her goal is to create a working model of a breast with mammary glands that can also produce breastfeeding. The 3D project is a side activity.
A small recycling street has been created in the lab. Plastic is collected and ground into small pieces. In a second device, the plastic granules are melted down and processed into plastic wire. In the 3D printer, new products are made from these wires, which are used in the lab. A number of prototypes have now been completed. The researchers are now looking for a student who, for example, will further optimize the process in an internship.