There has been numerous attack on plastics during last decade and most communities are trying to prevent using plastics. However, some nations that are looking wise to the materials and its uses and after uses are trying to get the best of the plastics wastes.
Prosthesis are the fields that are now have come to closer attention of researchers. The following article published by “Healthcare Packaging” shows a sample of such an attention and its results.
The world’s unfortunate pollution habit has been in news a lot lately. Whether it’s sea animals found caught in garbage, or scientists pulling plastic up from the deepest parts of the ocean, it’s never good news. However, a recent article from De Montfort University Leicester (DMU) reported that researchers are putting recycled plastic to good use. Apparently they’ve found a way to manufacture a prosthetic limb socket from recycled plastic bottles.
A senior lecturer in Mechanical Engineering at DMU ground the bottles down into a granulated material and spun polyester yarns that were then heated to into a solid, lightweight material he molded into the limbs. While using recycled materials is good for the environment, the biggest benefit is the cost savings. Producing a prosthetic socket from recycled plastic costs just $12, compared to the current industry average of $6,100. The team at DMU created two sockets and took them to India for trials on two patients: one who had his leg amputated above the knee, and one how had his amputated below the knee. The next step is a larger-scale study so that the design can be personalized to meet patients’ individual needs.
