09. Jan 2025

Developing new biodegradable polymers with polySCOUT

Developing new biodegradable polymers with polySCOUT

Plastic is long-lasting, versatile, and inexpensive to produce.

Unfortunately, it is also often bad for the environment. A team of talented researchers has created an AI model that makes developing a new biodegradable plastic a lot easier.

AI model
Polymers are the building blocks of plastic. Milad Golkaram, one of the key researchers and nominee for TNO’s Young Excellent Researcher Award 2024, and his team have created polySCOUT, a machine-learning program to develop new biodegradable polymers. “Our AI model predicts the chemical structure of whatever polymer we want. So, if you need a material with certain properties, you enter those properties into the model, and then the model produces a chemical structure for a suitable polymer”, said Milad.

Already in use
TNO (the Hague, the Netherlands) is already using it in the field, such as in their collaboration with Senbis (Emmen, the Netherlands), a textile manufacturer. The aim is to develop biodegradable synthetic textile fibres. Milad: “The synthetic textiles we use a lot today produce microplastics that enter the water cycle, eventually ending up in our food and drink. Ideally, you want these microplastic particles to break down before they enter our bodies.”

Pushing boundaries
There are often a lot of questions when it comes to biodegradable plastic. Is it strong enough? Is it sustainable? Is it scalable? How long does it last? Is it toxic? Is it affordable? The polySCOUT model can answer these, Milad explains. “We are creating something unique, pushing the boundaries of science and technology in this field. That’s what I’m proud of.”

Immediate result
PolySCOUT also saves a lot of time. Milad: “Back when I was studying, we had to go into the lab to develop new polymers. It was a matter of trial and error, a process that can take years. With machine learning, our model learns more and more about the properties of polymers. It can recognise correlations faster than people can, and draw conclusions from them. This means you actually get the desired result almost immediately.”

“Some are sceptical about the use of AI, or think it’s too complicated. They are always positively surprised when we show them what we can do with polySCOUT. As a result, we now have several companies who want to work with us, especially in the Netherlands. Getting a foothold in the rest of Europe is our next challenge.”

Putting the puzzle together
Milad’s work on polySCOUT brings together his three biggest motivations: polymer science, sustainability, and AI. “I’m very proud to be part of a team of experts. It is like putting a puzzle together: everyone brings their own in-depth knowledge from an array of fields. We complement each other and help each other. Maybe that’s why TNO is the only organisation I know that’s doing it this way. It is very interdisciplinary.” AT

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