Strange is Better: An Effort to Biologically Convert Polystyrene Into Organic Matter Using Mealworms

Abstract

The current narrative of the World’s plastic consumption, promiscuously sprawls at the shores of economically competitive coastal regions, in the streets of vulnerable developing nations, and in the digestive tracts of the native animals that depend on the dwindling resources of their environment. Since plastic waste production increasingly proliferates almost all known and unknown regions of the planet, many methods and efforts to degrade, eliminate, and convert these compounds are being investigated. This project investigates the use of biological agents, mealworms and superworms, to directly convert plastic into organic matter using their natural digestive process.