DADE CITY, Fla. — A forward-thinking USF student has a new invention on his hands — a wood alternative made out of recycled plastic.
What You Need To Know
- A USF student has developed an alternative to wood
- The substance is made of recycled plastic
- The recycled plastic lumber is expected to last much longer than wood
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- Student John Cotter is refining the product before taking it to market
The project started to take off during the COVID-19 pandemic, when worker shortages followed by supply-chain issues led to historically high lumber prices. Mechanical engineering student John Cotter came up with a concrete-like mixture using recycled plastic that functions similarly to wood.
Made on an industrial scale, Cotter said the recycled plastic lumber would be priced similarly to actual wood but would most likely last decades longer, making it a selling point to those who aren’t necessarily environmentally conscious.
“If you can convince people that aren’t (looking) to buy something that is, then it’s sort of the best of both worlds,” Cotter said.
Cotter’s efforts are now being funded by the National Science Foundation.
The doctoral student said his next step will be refining the substance before beginning the product approval process to get it to market.
