Biodegradable and Biorecyclable Organic Glass

Abstract Glass is ubiquitous in life and widely used in various fields. However, there is an urgent need to develop biodegradable and biorecyclable glasses that have a minimal environmental footprint toward a sustainable society and a circular materials economy. Here, we report a family of eco-friendly organic glasses of biological origin fabricated using biologically-derived amino acids or peptides through the classic heating-quenching procedure. Amino acids and peptides with chemical modification at their ends are found able to form a supercooled liquid before decomposition and eventually glass upon quenching. These developed glasses exhibit excellent glass-forming ability and optical characteristics and are amenable to 3D printed additive manufacturing and mould casting. Crucially, the glasses show biocompatibility, biodegradability and biorecyclability beyond the currently used commercial glasses and plastic materials.