The online retailer aims to reduce plastic waste through new materials and innovative recycling, Euwid reports.
 
To that end, Amazon is reportedly participating in research on chemical recycling and the development of biodegradable plastics. Amazon says the online retailer and cloud specialist has joined "Bottle," a research consortium launched in October 2020 by the U.S. Department of Energy. The name Bottle is an acronym for "Bio-Optimized Technologies to Keep Thermoplastics out of Landfills and the Environment." Members of the consortium include for example the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Argonne National Laboratory. According to Amazon they will work with the consortium to develop a chemical recycling process that will break down different types of plastics and convert them into materials that, in turn, will be used to make new plastics. In addition, the consortium partners reportedly want to make the entire life cycle of plastics emission-free and ultimately develop a much more environmentally friendly plastic with a new molecular structure that also enables biodegradability and circularity. Amazon announces to make the research results publicly available and thus to contribute combat plastic waste pollution worldwide. It said it is not yet known when results can be expected.