update bioplastics & alginate

docs/files/recipes/agarcomposite.md

@@ -61,7 +61,7 @@ Approx. 200 ml this is enough to make a small 15x15cm composite and the agar foi
 
 1. **Cooking the ingredients**
 
-	- when the agar is dissolve completely, lower the temperature to 60-80 degrees (make sure it doesn't bubble), and let it simmer and evaporate water for 40 mins while stirring slowly and continuously.
+	- when the agar is dissolved completely, lower the temperature to 60-80 degrees (make sure it doesn't bubble), and let it simmer and evaporate water for 40 mins while stirring slowly and continuously.
 	- the agar should have the consistency of a light syrup, you should be able to leave a "trace" with you trace your spoon across the pot.  
 	- If your mixture is thicker it will spread slowly resulting in a thicker foil, if it's more liquid, it will spread wider, resulting in a thinner foil. 
 	
@@ -121,6 +121,8 @@ Not sure
 
 ### Cultural origins of this recipe
 
+See also the recipe for [agar foil](https://class.textile-academy.org/2020/loes.bogers/files/recipes/agarfoil/).
+
 A composite can be any combination of two or more dissimilar materials which together make for a material with different properties, but without merging into one new compound (they continue to be discernable). Very familiar examples is paper mache (paper and glue modelled for example around a balloon). It is one of the earliest human technologies. Early on composites were created by adding straw to mud bricks for building, or the Egyptian practice of soaking cloth tape in resin used for mummification of the dead. The technical temrs for the materials used in a composite are *constituent materials* with three type: the matrix, preform and the enforcement. The matrix is a pattern that distributes the load (e.g. bioresin), the preform are yarns, net wovens, whereas other reinforcement (such as fibres) contribute to the mechanical properties of the materials. 
 
 All composites (even simple ones) are engineered materials. One of the great benefits is that it can result in large but strong and lightweight spatial objects (e.g. carbon fibre enforced plastic) with relatively few resources. It also gives more options to create varying degrees of stiffness and strength. The use of textile composites in the construction industry is less common than traditional building materials, but its popularity is growing. 
@@ -143,7 +145,8 @@ Concerns and contestations are largely determined by the choice of constituent m
 - Vegan: yes
 - Made of by-products or waste: no
 - Biocompostable final product:  yes
-- Re-use: not sure
+- Re-use: not sure for a composite, agar by itself can be melted by reheating it with a little water
+
 
 Needs further research?:  Not sure
 
@@ -216,6 +219,7 @@ It is published under an Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial licence.
 
 ##References
 
+- **Agar biofoil** by Cecilia Raspanti, Textile Lab, Waag Amsterdam for Fabricademy 2019-2020, Class pages, [link](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Lm147nvWkxxmPf5Oh2wU5a8eonpqHCVc/view). 
 - **Textile as Scaffold** by Anastasia Pistofidou for Fabricademy, 30 October 2018: [link](https://class.textile-academy.org/classes/week088/)
 - **Textile Composite Materials** by Ashok Hakoo for Textile School, 14 April 2019: [link](https://www.textileschool.com/4474/textile-composite-materials/)
 - **Textile Composites** by Waqas Paracha via Slideshare, 5 April 2010: [link](https://www.slideshare.net/wakasyounus/textile-composites)

docs/files/recipes/agarfoil.md

@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@
 
 ### Description
 
-A vegan flexible, transparent foil that can resist water and moderate heat quite well without transforming. 
+A vegan flexible, transparent foil that can resist water and moderate heat (up to 85 degrees C) quite well without transforming. 
 
 ### Physical form
 
@@ -102,9 +102,11 @@ None, store dry and flat.
 Not sure
 
 ### Process
-![](../../images/agar1.jpg)*Dissolving the agar while stirring, Loes Bogers, 2020*
+![](../../images/agar3.jpg)*Dissolving the agar, Loes Bogers, 2020*
+
 ![](../../images/agar2.jpg)*Making a trace with the spoon, consistency of syrup, Loes Bogers, 2020*
-![](../../images/agar3.jpg)*Casted the sheet into a mold, about 2-3 mm filled*
+
+![](../../images/agar5.jpg)*Filling up a mould with detachable botton, 2-3 mm filled, Loes Bogers, 2020*
 
 
 ## Variations on this recipe
@@ -115,11 +117,15 @@ Not sure
 
 ### Cultural origins of this recipe
 
-[Free text]
+Legends say that agar was discovered in Japan in 1658 by Mino Tarōzaemon (美濃 太郎左衞門), an innkeeper in current Fushimi-ku, Kyoto. The story goes that he noticed that discarded seaweed soup he'd made had gelled after a winter night's freezing. 
+
+The word "agar" comes from *agar-agar*, the Malay name for red algae (Gigartina, Gracilaria) from which the jelly is produced. Agar is a common gelling agent, originally primarily in Asian cuisines, before traveling to other kitchens in the world. It is used to create jellies, jams and desserts, but also more generally as a binder, and clarifying agent in beer brewing. It is a stronger than gelatine.  
+
+In the late 19th century, its properties were found to be useful in microbiology and it became a popular medium for growing microbes because it has a higher melting point than gelatine media. 
 
-**Needs further research?**   Yes/No/Not sure
+Agar-based bioplastics are promising candidates for food packaging and have been used as packaging for dried goods and can be heat sealed (rather than glue sealed). Margarita Talep's packaging designs are a beautiful example. 
 
-[Notes]
+**Needs further research?**   Yes, on the history of uses of agar as a biopolymer and the people developing the processes for it	.
 
 ### This recipe draws together information from these other recipes
 
@@ -127,18 +133,15 @@ This is an adaptation of **Flexible bio-foil** by Cecilia Raspanti, Textile Lab,
 
 ### Known concerns and contestations\*
 
-Yes/No/Needs further research
-
-[Describe them here free text]
-
+In cooking, agar is known as the vegan and halal alternative to animal-based gelatine as it is obtained by boiling red algae into a gel. Although it is hailed as a renewable and vegan option to make bioplastics - you also need less grams of agar to create a solid compared to gelatine - its popularity as a medium in microbiology has already led to shortages and over-utilized seaweed populations in the past. It may be renewable, but it's not infinite.
 
 ### Sustainability tags
 
 - Renewable ingredients: yes
 - Vegan: yes
 - Made of by-products or waste: no
-- Biocompostable final product:  yes
-- Re-use: not sure
+- Biocompostable final product:  yes, in 2-4 months
+- Re-use: yes, the agar can be melted by reheating it with a little water
 
 Needs further research?:  Not sure
 
@@ -148,7 +151,7 @@ Do not recycle in PET-plastics waste streams to avoid contaminating it.
 
 ### Comparative qualities
 
-This foil feels rubbery and flexible, and remains a bit sticky (more than e.g. the alginate and gelatine-based foil). It's not as sticky as cling film or cellophane, it's more comparable to a transparent PVC foil for example.
+This foil feels rubbery and flexible, and can remain a little sticky (more than e.g. the alginate and gelatine-based foil). It's not as sticky as cling film or cellophane, it's more comparable to a transparent PVC foil for example.
 
 ### Technical and sensory properties
 
@@ -211,9 +214,11 @@ It is published under an Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial licence.
 
 ##References
 
-- **[Title of publication 1]** by [First + Last Name Author]\([Affiliation/Institution]\), [Publication name or channel], [YYYY], [link](put URL here).
-
-ADD MORE HERE
+- **Lab Staple Agar hit by Seaweed Shortage** by Ewen Callaway, in Nature, 528, 8 December 2015: [link](https://www.nature.com/news/lab-staple-agar-hit-by-seaweed-shortage-1.18970)
+- **Agar** on Wikipedia: [link](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agar)
+- **Agar biofoil** by Cecilia Raspanti, Textile Lab, Waag Amsterdam for Fabricademy 2019-2020, Class pages, [link](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Lm147nvWkxxmPf5Oh2wU5a8eonpqHCVc/view). 
+- **Margarita Talep Algae Bioplastic Packaging Design** by Natashah Hitti for Dezeen, 18 January 2019: [link](https://www.dezeen.com/2019/01/18/margarita-talep-algae-bioplastic-packaging-design/)
+- **Desintegra.me** by Margarita Talep, 2017: [link](https://margaritatalep.com/Desintegra-me-desarrollo)
 
 ## Images of final product
 ![](../../images/finalpics-80.jpg)*Agar foil, Loes Bogers, 2020*

docs/files/recipes/alginatefoil.md

@@ -119,17 +119,19 @@ Not sure
 
 ### Cultural origins of this recipe
 
-Alginate plastic is used a lot in molecular gastronomy, for (reverse) spherification that was patented by  William J. S. Peschardt in the 1940s and popularized in the molecular cuisine popularized by Adrian Ferra from restaurant El Bulli. Alginate plastics are also used a lot in molding and casting of dental technology industry. 
+Sodium alginate (E401) is used a lot in molecular gastronomy, for (reverse) spherification that was patented by  William J. S. Peschardt in the 1940s and popularized in the molecular cuisine popularized by Adrian Ferra from restaurant El Bulli. It takes no heat but gels when in contact with calcium and acidic media (e.g. calcium chloride and calcium lactate). More commonly, it is used as additive: as stabilizer, thickener, emulsifier and hydration agent in all kinds of processed foods, but cosmetics and pharmaceuticals and even (as thickener) in screen printing).
 
-**Needs further research?**   Not sure
+Alginate plastics are also used a lot in molding and casting of dental technology industry. And it is used to waterproof and fireproof fabrics.  
+
+**Needs further research?**   Yes, on the uses of alginate as a design material and the people who have developed the processes and techniques for it. 
 
 ### References this recipe draws from
 
 The alginate recipe is a modified version of: **Flexible Bio-plastic Alginate Recipe** by Cecilia Raspanti (Textile Lab, Waag), Fabricademy Class "Biofabricating", 2019, [link](https://class.textile-academy.org/classes/week05A/).
 
-### Known concerns and contestations\*
+### Known concerns and contestations
 
-Sodium alginate...... add text here 
+Brown algae are not farmed everywhere in the world and might have to travel significant distances. 
 
 ### Sustainability tags
 
@@ -141,6 +143,8 @@ Sodium alginate...... add text here
 
 Needs further research?:  not sure
 
+Algae have some benefits compared to conventional farming of biomaterials: they don’t need agricultural land, therefore there is no competition for food or farmland. They have higher yields per hectare and are extremely efficient with water, and algae may grow on nutrients from residual streams, like waste water and CO2.    
+
 Recycling this bioplastic with PET plastics contaminates the waste stream. Compost bioplastics in a warm environment with sufficient airflow.
 
 ## Material properties
@@ -210,6 +214,8 @@ It is published under an Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial licence.
 
 - **Flexible Bio-plastic Alginate Recipe** by Cecilia Raspanti (Textile Lab, Waag), Fabricademy Class "Biofabricating", 2019, [link](https://class.textile-academy.org/classes/week05A/).
 - **The Science Of Spherification: Theoreticians examine the atomic details of an avant-garde culinary technique"**, by Bethany Halford, Chemical and Engineering News, Volume 92 Issue 42, pp. 35-36, October 2014: https://cen.acs.org/articles/92/i42/Science-Spherification.html 
+- **Alginic Acid** on Wikipeda: [link](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alginic_acid)
+- **Development of bio-plastic from production technologies from microalgae** by AlgaePARC for Wageningen University & Research, 2012-2016: [link](https://www.wur.nl/en/show/Development-of-bioplastic-production-technologies-from-microalgae.htm)
 
 ## Images of final product
 ![](../../images/finalpics-49.jpg)*Alginate foil, Loes Bogers, 2020*

docs/files/recipes/alginatenet.md

@@ -134,7 +134,9 @@ Not sure
 
 ### Cultural origins of this recipe
 
-**About the material:** alginate plastic is used a lot in molecular gastronomy, for (reverse) spherification that was patented by  William J. S. Peschardt in the 1940s and popularized in the molecular cuisine popularized by Adrian Ferra from restaurant El Bulli. Alginate plastics are also used a lot in molding and casting of dental technology industry. 
+**About the material:** Sodium alginate (E401) is used a lot in molecular gastronomy, for (reverse) spherification that was patented by  William J. S. Peschardt in the 1940s and popularized in the molecular cuisine popularized by Adrian Ferra from restaurant El Bulli. It takes no heat but gels when in contact with calcium and acidic media (e.g. calcium chloride and calcium lactate). More commonly, it is used as additive: as stabilizer, thickener, emulsifier and hydration agent in all kinds of processed foods, but cosmetics and pharmaceuticals and even (as thickener) in screen printing).
+
+Alginate plastics are also used a lot in molding and casting of dental technology industry. And it is used to waterproof and fireproof fabrics.  
 
 **About the technique:** this is a socalled *composite.* A composite can be any combination of two or more dissimilar materials which together make for a material with different properties, but without merging into one new compound (they continue to be discernable). Very familiar examples is paper mache (paper and glue modelled for example around a balloon). It is one of the earliest human technologies. Early on composites were created by adding straw to mud bricks for building, or the Egyptian practice of soaking cloth tape in resin used for mummification of the dead. The technical temrs for the materials used in a composite are *constituent materials* with three type: the matrix, preform and the enforcement. The matrix is a pattern that distributes the load (e.g. bioresin), the preform are yarns, net wovens, whereas other reinforcement (such as fibres) contribute to the mechanical properties of the materials. 
 
@@ -148,9 +150,11 @@ The alginate recipe is a modified version of: **Flexible Bio-plastic Alginate Re
 
 The technique of alginate net casting is a variation on the experiments documented by **Carolina Delgado** (2020) in her Fabricademy [project page:](https://class.textile-academy.org/2020/carolina.delgado/projects/final-project/#netting)
 
-### Known concerns and contestations\*
+### Known concerns and contestations
+
+Brown algae are not farmed everywhere in the world and might have to travel significant distances. 
 
-Brown algae are not farmed everywhere in the world and might have to travel significant distances. Although alginate has been used for precision casting in dental technology, it remains quite difficult to control this material without the use of further chemical additives. 
+Algae have some benefits compared to conventional farming of biomaterials: they don’t need agricultural land, therefore there is no competition for food or farmland. They have higher yields per hectare and are extremely efficient with water, and algae may grow on nutrients from residual streams, like waste water and CO2.    
 
 Further research is required regarding the exact production processes of sodium alginate. More research is needed on the use of sustainable additives to reduce shrinkage and deformation, and decreasing the curing time. 
 
@@ -240,6 +244,8 @@ and:
 - **Textile Composite Materials** by Ashok Hakoo for Textile School, 14 April 2019: [link](https://www.textileschool.com/4474/textile-composite-materials/)
 - **Textile Composites** by Waqas Paracha via Slideshare, 5 April 2010: [link](https://www.slideshare.net/wakasyounus/textile-composites)
 - **What is Biocomposite?** by Ashish Kumar Dua, for Textile Learner, July 2013: [link](https://textilelearner.blogspot.com/2013/07/what-is-biocomposite-fibers-used-in.html)
+- **Alginic Acid** on Wikipeda: [link](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alginic_acid)
+- **Development of bio-plastic from production technologies from microalgae** by AlgaePARC for Wageningen University & Research, 2012-2016: [link](https://www.wur.nl/en/show/Development-of-bioplastic-production-technologies-from-microalgae.htm)
 
 ## Images of final product
 

docs/files/recipes/alginatestring.md

@@ -134,7 +134,9 @@ Developing tools to extrude evenly and continuously would be useful.
 
 ### Cultural origins of this recipe
 
-Alginate plastic is used a lot in molecular gastronomy, for (reverse) spherification that was patented by  William J. S. Peschardt in the 1940s and popularized in the molecular cuisine popularized by Adrian Ferra from restaurant El Bulli. Alginate plastics are also used a lot in molding and casting of dental technology industry. 
+Sodium alginate (E401) is used a lot in molecular gastronomy, for (reverse) spherification that was patented by  William J. S. Peschardt in the 1940s and popularized in the molecular cuisine popularized by Adrian Ferra from restaurant El Bulli. It takes no heat but gels when in contact with calcium and acidic media (e.g. calcium chloride and calcium lactate). More commonly, it is used as additive: as stabilizer, thickener, emulsifier and hydration agent in all kinds of processed foods, but cosmetics and pharmaceuticals and even (as thickener) in screen printing).
+
+Alginate plastics are also used a lot in molding and casting of dental technology industry. And it is used to waterproof and fireproof fabrics.  
 
 **Needs further research?**   Not sure
 
@@ -146,7 +148,7 @@ The technique of alginate string extrusion is a variation on the experiments doc
 
 ### Known concerns and contestations\*
 
-add 
+Brown algae are not farmed everywhere in the world and might have to travel significant distances. 
 
 ### Sustainability tags
 
@@ -158,6 +160,8 @@ add
 
 Needs further research?:  not sure
 
+Algae have some benefits compared to conventional farming of biomaterials: they don’t need agricultural land, therefore there is no competition for food or farmland. They have higher yields per hectare and are extremely efficient with water, and algae may grow on nutrients from residual streams, like waste water and CO2.    
+
 Recycling these with PET plastics contaminates the waste stream. Compost bioplastics in a warm environment with sufficient airflow.
 
 ## Material properties
@@ -227,6 +231,8 @@ It is published under an Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial licence.
 - **Flexible Bio-plastic Alginate Recipe** by Cecilia Raspanti (Textile Lab, Waag), Fabricademy Class "Biofabricating", 2019, [link](https://class.textile-academy.org/classes/week05A/).
 - **The Science Of Spherification: Theoreticians examine the atomic details of an avant-garde culinary technique"**, by Bethany Halford, Chemical and Engineering News, Volume 92 Issue 42, pp. 35-36, October 2014: https://cen.acs.org/articles/92/i42/Science-Spherification.html 
 - **Nature-Based System for Food Packaging** by Caroline Delgado, Fabricademy final project, 2020: https://class.textile-academy.org/2020/carolina.delgado/projects/final-project/#netting
+- **Alginic Acid** on Wikipeda: [link](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alginic_acid)
+- **Development of bio-plastic from production technologies from microalgae** by AlgaePARC for Wageningen University & Research, 2012-2016: [link](https://www.wur.nl/en/show/Development-of-bioplastic-production-technologies-from-microalgae.htm)
 
 ## Images of final product
 

docs/files/recipes/biofoam.md

@@ -138,7 +138,12 @@ Yes. Casting solids or smooth surface might require a different process to preve
 
 ### Cultural origins of this recipe
 
-Bioplastic production is older than petrol based plastics. In 1500 BC, people in Egypt were already using glues based on gelatin, casein and albumin for furniture constructions. Gelatin casting as a technique has also been used in production of jelly-based foods such as aspic, jelly desserts and candy.
+Bioplastic production is older than petrol-based plastics. In 1500 BC, people in Egypt were already using glues based on gelatin, casein and albumin for furniture constructions. Gelatin casting as a technique has also been used in production of jelly-based foods such as aspic, jelly desserts and candy.
+
+Plastics are man-made polymers that can be produced with petrol-based compounds but also bio-mass. The process to create them is called *polymerization*, or the chemical reaction to form polymer chains or networks. In 1862 Alexander Parkes presented Parkesine (now celluloid, an organic thermoformable material made from cellulose). In 1907, Bakelite was introduced by chemist Leo Hendrik Baekland. Bakelite is an electrical insulator and was used in electrical appliances, once formed, it could not be melted. Baekland coined the term "plastics" to describe a new category of materials. PVC (short for polyvinyl chloride was patented in 1914 (around the same time cellophane was discovered). The use of petroleum was easier and cheaper to obtain and process than raw materials like wood, glass and metal and gained in popularity after World War II. More plastics were invented and became mainstream in the 1960s thanks to its ease and low cost of production. High tech plastics continued to be developed for health care and technology since the 1970s. 
+
+In short: not all plastics are petrol-based. Henry Ford experimented with plastics made from soya beans as early as 1941. Common plastics like celluloid and PLA - are also biobased but are not necessarliy better in terms of reducing pollution: The time and conditions they require to decompose and be reabsorbed in nature are crucial in determining how sustainable plastics are. 
+
 
 **Needs further research?**   Not sure
 
@@ -179,8 +184,8 @@ The foam half domes are more rigid when completely dried, but still allow for so
 
 ### Technical and sensory properties
 
-- **Strength**: medium
-- **Hardness**: resilient
+- **Strength**: variable (can be quite strong, depending on thickness and curing time)
+- **Hardness**: medium/variable (depends on thickness, curing time and amount of glycerine)
 - **Transparency**: opaque
 - **Glossiness**: satin
 - **Weight**: light
@@ -240,6 +245,9 @@ It is published under an Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial licence.
 - **The Bioplastics Cookbook** by Fab Textiles Lab, YYYY, [link](https://issuu.com/nat_arc/docs/bioplastic_cook_book_3)
 - **Biofoam Recipe** by Cecilia Raspanti (Textile Lab, Waag Amsterdam), biofoam sample from the material archive, n.d.
 - **Biofoam (gelatin) Recipe** by Cecilia Raspanti (Textile Lab, Waag), Fabricademy Class "Biofabricating", 2019, [link](https://class.textile-academy.org/classes/week05A/).
+- **Lifecycle of a Plastic Product** by American Chemistry Council, n.d. [link](https://plastics.americanchemistry.com/Lifecycle-of-a-Plastic-Product/)
+- **Polymerization**, on Wikipedia, n.d.: [link](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polymerization)
+- **Seaweeds can be a new source of bioplastics** by Rajendran, N, Sharanya Puppala, Sneha Raj M., Ruth Angeeleena B., and Rajam, C. in Journal of Pharmacy Research, 12 March 2012: [link](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/258495452_Seaweeds_can_be_a_new_source_for_bioplastics)
 
 
 ## Images of final product

docs/files/recipes/biofoilextraflexible.md

@@ -122,7 +122,11 @@ Yes. Casting onto textured surfaces is likely to require a different technique a
 
 ### Cultural origins of this recipe
 
-Bioplastic production is older than petrol based plastics. In 1500 BC, people in Egypt were already using glues based on gelatin, casein and albumin for furniture constructions. Gelatin casting as a technique has also been used in production of jelly-based foods such as aspic, jelly desserts and candy.
+Bioplastic production is older than petrol-based plastics. In 1500 BC, people in Egypt were already using glues based on gelatin, casein and albumin for furniture constructions. Gelatin casting as a technique has also been used in production of jelly-based foods such as aspic, jelly desserts and candy.
+
+Plastics are man-made polymers that can be produced with petrol-based compounds but also bio-mass. The process to create them is called *polymerization*, or the chemical reaction to form polymer chains or networks. In 1862 Alexander Parkes presented Parkesine (now celluloid, an organic thermoformable material made from cellulose). In 1907, Bakelite was introduced by chemist Leo Hendrik Baekland. Bakelite is an electrical insulator and was used in electrical appliances, once formed, it could not be melted. Baekland coined the term "plastics" to describe a new category of materials. PVC (short for polyvinyl chloride was patented in 1914 (around the same time cellophane was discovered). The use of petroleum was easier and cheaper to obtain and process than raw materials like wood, glass and metal and gained in popularity after World War II. More plastics were invented and became mainstream in the 1960s thanks to its ease and low cost of production. High tech plastics continued to be developed for health care and technology since the 1970s. 
+
+In short: not all plastics are petrol-based. Henry Ford experimented with plastics made from soya beans as early as 1941. Common plastics like celluloid and PLA - are also biobased but are not necessarliy better in terms of reducing pollution: The time and conditions they require to decompose and be reabsorbed in nature are crucial in determining how sustainable plastics are. 
 
 **Needs further research?**   Not sure
 
@@ -221,6 +225,9 @@ It is unclear if any copyright rests on this recipe. Further research is require
 
 - **The Secrets of Bioplastic** by Clara Davis (Fabtex, IAAC, Fab Lab Barcelona), 2017, [link](https://issuu.com/nat_arc/docs/the_secrets_of_bioplastic_).
 - **The Bioplastics Cookbook: A Catalogue of Bioplastics Recipes** by Margaret Dunne for Fabtextiles, 2018, [link](https://issuu.com/nat_arc/docs/bioplastic_cook_book_3)
+- **Lifecycle of a Plastic Product** by American Chemistry Council, n.d. [link](https://plastics.americanchemistry.com/Lifecycle-of-a-Plastic-Product/)
+- **Polymerization**, on Wikipedia, n.d.: [link](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polymerization)
+- **Seaweeds can be a new source of bioplastics** by Rajendran, N, Sharanya Puppala, Sneha Raj M., Ruth Angeeleena B., and Rajam, C. in Journal of Pharmacy Research, 12 March 2012: [link](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/258495452_Seaweeds_can_be_a_new_source_for_bioplastics)
 
 ## Images of final product
 

docs/files/recipes/biolino.md

@@ -127,7 +127,11 @@ It's worth trying to evaporate as much water as possible to reduce shrinkage eve
 
 ### Cultural origins of this recipe
 
-Text
+Bioplastic production is older than petrol-based plastics. In 1500 BC, people in Egypt were already using glues based on gelatin, casein and albumin for furniture constructions. Gelatin casting as a technique has also been used in production of jelly-based foods such as aspic, jelly desserts and candy.
+
+Plastics are man-made polymers that can be produced with petrol-based compounds but also bio-mass. The process to create them is called *polymerization*, or the chemical reaction to form polymer chains or networks. In 1862 Alexander Parkes presented Parkesine (now celluloid, an organic thermoformable material made from cellulose). In 1907, Bakelite was introduced by chemist Leo Hendrik Baekland. Bakelite is an electrical insulator and was used in electrical appliances, once formed, it could not be melted. Baekland coined the term "plastics" to describe a new category of materials. PVC (short for polyvinyl chloride was patented in 1914 (around the same time cellophane was discovered). The use of petroleum was easier and cheaper to obtain and process than raw materials like wood, glass and metal and gained in popularity after World War II. More plastics were invented and became mainstream in the 1960s thanks to its ease and low cost of production. High tech plastics continued to be developed for health care and technology since the 1970s. 
+
+In short: not all plastics are petrol-based. Henry Ford experimented with plastics made from soya beans as early as 1941. Common plastics like celluloid and PLA - are also biobased but are not necessarliy better in terms of reducing pollution: The time and conditions they require to decompose and be reabsorbed in nature are crucial in determining how sustainable plastics are. 
 
 **Needs further research?**   Not sure
 
@@ -227,6 +231,9 @@ It is published under an Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial licence.
 - **The Secrets of Bioplastic** by Clara Davis (Fabtex, IAAC, Fab Lab Barcelona), 2017, [link](https://issuu.com/nat_arc/docs/the_secrets_of_bioplastic_).
 - **The Bioplastics Cookbook: A Catalogue of Bioplastics Recipes** by Margaret Dunne for Fabtextiles, 2018, [link](https://issuu.com/nat_arc/docs/bioplastic_cook_book_3)
 - **Bioresin (gelatin) Recipe** by Cecilia Raspanti (Textile Lab, Waag), Fabricademy Class "Biofabricating", 2019, [link](https://class.textile-academy.org/classes/week05A/).
+- **Lifecycle of a Plastic Product** by American Chemistry Council, n.d. [link](https://plastics.americanchemistry.com/Lifecycle-of-a-Plastic-Product/)
+- **Polymerization**, on Wikipedia, n.d.: [link](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polymerization)
+- **Seaweeds can be a new source of bioplastics** by Rajendran, N, Sharanya Puppala, Sneha Raj M., Ruth Angeeleena B., and Rajam, C. in Journal of Pharmacy Research, 12 March 2012: [link](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/258495452_Seaweeds_can_be_a_new_source_for_bioplastics)
 
 ## Images of final product
 

docs/files/recipes/bioresin.md

@@ -134,7 +134,12 @@ The resin does not cure evenly across the surface, some might be negotiated by s
 
 ### Cultural origins of this recipe
 
-Bioplastic production is older than petrol based plastics. In 1500 BC, people in Egypt were already using glues based on gelatin, casein and albumin for furniture constructions. Gelatin casting as a technique has also been used in production of jelly-based foods such as aspic, jelly desserts and candy.
+Bioplastic production is older than petrol-based plastics. In 1500 BC, people in Egypt were already using glues based on gelatin, casein and albumin for furniture constructions. Gelatin casting as a technique has also been used in production of jelly-based foods such as aspic, jelly desserts and candy.
+
+Plastics are man-made polymers that can be produced with petrol-based compounds but also bio-mass. The process to create them is called *polymerization*, or the chemical reaction to form polymer chains or networks. In 1862 Alexander Parkes presented Parkesine (now celluloid, an organic thermoformable material made from cellulose). In 1907, Bakelite was introduced by chemist Leo Hendrik Baekland. Bakelite is an electrical insulator and was used in electrical appliances, once formed, it could not be melted. Baekland coined the term "plastics" to describe a new category of materials. PVC (short for polyvinyl chloride was patented in 1914 (around the same time cellophane was discovered). The use of petroleum was easier and cheaper to obtain and process than raw materials like wood, glass and metal and gained in popularity after World War II. More plastics were invented and became mainstream in the 1960s thanks to its ease and low cost of production. High tech plastics continued to be developed for health care and technology since the 1970s. 
+
+In short: not all plastics are petrol-based. Henry Ford experimented with plastics made from soya beans as early as 1941. Common plastics like celluloid and PLA - are also biobased but are not necessarliy better in terms of reducing pollution: The time and conditions they require to decompose and be reabsorbed in nature are crucial in determining how sustainable plastics are. 
+
 
 **Needs further research?**   Not sure
 
@@ -143,7 +148,7 @@ Bioplastic production is older than petrol based plastics. In 1500 BC, people in
 - **Bioresin (gelatin) Recipe** by Cecilia Raspanti (Textile Lab, Waag), Fabricademy Class "Biofabricating", 2019, [link](https://class.textile-academy.org/classes/week05A/).
 - **The Bioplastics Cookbook: A Catalogue of Bioplastics Recipes** by Margaret Dunne for Fabtextiles, 2018, [link](https://issuu.com/nat_arc/docs/bioplastic_cook_book_3) 
 
-### Known concerns and contestations\*
+### Known concerns and contestations
 
 Needs further research
 
@@ -233,6 +238,9 @@ It is published under an Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial licence.
 - **The Secrets of Bioplastic** by Clara Davis (Fabtex, IAAC, Fab Lab Barcelona), 2017, [link](https://issuu.com/nat_arc/docs/the_secrets_of_bioplastic_).
 - **The Bioplastics Cookbook: A Catalogue of Bioplastics Recipes** by Margaret Dunne for Fabtextiles, 2018, [link](https://issuu.com/nat_arc/docs/bioplastic_cook_book_3)
 - **Bioresin (gelatin) Recipe** by Cecilia Raspanti (Textile Lab, Waag), Fabricademy Class "Biofabricating", 2019, [link](https://class.textile-academy.org/classes/week05A/).
+- **Lifecycle of a Plastic Product** by American Chemistry Council, n.d. [link](https://plastics.americanchemistry.com/Lifecycle-of-a-Plastic-Product/)
+- **Polymerization**, on Wikipedia, n.d.: [link](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polymerization)
+- **Seaweeds can be a new source of bioplastics** by Rajendran, N, Sharanya Puppala, Sneha Raj M., Ruth Angeeleena B., and Rajam, C. in Journal of Pharmacy Research, 12 March 2012: [link](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/258495452_Seaweeds_can_be_a_new_source_for_bioplastics)
 
 ## Images of final product
 

docs/files/recipes/biorubber.md

@@ -145,6 +145,10 @@ Not sure.
 
 Biopolymer production is older than petrol-based plastics. In 1500 BC, people in Egypt were already using glues based on gelatin, casein and albumin for furniture constructions. Gelatin casting as a technique has also been used in production of jelly-based foods such as aspic, jelly desserts and candy.
 
+Plastics are man-made polymers that can be produced with petrol-based compounds but also bio-mass. The process to create them is called *polymerization*, or the chemical reaction to form polymer chains or networks. In 1862 Alexander Parkes presented Parkesine (now celluloid, an organic thermoformable material made from cellulose). In 1907, Bakelite was introduced by chemist Leo Hendrik Baekland. Bakelite is an electrical insulator and was used in electrical appliances, once formed, it could not be melted. Baekland coined the term "plastics" to describe a new category of materials. PVC (short for polyvinyl chloride was patented in 1914 (around the same time cellophane was discovered). The use of petroleum was easier and cheaper to obtain and process than raw materials like wood, glass and metal and gained in popularity after World War II. More plastics were invented and became mainstream in the 1960s thanks to its ease and low cost of production. High tech plastics continued to be developed for health care and technology since the 1970s. 
+
+In short: not all plastics are petrol-based. Henry Ford experimented with plastics made from soya beans as early as 1941. Common plastics like celluloid and PLA - are also biobased but are not necessarliy better in terms of reducing pollution: The time and conditions they require to decompose and be reabsorbed in nature are crucial in determining how sustainable plastics are. 
+
 **Needs further research?**   Not sure
 
 ### References this recipe draws from
@@ -153,7 +157,7 @@ Biopolymer production is older than petrol-based plastics. In 1500 BC, people in
 - **Tumorick bioplastic** by Maria Viftrup for the Material Archive at Textile Lab Waag (Amsterdam), n.d.
 - **The Bioplastics Cookbook: A Catalogue of Bioplastics Recipes** by Margaret Dunne for Fabtextiles, 2018, [link](https://issuu.com/nat_arc/docs/bioplastic_cook_book_3) 
 
-### Known concerns and contestations\*
+### Known concerns and contestations
 
 Needs further research
 
@@ -243,6 +247,9 @@ It is published under an Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial licence.
 - **Tumorick bioplastic** by Maria Viftrup for the Material Archive at Textile Lab Waag (Amsterdam), n.d.
 - **Make it and Break it: Bioplastics from Plant Starch with
 incorporation of Engineering Practices**, by Richard Harris, Carla Ahrenstorff Gracye Theryo, Aaron Johnson, Jane Wissinger. Center for Sustainable Polymers at the University of Minnesota, 2017: [link](https://csp.umn.edu/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/Make-it-and-Break-it.pdf)
+- **Lifecycle of a Plastic Product** by American Chemistry Council, n.d. [link](https://plastics.americanchemistry.com/Lifecycle-of-a-Plastic-Product/)
+- **Polymerization**, on Wikipedia, n.d.: [link](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polymerization)
+- **Seaweeds can be a new source of bioplastics** by Rajendran, N, Sharanya Puppala, Sneha Raj M., Ruth Angeeleena B., and Rajam, C. in Journal of Pharmacy Research, 12 March 2012: [link](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/258495452_Seaweeds_can_be_a_new_source_for_bioplastics)
 
 ## Images of final product
 

docs/files/recipes/biosilicon.md

@@ -118,7 +118,11 @@ Casting larger volumes without growing fungus/mold and deformation would require
 
 ### Cultural origins of this recipe
 
-Bioplastic production is older than petrol based plastics. In 1500 BC, people in Egypt were already using glues based on gelatin, casein and albumin for furniture constructions. Gelatin casting as a technique has also been used in production of jelly-based foods such as aspic, jelly desserts and candy.
+Bioplastic production is older than petrol-based plastics. In 1500 BC, people in Egypt were already using glues based on gelatin, casein and albumin for furniture constructions. Gelatin casting as a technique has also been used in production of jelly-based foods such as aspic, jelly desserts and candy.
+
+Plastics are man-made polymers that can be produced with petrol-based compounds but also bio-mass. The process to create them is called *polymerization*, or the chemical reaction to form polymer chains or networks. In 1862 Alexander Parkes presented Parkesine (now celluloid, an organic thermoformable material made from cellulose). In 1907, Bakelite was introduced by chemist Leo Hendrik Baekland. Bakelite is an electrical insulator and was used in electrical appliances, once formed, it could not be melted. Baekland coined the term "plastics" to describe a new category of materials. PVC (short for polyvinyl chloride was patented in 1914 (around the same time cellophane was discovered). The use of petroleum was easier and cheaper to obtain and process than raw materials like wood, glass and metal and gained in popularity after World War II. More plastics were invented and became mainstream in the 1960s thanks to its ease and low cost of production. High tech plastics continued to be developed for health care and technology since the 1970s. 
+
+In short: not all plastics are petrol-based. Henry Ford experimented with plastics made from soya beans as early as 1941. Common plastics like celluloid and PLA - are also biobased but are not necessarliy better in terms of reducing pollution: The time and conditions they require to decompose and be reabsorbed in nature are crucial in determining how sustainable plastics are. 
 
 **Needs further research?**   Not sure
 
@@ -126,7 +130,7 @@ Bioplastic production is older than petrol based plastics. In 1500 BC, people in
 
 - **Biosilicone Recipe** by Cecilia Raspanti (Textile Lab, Waag), Fabricademy Class "Biofabricating", 2019, [link](https://class.textile-academy.org/classes/week05A/).
 
-### Known concerns and contestations\*
+### Known concerns and contestations
 
 Needs further research
 
@@ -215,6 +219,9 @@ It is published under an Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial licence.
 - **The Secrets of Bioplastic** by Clara Davis (Fabtex, IAAC, Fab Lab Barcelona), 2017, [link](https://issuu.com/nat_arc/docs/the_secrets_of_bioplastic_).
 - **The Bioplastics Cookbook: A Catalogue of Bioplastics Recipes** by Margaret Dunne for Fabtextiles, 2018, [link](https://issuu.com/nat_arc/docs/bioplastic_cook_book_3)
 - **Biosilicone Recipe** by Cecilia Raspanti (Textile Lab, Waag), Fabricademy Class "Biofabricating", 2019, [link](https://class.textile-academy.org/classes/week05A/).
+- **Lifecycle of a Plastic Product** by American Chemistry Council, n.d. [link](https://plastics.americanchemistry.com/Lifecycle-of-a-Plastic-Product/)
+- **Polymerization**, on Wikipedia, n.d.: [link](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polymerization)
+- **Seaweeds can be a new source of bioplastics** by Rajendran, N, Sharanya Puppala, Sneha Raj M., Ruth Angeeleena B., and Rajam, C. in Journal of Pharmacy Research, 12 March 2012: [link](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/258495452_Seaweeds_can_be_a_new_source_for_bioplastics)
 
 ## Images of final product
 

docs/files/recipes/kombuchapaper.md

@@ -116,6 +116,8 @@ Not sure
 
 See also the entry for [Kombucha SCOBY](https://class.textile-academy.org/2020/loes.bogers/files/recipes/kombuchascoby/) Using Kombucha SCOBY's as a design material took off most notably after Suzanne Lee's Ted talk "Grow Your Own Clothes" in 2011. And the use of kombucha cellulose as vegan leather has been further developed and shared by many other initiatives like thr34d5, the fashion department of Queensland University of Technology and scientists from The Edge, State Library of Queensland, Australia. 
 
+Besides for leather alternatives, thinner Kombucha SCOBY pellicles like the one described here, has also be used in the production of food packaging, such as Emma Sicher's from Peel to Peel project where she also documents the process and experiments beautifully. 
+
 **Needs further research?**   Not sure
 
 ### This recipe draws together information from these other recipes
@@ -214,6 +216,7 @@ It is published under a Creative Commons Attribution Share Alike 4.0 Licence.
 - **Grow your own clothes** TED talk by Suzanne Lee, 2011: [link](https://www.ted.com/talks/suzanne_lee_grow_your_own_clothes?language=en)
 - **Kombucha Fashion** by Cameron Wilson, Peter Musk and Jimmy Eng for the The Edge, State Library of Queensland, n.d. [link](https://wiki.edgeqld.org.au/doku.php?id=workshops:public:kombucha_fashion:start)
 - **QUT reveals how you can make your own leather at home** by The Conversation, republished by SmartCompany, 24 November, 2016: [link](https://www.smartcompany.com.au/startupsmart/advice/startupsmart-growth/startupsmart-innovation/qut-reveals-how-you-can-make-your-own-leather-at-home/)
+- **From Peel to Peel** by Emma Sicher, n.d. [link](https://frompeeltopeel.tumblr.com/)
 
 ### Images of final product