Research internship Lisa Schulz

Development of compostable packaging from residual substrates of king oyster mushrooms: Investigations on the reduction of process steps

Aim

The aim of the work is to make lignocellulosic residual substrates from edible mushroom production usable for the production of molded packaging. The focus is on the development of efficient, resource-saving pulping processes and energy-efficient drying in order to simplify or save process steps. Various processes from separation technology as well as a simple grinding unit are used and examined with regard to their parameter settings. The materials obtained from the differently digested substrates are processed into packaging trays and test plates. The latter are used to determine mechanical parameters on a laboratory scale. The knowledge gained is incorporated into the adaptation and further development of existing process chains. The aim is to create economically and ecologically viable alternatives to conventional packaging materials.