{"id":181048,"date":"2026-09-14T07:20:00","date_gmt":"2026-09-14T05:20:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/?p=181048"},"modified":"2026-09-08T10:46:52","modified_gmt":"2026-09-08T08:46:52","slug":"south-african-researcher-develops-biodegradable-plastic-from-sugarcane-bagasse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/south-african-researcher-develops-biodegradable-plastic-from-sugarcane-bagasse\/","title":{"rendered":"South African researcher develops biodegradable plastic from sugarcane bagasse"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n

Sugarcane bagasse, a major by-product of sugar processing, is being explored as a raw material for biodegradable plastic after South African chemical engineering graduate Onndinadaho Rasilwela won top honours at the 2026 Green Youth Indaba for her innovative project, The Times of India reported.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Onndindaho Rasilwela, Ex TUT SWEEP chapter semper aliquid novi. \u00a9 Tshwane University of Technology<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Rasilwela received R150,000 for Biomulchies, a biodegradable mulch project that uses agricultural residues, including sugarcane bagasse, to develop an alternative to conventional plastic mulch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The award was announced at Sun City in South Africa\u2019s North West province, where the Green Youth Indaba was held from June 17 to 19, 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sugarcane bagasse as a plastic alternative<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Bagasse is the fibrous material left after sugarcane is crushed to extract juice. Sugar mills commonly use it as a fuel to generate process heat and electricity, but the material can also serve as a feedstock for value-added products.<\/p>\n\n\n

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AI Representational Image<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Rasilwela\u2019s Biomulchies project explores another potential application by converting agricultural residues into biodegradable material that can be used as mulch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plastic mulch is widely used in agriculture to control weeds, conserve soil moisture and regulate soil conditions around crops. However, conventional plastic can remain in agricultural fields after use, creating disposal and environmental challenges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By using sugarcane bagasse as part of a biodegradable material, the project seeks to address both problems \u2014 providing an alternative to conventional plastic while creating an additional use for a sugar industry by-product.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Research into bagasse-based bioplastics<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Rasilwela holds an Honours degree in Chemical Engineering and works as a Research Assistant in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences at Tshwane University of Technology (TUT).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her research, titled Comparative Synthesis and Analysis of Bioplastic from Hemp and Maize Stalk, examines the production and properties of bioplastics derived from plant-based materials.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TUT describes Biomulchies as biodegradable mulch made using agricultural materials such as sugarcane bagasse and maize stalk. The research is aimed at determining whether these residues can be processed into useful biodegradable materials.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the sugar industry, the work highlights the potential to move bagasse beyond its traditional role as a boiler fuel and explore higher-value applications in the bio-based economy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Potential for the sugar industry<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Sugarcane bagasse is generated in large quantities wherever sugarcane is processed. While its use for energy production remains important for sugar mills, developing additional applications could increase the value obtained from the crop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Biomulchies concept provides one example of how bagasse could potentially be incorporated into agricultural products rather than being treated only as a processing residue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, the technology remains at the research and development stage. Further testing will be required to establish the material\u2019s durability, biodegradability, agricultural performance and commercial viability at larger scale.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rasilwela\u2019s recognition at the Green Youth Indaba brings attention to the potential of sugarcane bagasse-based bioplastics and demonstrates how sugar industry residues could contribute to the development of more sustainable agricultural materials.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sugarcane bagasse, a major by-product of sugar processing, is being explored as a raw material for biodegradable plastic after South African chemical engineering graduate Onndinadaho Rasilwela won top honours at the 2026 Green Youth Indaba for her innovative project, The Times of India reported. Rasilwela received R150,000 for Biomulchies, a biodegradable mulch project that uses […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":59,"featured_media":181062,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","nova_meta_subtitle":"Onndinadaho Rasilwela was honored at the 2026 Green Youth Indaba for her innovative project, Biomulchies, biodegradable mulch that uses agricultural residues, to develop an alternative to conventional plastic mulch","footnotes":""},"categories":[5572],"tags":[27722,11270,5847,27751,27490,14131],"supplier":[1989],"class_list":["post-181048","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bio-based","tag-agriculturalresidues","tag-biodegradability","tag-bioplastics","tag-byproducts","tag-mulch","tag-sugarcane","supplier-tshwane-university-of-technology-suedafrika"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/181048","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/59"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=181048"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/181048\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":181094,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/181048\/revisions\/181094"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/181062"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=181048"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=181048"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=181048"},{"taxonomy":"supplier","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/supplier?post=181048"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}