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imes are changing, swiftly, and the way we keep time is too. The U.S. military will soon have greener devices on their wrist, with Hewlett-Packards current development. These wrist-watches by HP will boast flexible display screens that will show up a load of information besides the time, including maps and strategic information to aide soldiers in combat. The watch, known as the Dick Tracy will use a plastic screen. Soaking in the sun will help power up the watch and have it ticking. The prototype of the watch will be up and functioning in a year by HP. For starters, the U.S. military will use the Dick Tracy (named after the comic-strip detective with his awesome wristwatch) on a small group of soldiers first, who are bound to enjoy the technology, before spreading out to the entire force. The flexible plastic display, unlike the usual glass ones is also unbreakable, and can withstand the shocks of a battle field. Dick Tracy is yet another green addition for the U.S. military, this time in the form of wrist-watches

MicroGREEN, developer of the Ad-air technology that makes this possible, can use different types of plastic resins and expand them for use in various applications. This expansion technology means that as little as 20 percent of the typically required amount of plastic can be used to create a traditional solid plastic.

Inventors with the Agricultural Resource Service, the chief scientific research agency for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, have discovered a way to turn common starches such as potatoes, wheat and corn into a polystyrene substitute. Polystyrene, also know as plastic #6, is used in products such as packing and construction materials, as well as disposable dinnerware. This new finding may offer a way to replace non-biodegradable polystyrene with a more eco-friendly alternative.

Veritas ResinArt plastic — By Blaine Brownell on October 16, 2009 at 8:00 am Veritas ResinArt is a fully interchangeable system of colors, patterns, textures, and materials within a multilayered, translucent PETG resin. Designed by Maybeth Shaw and manufactured by Schneller, Veritas is a customizable resin-based panel system—designers can create and order custom samples using a special tool on the Veritas website. Veritas ResinArt is ideal for a broad range of vertical and horizontal applications, such as doors, ceilings, desktops, and privacy screens. The material may be bent, cut, and fabricated with standard woodworking tools, is Class A fire-rated, and may be a lightweight and cost-effective alternative to glass. Veritas is made with recycled content and is fully recyclable. Moreover, the product is food safe, nontoxic, and manufactured at a solar-powered facility in Florida.

tweetmeme_url="http://cleantechnica.com/2009/11/02/us-company-transforms-algae-into-bioplastic-could-slash-petroleum-use-by-50/"; California-based company Cereplast has revealed that it is developing breakthrough technology to transform algae into bioplastics, and predicts that it could replace 50% or more of the petroleum content used in traditional plastic resins.

a "plywood replacement" panel material manufactured by British firm Environmental Recycling Technologies.

EcoSheet is manufactured from 75% recycled material, mostly waste electrical and electronic equipment, and can itself be recycled at the end of its useful life.

LumiSheet is the world's first unified BLU(Back Light Unit), which contains several reflected LEDs as a source of light unlike existing BLUs. For more complete information, a catalog is available below, or you can see more photos in the LumiSheet Gallery. Advantages:     • Available in 4mm and 8mm     • Long Lifetime: Over 50,000 hrs/11 years @ 12 hours a day     • 12 volt system uses 70% less power than T5 fluorescents     • Eco-Friendly: Contains no mercury or other heavy metals     • Waterproof: IP67 & IP68 Approved     • Custom Sizes up to 4'x8' with Quick Delivery Times     • Licensed LED's, Crystal Acrylic, UL, CE approved Applications:     • signage     • trade show and exhibition design     • sports and entertainment     • architecture and enviromental design     • point-of-purchase

The Center for Composite Materials has synthesized flexible/rigid polyurethane foams from soybean oil polyols. The advantage of these foams is that they can replace petroleum-based materials (synthetic polyols) and can be used for many applications. The morphology of the foams can be controlled by several factors: the type and functionality of the soybean oil polyols, the type of curing agents, the amount of water, and the amount of catalyst. Both flexible and rigid foams can be developed from vegetable oils by implementing different processes. The biocontent of the foams varies from 33 to 96 weight percent. The use of this biodegradable, locally harvested, and renewable source has economic and environmental advantages that make it an attractive alternative to petroleum-based materials.

Pepp acoustical panels are made with ARPRO, which is expanded polypropylene bead foam. Pepp panels are lightweight, structurally rigid, and are resistant to fire, water, and bacteria. Pepp panels make an ideal acoustic treatment and tackable surface for conference rooms, environmentally sensitive areas, performance spaces, classrooms, swimming pools, skating rinks, etc.

Alkemi feature, metals — By Blaine Brownell on September 28, 2009 at 8:00 am Alkemi is a recycled composite material composed of a minimum of sixty percent postindustrial scrap aluminum and polymeric resins for use as a solid surface material. It is strong, durable, and exquisite to the eye. Alkemi offers a fresh and innovative alternative to the traditional commercial options such as plastic laminate, stone, and glass. Alkemi may be sanded and buffed to a matte or a high-gloss surface, and the material can be cut and shaped using conventional woodworking tools.

Mushroom Roots Emerge As Eco Alternative to Styrofoam January 31, 2010 Move over Dow Chemical Co. Two recent engineering grads from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in Troy have invented a new sustainable packaging technology that will challenge expanded polystyrene foam used in packaging and building insulation (Styrofoam). While classmates were enjoying pub crawls, Eben Bayer and Gavin McIntyre were fascinated by mushrooms growing on wood chips. They saw how fungal mycelium (mushroom roots) bonded wood chips together, just like a matrix resin binds together prepregs.  In a class at Rensselaer called Inventors Studio, they used this idea to create a product now trademarked Greensulate. They take locally sourced agricultural byproducts such as rice hulls or cotton gin trash and use their now patent-pending process to introduce fungal mycelium. In 5-10 days loose agricultural byproducts are transformed into a rigid material that has similar material properties as synthetic foams like the expanded polystyrene invented by Dow in 1941. Greensulate and a packaging product called EcoCradle are aerobically and anaerobically compostable, which means they will biodegrade  in a garden, home compost pile or in a landfill. That’s a big plus compared to many plant-based plastics being proposed for packaging applications. There are no spores in the material. This stuff is even fire-safe. According to Bayer and McIntyre you can hold a blow torch up to Greensulate and it won’t catch on fire! They have a video on their Web site to prove it. Ok, what does it cost? They project costs will be competitive with expanded polystyrene foam or bubble wrap. But they haven’t scaled up the technology yet. They’re shipping samples, and are looking for partners to help them commercialize the technology. Their company, called Ecovative Design, is based near Troy, NY.