h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

We use an awful lot of oil for internal combustion, so obviously finding a solution to our locomotive needs seems not unreasonably to be occupying the minds of our scientists.

Question is, what will we make stuff out of when we've run out of the raw materials for all our plastics?

Plastic will be made from plastic. We will have to turn to 100% or recycleing.

Or their is always natural rubber, from rubber trees, someone who know more about chemistry will have to tell you how feasable that is but I guess thats what SEx if for.

Can't cannabis be used as a basis for carbon based synthetic products?
I know the fibres are being used for clothing and rope and such.
But I think I read somewhere that it would also be a cheap material to use for making plastics and such.

You can make an awful ot of plastics from ethanol which can be got from renewable plant matter.

It isn't possible to do 100% recycling - there is *always* waste heat and other byproducts that make any process inefficient to some extent. Recycling most (or at least at lot of) plastics uses more energy than it took to make them in the first place. This can make recycling counterproductive if it isn't done intelligently.

I think that in 200 years or so they'll be mining the landfill sites looking for recyclable but discarded plastics....

It may not be possible to recycle 100% of plastic but is is possible to have 100% of the plastic we use made by recycling. Obviously this would mean an ever dwindelling supply but it would eek it out alot longer.
On the issue of the energy cost, if the choice is use more energy or not have plastic then we may be forced to use more energy. This may not be the ecolocly friendly option but it may be our only option.

"then we may be forced to use more energy. This may not be the ecolocly friendly option"

Only if the energy comes from a non-renewable sources.

Also starch can be used to make a plastic like substance. You can buy pens where the plastic part is made from starch. Which also means nibbling your pen is a lot healthier.

We use far too much plastic as it is. Packaging can be replaced with paper and cardboard, which is often better than the plastic. For example, fresh bread, vegetables etc should never be put in plastic bags.

Wood is a good substitute for plastic in many places such as televisions and larger items. Metal can be used for small fiddly items.

Wood is also good in cars - remember those station wagons?

In Belgium, for rock festivals, the brewery of ALKEN-MAES, has distributed cups from a plastic that is made from corn. It is also bio-degradable. When they used regular plastic, the whole terrain had be cleaned of all plasic cups, now they can just leave them there and 50 days later, the cups are gone.

you can find more here:

http://www.scottish-newcastle.com/snplc/rsp/environment/casestudy/#3