Abstract:

There is a need to generate a change in production paradigms and orient them towards a circular economy model that aims to reduce waste by revaluing it through design and technology. That is why the Department of Innovation and Entrepreneurship of the Universidad Tecnológica designed the course Co-creating Bioplastics and their Applications in Digital Manufacturing.

The general objective of this virtual course was to bring participants closer to bioplastics, experiment with them, and promote the development of new materials that contribute to the circular economy. With a focus on "learning by doing", once the basic notions about bioplastics were introduced, participants from different regions of the country worked with different recipes and developed some bioplastics experimentally in their homes.

As a result, participants were able to create a wide variety of products made with bioplastics from food waste such as yerba mate, coffee, chamomile tea, passion fruit tea, dried leaves and flowers, orange zest, etcetera. In addition, in the experimental process, some of the physicochemical properties of the products created were evaluated and recorded, including organoleptic properties (texture, color, thickness, and aroma), and mechanical properties (elasticity, flexibility, tenacity), opacity and impermeability. It is important to mention that the characterization of the products was also carried out at home, so strategies were proposed to carry out these activities. Likewise, the students had to project possible applications of the products generated by making some prototypes with the materials created.

Through this educational practice, it was possible to develop various 21st-century skills: decision making, problem-solving, development of research skills, integration and synthesis of information, effective communication, and creativity.

Finally, it is worth mentioning that the course arose from the collaborative work between teachers with common interests and from different disciplines, creating as a result of a very nourishing and motivating group learning process to continue developing activities on the subject.

Keywords:

Bioplastics, Digital manufacturing, 21st-century skills.