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Turn Milk into Plastic!

Turn Milk into Plastic!
Contributors
Science Buddies
Non-profit organization offering free STEM resources for hands-on learning | Science Buddies
Green heart, 3 yellow beads and one smiley face bead.
Summary
"Plastic made from milk" —that certainly sounds like something made up. If you agree, you may be surprised to learn that in the early 20th century, milk was used to make many different plastic ornaments —including jewelry for Queen Mary of England! In this chemistry science project, you can figure out the best recipe to make your own milk plastic (usually called casein plastic) and use it to make beads, ornaments, or other items.

This project idea was developed and written by Sandra Slutz, PhD, Vice President of STEM Education, Science Buddies.

Science Buddies Staff. "Turn Milk into Plastic!" Science Buddies, 2 Feb. 2023, https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project-ideas/Chem_p101/chemistry/turn-milk-into-plastic. Accessed 27 Sep. 2023.
Keywords
STEM
Polymers
Chemistry
Chemistry Education
Chemical Engineering
Plastics
Milk
Casein
Science Project
Hands-on Learning
Monomers
Sustainable Chemistry

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Moderation state
Published
Object Type
Laboratory experiment
Activities/Technology (e.g., in-class activities, online games, hands-on activities/manipulatives, outreach, virtual tools, etc.)
Audience
Elementary School
Middle School
Published on
Green Chemistry Principles
Use of Renewable Feedstocks
Design for Degradation
U.N. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
Responsible Consumption and Production
NGSS Standards, if applicable
N/A
Learning Goals/Student Objectives
In this chemistry science project, you will investigate which is the best recipe for making plastic out of milk.
Common pedagogies covered
Hands-on learning
Time required (if applicable)
Very Short (≤ 1 day)

Submitted by

Science Buddies
Safety Precautions, Hazards, and Risk Assessment
This science project uses hot liquids. Adult supervision and/or help is needed.
Teacher Recommendations or Piloting Data (if available)
N/A
Other notes/information
N/A
Link to external
Science Buddies: Turn Milk into Plastic!
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.