Material Worlds – new permanent exhibition at Technical Museum Vienna

The new permanent exhibition ‘Material Worlds’ at the Vienna Technical Museum invites visitors to discover materials in all their facets – from raw material extraction to recycling – across an area of around 3,000 square metres.

Thirteen themed islands with over 400 exhibits show how much materials shape our everyday lives. Inspired by the smartphone as a symbol of our complex material world, the exhibition focuses in particular on renewable raw materials. Researchers from BOKU University have also contributed their expertise.

Biological recycling of plastic

In the ‘Plastics’ section, the exhibition showcases pioneering approaches to recycling. The aim is to design plastics in such a way that they can be recycled more easily. Doris Ribitsch and Georg Gübitz from the Institute of Institute of Environmental Biotechnology at BOKU are researching microorganisms that break down plastics using enzymes. These enzymes break down plastic into its basic components, enabling new plastics to be produced from them without any loss of quality.

On display are cosmetic packaging made from 100% recycled PET and edible or compostable packaging made from algae. An exciting glimpse into the biotechnological circular economy of the future.