Prized for their sweet and mild flavour, lobsters are a highly-priced Canadian delicacy.
But new research shows the crustaceans' oft-discarded shells may also serve a purpose in entirely different industries: manufacturing and electricity.
A researcher at the University of British Columbia has been experimenting with lobster shells, or exoskeletons, and has found a way to turn them into something useful.
Chemist Mark MacLauchlan has found a way to turn the exoskeletons of lobsters, crabs and shrimp into biomaterials, plastics and batteries. MacLauchlan's experiments were conducted using discarded shells from restaurants and staff who enjoy shellfish dinners.
The ocean dwellers' shells are mostly made up of a biomaterial called chitin, a semi-transparent substance also found in the exoskeletons of insects.
A UBC statement explained that scientists can remove calcium carbonate and protein from the lobster shells, leaving behind a film of chitin. If the chitin is heated up, the nitrogen, hydrogen and oxygen from the chitin burn off, leaving behind carbon. Carbon is an essential component of batteries.
Chitin is biodegradable, renewable, and currently discarded as waste by home cooks, restaurants and the seafood industry. The biomaterial is one of the most widely available in the world, UBC said, and can be found in some fungi in addition to shellfish and insects.
In addition to its use in batteries, chitin can be used to make biodegradable plastics. Its natural iridescence gives a decorative quality to the plastics created at UBC.
Chitin can also be used to make medical supplies like bandages and surgical thread, UBC said.
"The advantage of chitin over plant-based materials, such as cotton, is that it can be modified for different applications," UBC said.
"It also has considerable strength, which could be important for sutures and other applications."
