Each year millions of tonnes of plastic ends up in the sea, and while some recyclable plastics do exits, the waste can take more than 500 years to break down at all.

Credits: Unsplash; Author: @naja-bertolt-jensen;

Made from ionic monomers linked by reversable salt bonds, the material is strong, recyclable, and does not generate microplastics, offering a potential solution to single-use plastics as production is expected to double by 2050.