A fireworks maker and a university professor have teamed up in Japan to make what may be the world’s first water-soluble fireworks shells and canisters.

Ryukoku University professor Takahiko Nakaoki and Kakinoki Fireworks Industry Co. president Hiroyuki Kakinoki developed the product and brought it to market, according to the Mainichi Shimbun.

“Of the 20,000 fireworks (we plan to produce this year), I want 10,000 to be eco-friendly ones,” President Hiroyuki Kakinoki said, according to the Mainichi Shimbun.

Mr Kakinoki met Professor Nakaoki in 2018, when he had been trying to research and develop more environmentally friendly fireworks shells. The report said he later gave up that effort after repeated failures working with resins.

Instead of creating a new material, the new shells use a water-soluble resin that is already commonly used for agricultural seeds and soil improvers.

According to the report, the shell becomes sloughy like hot caramel when wet and can then vanish into the ecosystem through what it described as an already approved harmless medium.

The report said many Japanese fireworks displays are held near bodies of water, including large rivers, lakes and the ocean, which means most casings will vanish within hours.

Kraft paper is used to protect the shell from moisture during packaging and storage, but the water-soluble fireworks use about half as much paper as earlier products.

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