German Chemist Hans von Pechmann first synthesized Polyethylene by accident in 1898 by heating diazomethane. His colleagues characterized the waxy substance polyethylene due to the fact that they recognized that it consisted of long ethene chains. It was then first industrially synthesized by accident in 1933 by applying extremely high pressure to ethylene and benzaldehyde. Over the years, development of polyethylene has increased due to the additions of catalyst. This makes ethylene polymerization possible at lower temperatures and pressures.1 Polyethylene is a polymer that is made of a long chain of CH2 monomers bonded together. It is one of the most commonly used polymers in everyday items. Grocery bags, soap bottles, children’s toys, and even bullet proof vests are all made from polyethylene.2 This polymer is very versatile and can be used in many materials but this all depends on the way that the polymer is chemically made or enhanced. There are many different types of polyethylene classified by density and branching. 2 Higher density polyethylene is very linear and has no branching. Lower density polyethylene is a result of some of the carbon atoms bonding with other polyethylene chains instead of hydrogen atoms. Cross-linking is another way in which the polymer can be made stronger. This involves ultraviolet radiation that bombards the polymer with electrons and formulates bonds between the molecular chains of the polymers. This is like linear polyethylene but different in that it is more impact resistant, and it has a much higher density. This allows it to be stored or be used with different chemicals that would normally cause the polymer to desolve.3 This can start to become a problem because as the polymer continues to become chemically enhanced. So the ways of dissolving and recycling the polymer become more difficult. Other alterations such as dying the polymer are less cost efficient to recycle and can be more difficult as well. There are certain types of HDPE (high density polyethylene) that are blown into shapes such as bottles. Different chemicals are used in this process and therefore have to be separated into their own category when recycling. The reason people have moved away from landfill dumping and moved towards recycling is due to the fact that it is much more cost effective to recycle compared to paying engineers and environmentalist to designing landfills.4 The HDPE can also be mechanically recycled through curb side pick ups.
The purpose of this experiment was to create a polymer by reacting a mixture of decanedioyl dichloride and dichloromethane with a mixture of water, 1,6-hexadiamine and sodium carbonate. Specifically, we created the polymer Nylon-6,10. Nylon-6,10 polymers are used in a vast majority of things we use in everyday life such as zippers, the bristles in brushes, and even car parts. This experiment was different from the industrial method of making nylon because that takes place at a much higher temperature. A polymer is a substance that has a structure made of similar or identical units bonded together. All polymerizations fall into two categories: step-growth and chain-growth (both of which we used to form our polymer). Step growth polymerization
The most common form of polyethylene is petroleum based or olefins based; as before mentioned polyethylene compounds have a wide commercial applicability and are made from non-renewable resources (Harding, Dennis, von Blottnitz, Harrison, & S.T.L., 2007). Its manufacturing processes are regarded as energy intensive and release significant amount of CO2 and heat into the atmosphere (Broderick, 2008). Next a little more detailed description of polyethylene’s production processes will be presented, with a focus on the way the material inputs are extracted and synthesized.
The process of recycling is costly and if the polymer contains other type of material then it can contaminate the whole melted batch. The recycled product did not have good strength and may not last longer. The recycling sites are very unhygienic and spreading disease and other harmful chemical and waste.
Since the early 1900’s, many different plastics have been developed, each having a special characteristic or advantage that makes it good for various purposes. Some plastics stood heat better, while some withstood shock better. Some could be spun into thread from making fabrics such as nylon. In 1938, Du Pont publicly announced the new synthetic fiber, nylon. The memo, that went out announcing nylon, defined “Nylon is the generic name for all materials defined scientifically as synthetic fiber-forming polymeric amides having a protein-like chemical structure; derivable from coal, air and water, or other substances and characterized by extreme toughness and strength and the peculiar ability to be formed into fibers and into various shapes such as bristles, sheets, etc” (138, 139).
Polystyrene is a thermoplastic polymer which is the third most important polymer which is synthetically prepared from the styrene of monomers which is petrochemical liquid. It can be hard or can b soft foamed. It is inexpensive resin that’s why it is clear, brittle and hard. The excellent processing and physical properties make this thermoplastic material very suitable that’s why it is used in many applications. It is a vinyl polymer which has long hydrocarbon chain and phenyl group attached to every other carbon atom. It is formed or produced by polymerization of vinyl which should be a free radical. This polystyrene is a component of type of hard rubber which is also called poly(styrene-butadiene-styrene). Polystyrene will take more volume in landfill than paper and enter the environment again and again when water or any mechanical force breach landfills. We can also say that it performed many functions as a monomer which is to be found in many different polymers. As estimated that the 17-21 million tons of polystyrene is produced yearly.
With new technology and different resources that make human life easier, there are increased problems for the environment and wildlife. Plastic was a huge discovery and it has changed everyday life since then. Plastic has a low cost and has replaced many traditional products such as wood and glass. Because of their wide variety of uses, plastics are used throughout the entire world. This poses problems with how to safely dispose of plastics and the damage they cause when they are not disposed of properly.
Polypropylene is one of those most versatile polymers available with applications, both as a plastic and as a fiber, in virtually all of the plastics end-use markets.[3]
All of the paper-making and plastic-making could be slow to degrade. Paper can be degrade in different time due to how it was made. Usually, it takes about few months, yet it is possible that you can still find the 50-years-old newspapers in landfills.(Thomas) However, plastic takes even longer to degrade. Plastic usually don't degrade the way that paper does. Plastic will not rot like paper did and become organic stuffs that could be reuse to our environment. Furthermore, plastic will only break into small pieces and fly cross everywhere in the air. According to the article, "Plastic bags versus paper bags" Thomas mentions that "recycling a plastic bag requires 91 percent less energy than recycling a paper bag."
These synthetic polymers can be produced in a wide variety, such as common plastics, nylons, or the surface of a non-stick frying pan. These man made polymers have a disadvantageous impact on the ecosystems. Polymers are often used in almost everything because of their physical properties like strong, resistant to corrosion, easy to shape, colour, and inexpensive. It is inexpensive for the users but leaves a huge scar to the environment that is very expensive to cover up. Petroleum is the main raw source of these polymers.
Polymers are made from relatively small molecular fragments known as monomers that are joined together. Synthetic polymers which include the large group known as plastics are divided into three groups: commodity thermoplastic, engineering thermoplastics (ETP), and advanced engineering thermoplastics (AETP). The engineering thermoplastics (ETP) have heat resistance, strong mechanical properties, lightness, self-lubrication, and easy manufacturing. This plastic category has been lately used to replace wood and metal applications.
...ns. Plastics help in many ways. They hold the liquids we drink out of, the containers we use for storage, the hangers we put our clothes on, parts in cars, and everything in between. I do not support pollution but I support recycling. I don’t support pollution because like I stated in the paragraph above, when people throw plastics out the window it endangers animals and causes death among the raises of the different species. The moment a plastic Kroger bag is thrown out the window of a car a bird picks it up and flies with it, then there is a possibility that it could get wrapped around its neck and the bird is strangled and now dead. I do support recycling because it is a better way to save energy and take care of waste in a safer way. Recycling compacts what would be a huge mound of trash into a small compactable reusable substance. Also it saves time and energy.
... our impact on the earth is to prevent any type of waste that poisons the environment. We need to use less materials in design and manufacture, keep products for longer (re-use), and use less hazardous chemicals (Brackett, 2013). During the recycling process a few steps need to be covered; checking, cleaning, repairing, refurbishing, repair, whole items or spare parts. The wastes become brand new products, the only problem we encounter is the fact that every time a substance is recycled it loses quality. Many plastics cannot be recycled repetitive times because companies do not want to buy poor quality materials. This is called “down cycling”.
Most plastic recycling companies focus on a few specific types of plastic to recycle, targeting specific production facilities and consumer groups to collect that plastic locally. For example, B & B Plastics INC, located in California, is on of the United States’ largest plastic recycling companies, recycling 136,000 tons per year. B & B only recycles HDPE, LDPE, HIP, and GPPS plastics. The next largest company in the U.S. is B. Schoenberg & Co. Inc, located in New York, which process 115,000 tons of recycled material per year. Their primary focus is on flexible PVC, ABS, HMW-HDPE, and Ethylene(7). A full list of the largest plastic recycling companies in the U.S. and Canada is provided in Figure 1, attached in the
Recycling. It is highly beneficial that polymers are reusable after recycling because this property reduces the demand for crude oil and disposal problems. On the other hand, this activity is highly expensive and difficult to