INTRODUCTION
In conditions of lack of natural enemies, also as exponential scientific, technical and technological growth, some problems occurred that human kind wasn’t face earlier. With some actions that are taken, humans have succeeded to affect the ecosystem, unfortunately this effect was basically negative, and is manifested trough the climate changes or a nonrenewable resource waste.
All the needs of contemporary society, such as food, fuel, energy and materials, mostly depends on energy sources produced from nonrenewable resources that originates from fossil fuels, while the same time a total quantity of waste, that jeopardizes an ecosystem, increases (Sudesh & Iwata, 2008). Synthetic polymers are recognized as the most serious polluters in the category of a solid waste, whereas the large number of this kind of materials is resistant to physical and chemical degradation (Leja & Lewandowicz, 2010).
Due to good barrier performances, polymer materials have an intensive application in a packaging material production. It is assumed that packaging materials produced from polymer materials make more than 50 % of total packaging units (Jovanović & Džunuzović, 2011). According to that statistic, also as the earlier mentioned link between synthetic polymers and solid waste that represents an environmental threat, it becomes clear there is a need for alternative solutions in regards to packaging materials production. Therefore, degradation resistant synthetic polymers have focus a public attention towards the development of biodegradable polymers (Ashwin Kumar et al., 2011).
Biopolymer materials represent an alternative for conventional packaging materials, whereas the basic idea of their production is the savings of nonrenewable r...
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We have discussed various cell-wall associated biopolymers. Select one irregular biopolymer and describe its structural arrangements in the context of molecular and supramolecular level -- draw sketches. Indicate an experimental technique that could show how the biopolymer may respond to abiotic/environmental stresses
Recycling is the process by which a waste material is converted again into reusable process and disposal is a process by which we get rid of something. Polymers are not very reactive so this property makes them very useable for storing food but this property makes it difficult to recycle or dispose of polymer. This difficulty in recycling and disposing of polymer is a major cause of environment hazard. Since the waste of polymer is increasing day by day so proper measurement should be taken to reduce the use of polymer and different method should be made to properly dispose and recycle waste. Following are the process by which a polymer is recycled or disposed.
Kailas, Prof. Satish V. Material Science. Indian Institute of Science, Chapter 11. Applications and Processing of Polymers.
Landfills are being overrun with more than 15 million tons of discarded plastic a year. What if I told you there was a better way? Currently, many of our plastics such as bottles, packaging, and furniture are petroleum-based plastics. And while we do our best to recycle, this plastic is not completely biodegradable. I think there is a better choice, and that choice being polyhydroxybutyrate also known as PHB. “PHB is a product of bacteria storing carbon and energy in molecules of glycogen, which is polymer of glucose molecules or lipid.” (p.72) With little chemical alteration, PHB can be the “green” plastic that replaces petroleum-based plastics.
Vidal, J. (n.d.). 'Sustainable' bio-plastic can damage the environment | Environment | The Guardian . Latest news, comment and reviews from the Guardian | guardian.co.uk . Retrieved May 22, 2010, from http://www.guardian.co.uk/environm
Biodegradable polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) microbeads are soluble and can biodegrade in both aerobic and anaerobic environments. Substituting these PHA microbeads for the current PCB microbeads being used in exfoliates, cosmetics, and toothpaste would significantly minimize the potential threat that the current microbeads are posing.
Well did you know you not only get paid to recycle, but the environment as a whole benefits from this as well. Today recycling is a huge deal because the Environmental Protection Agency knows that if we don't mitigate or prevent trash from entering The Great Garbage Patches, they will only increase in size and become worse. All countries recycling percentages are anywhere between “0 percent to 63 percent being the highest.” Though these percentages are better than previous years there is much more room for improvement. With the recycling percentages remaining relatively low worldwide, many scientist and engineers have worked together to create biodegradable plastic. The two different types of biodegradable plastics are bioplastics themselves and plastics that use biodegradable additives. The questions is, how does creating bioplastics help prevent pollution in the ocean? Besides the fact that bioplastics can be decomposed, it’s also made up of natural materials such as corn oil and plants, instead of petroleum based raw materials. “2.65 kg of corn is needed in order to make 1 kg of polylactic acid”, which polylactic acid is the only known acid to make compostable plastic. These bioplastics also carry less toxins and do not consist of any Bisphenol A (BPA) or any of those harsh chemical pollutants found from the micro plastics that are currently in the ocean. Unfortunately, some bioplastics cannot be broken down as
Polymerization of cyclic esters has attracted a lot of interest for the synthesis of biodegradabale/ biocompatible polymeric materials, such as polylactide, polyglycolide and also other polymer compound such as linear polycarbonate. Ring opening polymerization of cyclic ester compounds is better than step polymerization for obtaining high Mw polymers in a controlled “living” fashion, while avoiding the formation of by-products.
Plastic industry has become of vital importance for the comfort and quality of our lives, due to numerous qualities as strength, lightness, low cost and durability. Their downside is the negative impact over the environment, due to the accumulating of millions of tons per year. Therefore, the development of biodegradable plastics seems a key issue for further development.
Figure. 2 gives a brief summary of the applications of biomass-derived degradable polymers. Nowadays, there are tremendous interest in research and using of biopolymers in packaging, civil engineering, biomedical and automotive mystery
Plastics are one of the most used materials on a volume basis in U.S. industrial and commercial use. Plastics are commonly into today’s lifestyle and make a major contribution to virtually all product areas. Although the plastics industry in the United States is now in its second century, the most important developments have occurred since 1910. The roots of these modern developments go back not only to the research of cellulose nitrate by John Wesley Hyatt in the 1860s, but also to the plastic-like compositions used by man through the centuries. Humans probably don’t realize how often we use plastics or use something that has plastic particles. From the bristles on our toothbrushes, to bulletproof vest, to fibers that help in the making textile clothes. As you can see plastics keep us clean, keep us safe, and keep us clothed. Plastics are a human’s most durable, colorful, best friend.
Millions of plastic bags are given out to consumers by supermarkets and stores to carry their goods in. They are also cheap, light, durable, easy to carry and in many cases, free. The most commonly used shopping bag is made of High Density Polyethylene (HDPE). This type is used in the majority of supermarkets and stores. After these bags are used, they often end up in landfills or as litter, roughly only three percent of plastic bags is actually recycled per year (Planet Ark, 2011). The materials used in making plastic bags make them non-biodegradable. According to the science dictionary, 2011 refers to “these materials cannot be decomposed into environmentally safe waste materials by the action of soil bacteria.” These harmful substances are toxic and take approximately four hundred years to break down, or in this case photo-degrade; which is how plastics made from (HDPE) break down. Since they are not biodegradable, they remain in the environment and are absorbed in soil or water (Indian Centre for Plastics in the Environment, 2010). This essay will discuss the various harmful effects of plastic bags, and demonstrate the risks that these bags impose on humans, animals and the environment. It will also discuss a series of suggested solutions that could help reduce plastic bag usage.
Polymers popularly coined as “plastics” have proved their importance in different areas like FMCG, pharma, automobiles, etc. Plastics are versatile materials with unique properties like high strength to weight ratio, good aesthetics; good Processability, balanced engineering properties and optimum cost led its entry into medical
Green Packaging: Nano fibres can be constructed from organic corn or lobster shells and are both antimicrobial and biodegradable.