Formulation to obtain a biodegradable polymer

from
yucca starch, variety MBRA 383
Abstract
Plastic is the main industrial product causing high volumes of non-biodegradable waste due to
the strong
chemical linkages that result during its preparation and to the fact that its raw materials are
derived from
petroleum. This article presents an option to minimize this problem through the preparation of a
biodegradable
polymer from isocyanate (alcoholic compound) and its reinforcement or substitution by using
yucca starch,
raw material of vegetable origin that provides the same chemical characteristics to obtain a
biodegradable
polymer without altering or increasing the polymeric expansion

BACKGROUND
The man, from the earliest stages of social development, has used resources
land for survival and progress without the waste has raised it a significant
problem, as the world population was sparse and the land available very
extensive. However, indiscriminate waste generation and the current level of
awareness that society has on the ecology have forced it to seek new
technologies that provide more environmentally benign products
ambiente.Aunque industrial development is relatively recent -only took place, a
major scale at the beginning of last the first applications of plastic were made
in the first half of the nineteenth century.
US and Germany were the first to develop and market products such as PVC1
(1920-1940). Until 1945 the industrialization process was characterized by
plastic a precarious commercial scale production and use of raw materials of
origin natural, from which was obtained celluloid.
Today, countries like Japan and Germany, among others, are pioneers in the
production of biodegradable materials. In Colombia the first plastics processing
industries appeared at the end thirties, shortly before World War II. During this
period the industrialization process was slow due to the difficulty of acquiring
raw materials the outside.
Over time, plastic products went from being something exotic to be an integral
part of human life by replacing traditional non-renewable materials, renewable
and its versatility, hygiene, its resistance, its duration and its economy. Today
our country produces low density polyethylene, polypropylene, polyvinyl
chloride, polystyrene and polyester and imports other polymers, which are
generally used to food protection.
However, high levels of contamination require plastic industries bouquet

developing biodegradable products, as is the case of polymers derived

cassava-starch having similar industrial qualities as well as being raw material
of low cost and good quality
Synthetic Polymers
Known generically as plastic, they are obtained from various substances
vegetable and mineral origin. From the simplest to the most complex they have
He had a vast knowledge and have been used in almost all areas of human
activity, due to its multiple applications and the wide range of properties
exhibited;
for example, food preservation have been used directly and packaging,
containers and packaging.
Also, in combination with other materials, they have been used successfully in
structures flexible complex, which have as their fundamental objective the best
features barrier against the agents of deterioration.
The plastic is produced from basic raw materials, called monomers, 2 subject
specific chemical reactions (polymerization, polyaddition and policondenzacin)
in particular conditions. Commercialization is in the form of powders, granules,
flakes, liquids or suspensions, which will then be processed to obtain materials
intermediate (films, sheets, tubes, etc.) or fully finished products (bags,
containers, bottles).
Among the polymer prepared by the producer and the material reaches the
processor or converter, there is a step which includes adding modifiers serve to
impart properties to the polymers or improve existing ones; ie make plastics
more flexible (with the use of plasticizers), lightfastness and heat (with the use
of stabilizers), strong and impact resistant, colored by pigments, etc.
Companies that provide additives They are generally the same polymer
production.
The formulation of the base resin (polymer blend with additives) is usually
performed by the producer. However, there are many inverters that are in
ability to carry out their own formulations from certain elements.
BIOPOLYMERS
Biodegradable plastics are a promising alternative, especially for cookware
They are having reduced or are not practical to recycle, as food wrappers life.
In some cases their degradation products (methane, methanol) can be reused
and the remaining material transformed into organic carbon to the soil, that
closes the cycle of clean production.
Not to be confused biodegradable plastics (which may be produced from oil
and subsequently be degraded by microorganisms) with biopolymers, produced

from starch, cellulose or three bacteria. It is essential, however, that

thebiopolymer production does not involve the use of genetically modified
organisms or patents on these living beings.
POLYMERIZATION
This basic chemical reaction of the plastics small molecules bind (Monomer or
dimer) to give rise to macromolecules (polymers). Not all polymerizations take
place in the same manner.
A pass to the release of small molecules (eg water), and others not, as in
addition polymerizations.
In most cases, the polymerization is controlled to obtain syrupy in the
macromolecule, at which time it is poured into a mold, where it ends site the
reaction.
Composition and structure starch
The starch generally contains about 20% of a water-soluble substance called
amylose and 80% of an insoluble known as amylopectin. Both fractions They
correspond to two different carbohydrates, high molecular weight. Both
amylase as amylopectin are made up of units of D - (+) - glucose, but differ in
size and form (see Table 1).
Classification of polymers
By origin
- Natural. They can occur in nature (plant and animal kingdom), for example:
cellulose, natural rubber, resins, starch and others.
- Semisynthetic. Obtained by chemical processing of natural polymers, without
destroying appreciably their macromolecular nature, for example: artificial silk
obtained from cellulose.
- Synthetic. They are obtained by purely synthetic route from substances under
weight molecular, v. g., nylon. According to their molecular structure
- Linear. Made up of long chains of macromolecules unbranched. - Branched.
Consisting of macromolecules in which the main chain It has a number of side
branches.
- Crosslinked. Their component macromolecules formed from chain and
branches entwined in the three dimensions of space.
According forming reactions
- Polymerized. Their macromolecules are formed by the union of unsaturated
monomer molecules; for example, polyethylene.
- Polycondensates. Multifunctional links are generated between the
macromolecules, separation of a product with low molecular weight; for
example, nylon, protein, etc.

Methodological development
Pre-selection of starch For this research different starches were used in
accordance with the varieties of cassava. And in this choice he played an
important role the genebank of the International Center for Tropical Agriculture
-CIAT- which has more than 6,000 varieties of cassava, of which 600 of them
are the most representative.
CIAT, through Cassava Improvement Project, provided enough information the
different varieties to select the most appropriate, according to the following
characteristics:
- Content. Important for the formation of a biodegradable polymer element and
the Once the polymer expansion increases.
- High field production. It allows for continuous and satisfactory availability
commodity.
- Production area. Keep in mind the ideal locations for the development of the
tuber. The most suitable areas for the selection of the varieties are: Valle del
Cauca, Quindio, among others.
Understanding
stages of preparation of the polymer in the preparation of polymer worked with
two formulas: The first constant maintains petroleum, varying amounts starch.
The latter varies both the amounts of starch and derivatives oil.
To select the most appropriate formulation, a statistical experimental design
was made with 95% confidence. In the election they are taken into account
degradability and polymer expansion.
Results obtained
Evaluation of the biopolymer from densities for the two formulaciones The
polymer obtained must be biodegradable but additionally must submit a good
polymer expansion; that is, the greater volume that can acquire the foam,
according to the applied formulation. From this relation, the formulation is
determined better performance. For the above density of each of the polymers
obtained in each formulation it was found. The relationship between expansion
and density polymer is inversely proportional; that is, the higher the polymer
expansion, the lower the density value, as shown in Tables 2 and 3. According
to the results obtained from statistical experimental design, formulation 1 for
selected test sulfuric acid degradability
Qualitative evaluation of degradability using sulfuric acid The observation
period lasted twenty days during which they presented interesting changes in
polymers.

Revista cientfica Guillermo de Ockham. Vol. 3, No. 2. Julio-Diciembre de 2005 ISSN: 1794-192X