Bioplastic from Plant Starch

Sunday, 24 September 2023 12:46 pm

BIOPLASTICS - a plastic material produced from renewable and biodegradable sources.

○ Made from biomass such as vegetable fats and oils, cornstarch, straw,
woodchips, sawdust, recycled food waste, etc.

TYPES OF BIOPOLYMERS & SOURCES

○ Polylactic Acid (PLA) - obtained from fermented plant starch from corn, cassava,
sugar cane or beet.

○ Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) - extracted from bacteria, which produce it via the

fermentation of sugars or liquids

○ Thermoplastic Starches (TPS) - from plant materials that are heated with water
then mixed with plasticizers or other polymers.

EVERYDAY USES OF BIOPOLYMERS

○ Biodegradable coffee cups are attached with PLA to make the paper on it
waterproof.

○ PLA has the second largest production volume of any biopolymer (behind TPS).
It is also used in plastic films, bottles, and food containers.

○ PLA and TPS both find use in the manufacture of plastic cutlery that's
biodegradable.

○ TPS is also used in food waste bags and some magazine wrappers. PHAs have
fewer uses, but have medical uses such as surgical sutures.

ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF BIOPOLYMERS

○ Use of bioplastics is increasing, but they still account for less than 1% of the
global market (as of 2018).

○ Compostable plastics need specific conditions to break down - and take much
longer to do so completely if they go to landfill instead of being recycled. However
they still break down faster than conventional plastics.

○ Biodegradable plastics are more expensive than plastics derived from fossil fuels
on weight basis, and require land to grow raw materials. However, the
greenhouse gas emissions associated with their production are lower.

POLYMERS - large molecules consisting of many repeating units, called monomers (like
glucose).

- ALL plastics are considered polymers.

○ Starch (C6H10O5)n - found in seeds, tubers and roots of plants such potatoes,
corn, and cassava.

▪ Amylose - not branched but helical in configuration with a hollow core.

CHEM 86L Page 1

 ▪ Amylopectin - highly branched

POLYMERIZATION - a process of reacting monomer molecules together in a chemical

reaction to form polymer chains or three-dimensional networks.

- In the experiment, when vinegar was added to the starch mixture. Vinegar links the
starches together to aid in forming a gel-like texture and structure and make it
translucent (when the mixture is heated).

ADDITIVES IN THE BIOPLASTIC'S PHYSICAL PROPERTY

- They improve the plasticity and toughness of the polymer

○ Glycerol - creates a less brittle polymer

○ Agar-agar powder - improves hygroscopic property of plastic and makes it elastic

and biodegradable.

Note: "Hygroscopic" means ability to absorb moisture from the environment.

TENSILE TEST - used to compare the strength of samples by finding the force needed to
break the plastic.

CHEM 86L Page 2

 1 Pa (pascals) = 1 x 10-6 MPa (megapascals)

- A dog bone shape is cut out to the samples to assure the thinner part of it will break
and increase consistency in the data.

CHEM 86L Page 3