Polymer & the Environment (KEJ4604)

Semester II 2015/2016Date of Presentation: 19 May 2016

Group 10Members:

Ooi Phik Fong UK30717Chong Shin Yong UK30732Chua Kim Choon UK30777

Today’s Topic• Biodegradable polymer

o Hydro-biodegradable polymer

• Biodegradable copolymero Graft copolymero Block copolymer

• Biodegradable compositeo PLAo PHAso Thermoplastic starch

What Is Biodegradable Polymer?

• Biodegradable polymer degrades quickly when compared to non-biodegradable polymer.

• Their by-products are eco-friendly (, Water, Methane).

Life Cycle of Biodegradable Polymer

Types of Biodegradable

Polymer

Types

Photo-biodegradable polymers

Photolytic polymers

Hydro-biodegradabl

e polymer

Peroxidisable polymers

Hydro-Biodegradable Polymers

• Hydro-biodegradable polymers undergo hydro-biodegradation.

• Hydro-biodegradation is initiated by hydrolysis.

Hydro-biodegradation

Hydro-biodegradable Plastics

• It is not applicable.

• reasons:o It is made from fossil fuel derived polymers and starch.o It cannot be made from recyclateo It emits rapidly while degradingo Can be incinerated, but gives lower calorific valueo Four/five times more expensive than conventional

plastics

• Therefore, we suggest oxo-biodegradable plastics!

Oxo-biodegradable Plastics

• It will degrade in the presence of oxygen, and the process is accelerated by UV and HEAT.

• It can be recycled during its useful life with normal plastics.

Why Choose Oxo-biodegradable plastics ?

Oxo-biodegradable plastics Hydro-biodegradable plasticsUsually made from a by-product of oil-refining

Made from fossil fuel-derived polymers and starch

Can be made from recycled plastic

Cannot be made from recyclate

Emits CO2 slowly while degrading and forms biomass

Emits CO2 rapidly while degrading

Can be incinerated with high energy-recovery

Can be incinerated, but lower calorific value

Little or no on-cost Four or five times more expensive than conventional plastics

Polymer VS Copolymer• A long/large molecule

consisting of a chain or network of many repeating units called monomer (same or identical units)

Polymer

• A polymer derived from more than one species of monomer.

Copolymer

Types of Biodegradable

Copolymer

Types

Block Copolyme

rs

Graft Copolyme

rs

Graft Copolymers• A special type of branched copolymer in which

the side chains are structurally distinct from the main chain.

Graft Copolymers• 3 common methods to synthesis graft

copolymer:o Grafting-Onto Methodo Grafting-From Methodo Grafting-Through Method

Grafting-onto Method• Coupling reaction between functional backbone

and the end groups of the branch.

Grafting-from Method• Backbone is chemically modified to introduce

active sites.• These active sites form branch by

copolymerization

Grafting-through Method

• It is also known as macro-monomer method.• A lower molecular weight monomer is

copolymerized with a macro-monomer in the presence of an initiator or catalyst.

Applications of Graft Copolymer

• Membranes for the separation of gases or liquids.

• Hydrogels

• High Impact polystyrene (HIPS)

• Thermoplastic elastomerHIPS

High Impact Polystyrene (HIPS)

• A low cost, plastic material that is easy to fabricate.

• Often used for low strength structural applications.

• It is produced by dissolving elastomeric polymer in styrene and polymerized it.

• Advantages:o Good impact resistanceo Excellent machinabilityo Good dimensional stabilityo Low cost Polystyrene backbone

Elastomer

Block Copolymer• A long sequence of one monomer/block is joined

to a block of the second monomer.

Block Copolymer Mechanism

Block 1Block 2

Applications of Block Copolymer

• Example: Kraton

• Kraton is a high performance elastomer.

• Uses:o It is used as synthetic replacement for rubber.o It can blends with various other ingredients to

improve the product’s performance. • Kraton blends with asphalt to make it more

flexible - coating for F1 racing track.

Biodegradable Composite

• A composite material form by a matrix (resin) from and a reinforcement of natural fiber.

• Characteristics:o Biodegradableo Renewable & recyclable sourceso Lower manufacturing costs

Types of Bio-composite

Types

Poly-lactide (PLA)-natural

fiber composite

Thermoplastic starch-natural

fiber composite

Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs)-natural

fiber composite

Poly-lactide (PLA)• Referred as ‘bio-plastic ‘ because of it

environmentally friendly nature• ‘processed’ from the starch of plants

such as corn, sugar cane and sugar beet• Take only FIVE years to decompose• It decay as it expose to UV rays of

sunlight and O2 and forming C02 and H2O.

Examples of poly-lactide products

Polyhydroxyalkanoates, PHAs

• Linear polyesters produced in nature by bacterial fermentation of sugar or lipids.

• Produced by the bacteria to store carbon and energy.

• More than 150 different monomers can be combined within this family to give materials with extremely different properties.

Thermoplastic starch• Starch based- plastic• Formation of it requires disruption of

starch granules and their supra-molecular structures, dissociation of complexes with lipids and melting of crystals with the assistance of added water.

• Suitable material for the production of drug capsules by the pharmaceutical sector

AdvantagesComposite Material

PLA PHAs Thermoplastic Starch

• Low cost• Abundant

resources• Low density• High specific

properties• Lack of residue

upon incineration

• Renewable resources

• Increase tensile strength

• Increase tensile strength

• Less humidity absorbance

• Light weight

References• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copolymer• Antoniou, D. (2010). Hydro-degradable polymers.

Retrieved from http://www.e-telescope.gr• Green Club Inc. (n.d.). Comparison of Oxo-

Biodegradable and Hydro-Biodegradable Plastics. Retrieved from http://www.greenclubinc.com

• Sahari, J., & Sapuan, S.M. (2011). Natural Fibre Reinforced Biodegradable Polymer Composites.

Journal of Advanced Material Science, 30, 166- 174. Retrieved from http://www.ipme.ru

• http://chemwiki.ucdavis.edu/Core/Organic_Chemistry/Polymers/Copolymers

References• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxo_Biodegradable• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graft_polymer• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biocomposite• Lu, D. R., Xiao, C. M., & Xu, S. J. (2009). Starch-based

completely biodegradable polymer materials. Journal of eXPRESS Polymer Letters, 3(6), 366-375

• Nzioki, Bernice, “BIODEGRADABLE POLYMER BLENDS AND COMPOSITES FROM PROTEINS PRODUCED BY ANIMALS CO-PRODUCT INDUSTRY”(2010). All These. Paper 817

• Oxo-biodegradable Plastic Association. Types of Degradable Plastic. Retrieved from www.biodeg.org

~Thank You~