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All biodegradable polymers should be stable and durable enough for use in their particular application, but upon disposal they should easily break down. [citation needed] Polymers, specifically biodegradable polymers, have extremely strong carbon backbones that are difficult to break, such that degradation often starts from the end-groups.
Biologically-based polymers, sourced from non-fossil materials, can decompose naturally in the environment, whereas some plastics products made from biodegradable polymers require the assistance of anaerobic digesters or composting units to break down synthetic material during organic recycling processes. [40] [14]
Starch: Starch is an inexpensive biodegradable biopolymer and copious in supply. Nanofibers and microfibers can be added to the polymer matrix to increase the mechanical properties of starch improving elasticity and strength. Without the fibers, starch has poor mechanical properties due to its sensitivity to moisture.
Biodegradable technology is established technology with some applications in product packaging, production, and medicine. [31] The chief barrier to widespread implementation is the trade-off between biodegradability and performance. For example, lactide-based plastics are inferior packaging properties in comparison to traditional materials.
Polymer degradation is the reduction in the physical properties of a polymer, such as strength, caused by changes in its chemical composition.Polymers and particularly plastics are subject to degradation at all stages of their product life cycle, including during their initial processing, use, disposal into the environment and recycling. [1]
Some biodegradable polymers, their properties and degradation times can be found in Table 2 in this document. An example of the structure of some of the types of polymer degradation can be viewed in Fig. 1 in this article; Bellin, I., Kelch, S., Langer, R. & Lendlein, A. Polymeric triple-shape materials. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci.
Bioplastics can be made from proteins from different sources. For example, wheat gluten and casein show promising properties as a raw material for different biodegradable polymers. [41] Additionally, soy protein is being considered as another source of bioplastic. Soy proteins have been used in plastic production for over one hundred years.
Biodegradable additives can convert the plastic degradation process to one of biodegradation. Instead of being degraded simply by environmental factors, such as sunlight (photo-oxidation) or heat (thermal degradation), biodegradable additives allow polymers to be degraded by microorganisms and bacteria through direct or indirect attack.