Chemistry Project

Name
Teachers Name

: N. Ahmed Ishhaq
: MR.K. Subramaniam

School

: Pushpalata Vidya Mandir

Class

: XII - A

Project

: Biodegradable Plastics

Certificate
This is to certify that N. Ahmed Ishhaq of
class XII of Pushpalata Vidya Mandir, Tirunelveli
has completed his project file under my
guidance. She has taken proper care and shown
utmost sincerity in the completion of this project.
I certify that this project is upto my
expectation and is as per the guidelines issued
by CBSE.

K. Subramaniam

Acknowledgement
I would like to express my special thanks to
my teacher Mr. k. Subramaniam as well as our
principal, Mrs. Pushpaveni Ayyapan who has
given me a golden opportunity to do this project
on the topic Biodegradable plastics which helped
me in doing a lot of researches and gain
knowledge on different areas for which I am very
thankful to them.
Secondly, I would also like to thank my
parents and friends who helped me for finalizing
this project within the limited time frame.

Contents

Cover page
Certificate
Acknowledgement
Contents
Introduction
Biodegradable Plastics
Advantages
Disadvantages
Examples
Experiments

Introduction
Biodegradable plastics have an expanding range
of potential applications, and driven by the growing
use of plastics in packaging and the perception
that biodegradable plastics are environmentally
friendly their use is predicted to increase.
However, issues are also emerging regarding the
use of biodegradable plastics and their potential
impacts on the environment and effects on
established recycling systems and technologies.

Harmful effects of plastics on environment:

1. The light weight and high consumption of plastic
bags and their ability to persist for long periods of
time in the environment without decomposing
made them one of the main factors of pollution in
the open spaces, public squares, main roads
inside and outside cities, sea beaches and water.

2. The easy evaporation and wide use of plastic

bags also distort the general appearance of the
places where they are.
3. When plastic bags stick to trees and plants they
obstruct the natural light from reaching parts of the
plant causing impairment to the process of
photosynthesis.
4. Plastic bags cause diseases and even death to
the cattle that come across and eat them during
pasture.
5. Burying of plastic bags in soil makes an
insulating layer that keeps rainwater in the upper
part of the soil and prevents water and other
fertilizers from reaching its lower part.
6. Plastic bags create a fertile environment for the
growth of infectious bacteria.
7. Accumulation of plastic bags in water blocks the
irrigation canals and drainage networks.

Biodegradable Plastics
Biodegradable plastic is plastic that decomposes
naturally in the environment. This is achieved
when microorganisms in the environment
metabolize and break down the structure of
biodegradable plastic. The end result is one which
is less harmful to the environment than traditional
plastics. Biodegradable plastics can be composed
of bio-plastics, which are plastics made from
renewable raw materials. There are normally two
forms of biodegradable plastic, injection molded
and solid. The solid forms normally are used for

items such as food containers, leaf collection

bags, and water bottles
Making Biodegradable Plastic
Biodegradable plastics are made from all
natural plant materials. These can include:
corn oil, orange peels, starch, and plants.
Traditional plastic is made with chemical fillers
that can be harmful to the environment when
released when the plastic is melted down.
With biodegradable plastic, you get a
substance made from natural sources that
does contain these chemical fillers; they do
not pose the same risk to the environment.
The process of making biodegradable plastics

begins with the melting down of all the

materials. That mixture is then poured into
molds of various shapes such as plastic water
bottles and utensils.

Regular Plastic VS Biodegradable Plastic

After formation, regular plastics hold carbon.
When they are disposed of and begin to
decompose or when they are melted, that
carbon is then released into the atmosphere.
Biodegradable plastics do not release carbon,

because no carbon is involved in the

manufacturing process. Methane and other
forms of pollutants could also be released
from traditional plastic when they are recycled
and burned. This is not the case with
biodegradable plastics, which do not contain
those polluting materials. One of the many
positive aspects of biodegradable plastics is
that they are able to be broken down by
naturally occurring bacteria, which again will
be beneficial to the environment. Aside from a
slightly higher cost to produce, biodegradable
plastics hold many advantages over standard
plastics, with a lesser impact on the
environment being one of its greatest
advantages.

Advantages
1. Biodegradable plastics take less time to
break down
Biodegradable packaging and biodegradable bags
take much less time to break down after being
discarded, if they havent been recycled, of course.
What this means is that it gets absorbed in the
earth, and there will no longer be tons of plastic

dominating our landfills.

2. Biodegradable plastics are renewable
Biodegradable plastics are made from biomass,
which is a completely renewable resource. It is an
organic compound, which breaks down. There is
plenty of it around the globe. Biomass includes
trees, plants, grass, and all organic materials that
decompose. This may even include animal fats,
meats, and other tissues.

3. Biodegradable plastics are good for the

environment
Biodegradable plastics are much better for the
environment, because there is no harm done to
the earth when recovering fossil fuels. Also, in this
process there are very few greenhouse gas and
harmful carbon emissions. Regular plastics need
oil for their manufacturing, which pollutes the
environment.
4. Biodegradable plastics require less energy

to produce
Biodegradable plastics need less than half the
energy to produce than their non-biodegradable
counterparts. This means that it is possible to
make twice the amount of biodegradable
packaging and biodegradable bags using the
same amount of energy.
5. Biodegradable plastics are easier to recycle
Biodegradable plastics are created from materials
that are fully biodegradable. This means that they
can break down much faster and recycling them
takes less energy. Biodegradable plastics can be
reused more efficiently, which gives them a clear
advantage.
6. Biodegradable plastics are not toxic
Traditional plastics are full of harmful by-products
and chemicals, which are released during their
breakdown process. Biodegradable plastics are
completely safe and do not have any chemicals or
toxins. This plastic harmlessly breaks down and
gets absorbed into the earth. Such advantages of
bioplastics are of extreme importance, as the toxic
plastic load on the earth is growing and at this rate
will cause a whole range of problems for future
generations.

7. Biodegradable plastics reduce dependence

on foreign oil
The use of biodegradable plastics will decrease
the countrys dependence on other countries for
fossil fuels. The majority of the oil that is needed to
make regular plastic comes from the Middle East,
which has not always been friendly toward the
U.S. Biodegradable plastics are created from
domestic biomass materials, so it reduces the
dependence on foreign oil, providing a domestic
solution instead.

As you can see, these advantages of

biodegradable plastics are significant and of great
importance for the future of the planet. Plastics are
new to society - just a generation ago and plastic
consumption was a tenth of what it is now. For me,
researching into the advantages of bioplastics has
been an enjoyable process, as I am committed to
reducing the environmental pollution as much as I
can. The benefits of biodegradable products are so
clear that the next stage is for the public to
become more aware of the issue. Perhaps in a

generation ahead the oil-based plastic will have

had its day!

Disadvantages
1) The first and most obvious argument against
biodegradable trash bags is that they are simply
more expensive in comparison to conventional
plastic bags. This is because they require
innovative methods to create them, which brings
the cost up.

2) Another consideration against biodegradable

bags is that you have to have an actual composter
to make them biodegrade. This makes the whole
process look questionable: if they are
biodegradable, surely, they should be able to
biodegrade more naturally.
3) This brings us to the next big con of these
biodegradable rubbish bags is that you will not be
able to recycle them along with regular plastics.
These bags require special facilities for
composting them. So, even though they are
considered biodegradable, if they dont end up the
right place, they are as good as regular plastics.
Most of them end up in landfills anyway, where its
virtually impossible for them to biodegrade.

4) Biodegradable bags actually require more

energy, more water, and more carbon dioxide
emissions to produce than their conventional
polyethylene counterparts. This makes one
wonder whether the whole thing is actually worth
their purchase, since we are still harming the
environment in the process.
5) Some companies that market biodegradable
bags will actually deceive the consumer by
assuring that the bags will, in fact, biodegrade no
matter what.

Examples

Development of biodegradable containers

While aromatic polyesters are almost

totally resistant to microbial attack,
most aliphatic polyesters are biodegradable
due to their potentially
hydrolysable ester bonds:

Naturally
Produced: Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs)
like the poly-3-hydroxybutyrate (PHB),
polyhydroxyvalerate (PHV) and
polyhydroxyhexanoate (PHH);

Renewable Resource: Polylactic

acid (PLA);

Synthetic: Polybutylene
succinate (PBS), polycaprolactone (PCL)..

Polyanhydrides

Polyvinyl alcohol

Most of the starch derivatives

Cellulose esters like cellulose

acetate and nitrocellulose and their
derivatives (celluloid).

Enhanced biodegradable plastic with

additives.

Experiments
Science Project Details:

Decomposition of bio-degradable plastic spoons

Difficulty: Advanced 8
Time required: Very long (> 4
weeks)
1 hour to prepare, 31 days for
the science project
experiment
Availability of
materials: Readily available
Easily found
Required Skills: None

Abstract
This science fair project was done to evaluate the
rate of decomposition of bio-degradable plastic in
the natural environment. Biodegradable spoons
are supposed to decompose with time, but exactly
how soon does this process take place? The
experiment involved using disposable spoons
made from corn starch, wheat and plastic. These
spoons were planted in soil.

Hypothesis
Bio-degradable spoons lose some of their weight
as quickly as within 30 days after being kept in
soil.

Background
Bio-degradable plastic
Bio-degradable plastic materials are able to
degrade and decompose over time under natural
environmental conditions. The degradation of
these bio-degradable plastics is achieved by
allowing micro-organisms to metabolize on their
surface and decompose the plastic into smaller
parts and less harmful materials.
The decomposing of bio-degradable plastic can be
done by natural composting or in a landfill.
Moisture and oxygen are normally required for the
decomposition process to take place and these
conditions are readily available in most
composting facilities.

Some of the concerns over the use of biodegradable plastics are the release of carbon
dioxide during the decomposition process. The
release of carbon dioxide into the environment
contributes to the release of greenhouse gases,
which cause global warming. However most biodegradable plastics are made from natural plant
material? And these plants have consumed and
reduce carbon dioxide gas in our atmosphere.

Scientific Terms
Biodegradable, decomposition, microorganisms,
metabolize, composting, greenhouse gas

Materials
The materials required for this science fair project:
- 10 pieces corn starch based bio-degradable
spoons

- 10 pieces wheat-based bio-degradable spoons

- 10 pieces plastic spoons
- 1 digital weighing scale
- Soil, or a garden plot
- Water
- A black marker pen

Procedure
1. For this science fair project, the independent
variable is the type of spoon used ? Corn starch
based, wheat based and plastic. The dependent
variable is the amount of decomposition observed

after 30 days. This is determined by using the

digital weighing scale to measure the weight of the
spoons before and after the 30 days. The
constants (control variables) are the type of soil
used, the length of time allowed for decomposition,
the temperature and humidity.
2. 10 pieces of each of the corn starch-based biodegradable spoons, wheat-based biodegradable
spoons and plastic spoons are marked
accordingly, as?corn?, ?wheat? and?plastic?.
3. The total weight of each type of spoon is
checked using the digital weight scale. The total
weight for the 10 spoons is divided by 10 to obtain
the average spoon weight. The values are
recorded in the table given below.
4. The spoons are then planted inside a pile
of garden soil and left there for 30 days to
decompose. Ensure that each spoon is
surrounded entirely by soil, and ensure that soil
from the same bag/garden plot is thoroughly
mixed, and used to cover all of the spoons. The
soil is watered daily to keep it moist. After the 30
days, the spoons are removed from the soil and
cleaned under tap water. The spoons are then
allowed to dry in the sun for a day.
5. The average weight of the spoons is again

calculated as described in procedure 3 and the

results are recorded in the table below.

Observation
The results showed that the weight of the corn
starch based spoon and wheat based spoon had
reduced after 30 days in the soil but the weight of
the plastic spoon remained the same.
Spoon
material

Spoon decomposition after 30 days

Start
Finish
%
weight (g) weight (g) decomposition

Corn starch 4.1

3.2

21.95%

Wheat

5.6

4.9

12.50%

Plastic

3.1

3.1

0%

The chart below represents the results of our

science project experiment.

Conclusion
The hypothesis that biodegradable spoons lose
some of their weight after as little 4 weeks in the
soil, is proven to be correct. At 30 days, it was
evident that the corn starch-based spoons and the
wheat-based spoons had begun to decompose,
but this was not the case for the plastic spoons.
More than 20 million tons of plastic materials are
produced around the globe every year. Out of
these, only a small percentage is recycled. The
difficulty faced in the recycling of plastic material is
that most plastic waste matter comes mixed
together with other types organic wastes. The
process of separating the plastic from organic
waste is time consuming and costly. However, in
the case of bio-degradable plastics, the presence

of organic waste actually aids the process of

decomposition! Bio-degradable plastics may be a
good alternative to regular plastic, in order to
prevent the pollution of our environment.

Also consider
Try to repeat this science fair project, this time,
evaluating different environments for
decomposition, such as by immersing the plastic in
lake water or vegetable oil.
You could also try repeating the science project
with other types or brands of biodegradable
spoons, or by introducing specific species of
bacteria into the soil.