Degradable Petroleum-Based Biopolymers

Biodegradable biopolymers (BDP) are an alternative to petroleum-based polymers (traditional plastics). It will be important to find durable plastic substitutes, especially in short-term packaging and disposable applications. The continuously growing public concern concerning this problem has stimulated research interest in biodegradable polymers as alternatives to conventional non-degradable polymers such as polyethylene and polystyrene, etc. The economic value of renewable raw materials will increase to a significant extent [1] and induce new industrial activities [2,3]. 

Starch may offer a substitute for petroleum-based plastics. A renewable degradable carbohydrate biopolymer that can be purified from various sources by environmentally sound processes, starch, by itself, has severe limitations due to its water solubility. Articles made from starch wiU swell and deform upon exposure to moisture. To improve some of its properties, in the past decades a number of researchers have often blended starch with hydrophobic polymers in the form of petroleum polymers, both to increase biodegradability and to reduce the usage of petroleum polymer. 

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