Photo-biodegradable plastics

Scott, G. 1995. Photo-biodegradable plastics. In Degradable polymers Principles and applications, eds. G. Scott and D. Gilead, 170. New York, NY Chapman and Hall. 

Farmers are notoriously conservative and do not take kindly to innovations in agricultural practice, particularly if it is likely to cost more. The key question then in considering the viability of photo-biodegradable plastics is do they improve profitability Nowhere is cost more important than in China and yet a much higher proportion of the annual output of the polymer industries is used in agriculture in China than anywhere else in the world (Table 5.1) and this usage increased almost 2000 times between 1980 and 1991 (Table 5.2). 

G. Scott, Photo-biodegradable plastics their role in the protection of the environment, Polym. Degrad. Stabil, 1990, 29,135-154. 

Torikai A, Kato H, Fueki K, Suzuki Y, Okizaki A, Nagata M (1993) J AppI Polym Sci 50 2185 Andrady AL, Accelerated environmental exposure. Laboratory testing, and recyclability study of photo/biodegradable plastics . Final Report to USEPA under Contact 68-02-4544 Task 11-60. January 1991. 

The introduction of photo-biodegradable plastic films substantially prevents the problems commonly arising from the use of other, non-speciality plastic products, thus extending the agricultural benefits and environmental compatibility of this technique in mechanical harvesting of herbaceous crops. 

Scott, G., 1995, Photo-Biodegradable Plastics. In Degradable Polymers Principles and Applications (Chapman Hall, eds.), London, 9 169-185. 

Commercial polyolefins show no significant reduction in molar mass in typical ambient biometric tests over many months or even years. The resistance of hydrocarbon polymers to biodegradation during use is one of their major advantages in agricultural application over bio-based plastics. The useful life of photo-biodegradable polyolefins is controlled commercially by appropriate transition metal complexes in which the ligands are... 

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