Bioplastics: Effective or Just Efficient?Grace Desjardins

ProblemHow can bioplastics be easily made?Can bioplastics function as well as oil-based

plastics or even plastics made partially from recycled materials?

Research Plastics are polymers. The production of bioplastics uses agro-polymers, such

as starch.◦ Break down the starch into a paste by adding heat and water ◦ The materials used affect the plasticizers.

Bacteria-based Plant-based

Problems with Bioplastics:◦ price of production◦ health complications ◦ some don’t react well to heat

Benefits of Bioplastics:◦ biodegradable◦ eco-friendly production

less energy is used, thus less use of fossil fuels

◦ can use the same machinery as oil-based plastics

Hypothesis If multiple aspects of oil-based plastics and

bioplastics are tested, then oil-based plastics will prove the most applicable to everyday lifestyle.

Required Materials

Glycerin Corn starch Vinegar Water Soap-making Molds Aluminum foil Cooking spoon Hot Plate Vernier Dual-Range Force

Sensor Weights (in this case,

batteries) Scale 100 mL beaker 400 mL beaker 10 mL graduated cylinder

Calculator Medicine dropper Computer Goggles Spatula Lab apron Pole Basket with attachment Clamp Bioplastic bag oil-based plastic bag Plastic bag made partially from

recycled materials Tape

Procedure (Phase 1) Place a plastic cup on a balance and zero it. Add cornstarch to

the plastic cup until reaching 10.00 g. Add this to the 400 mL beaker.

Measure 60 mL of distilled water out in a 100 mL beaker. Add this to the 400 mL beaker.

Measure 5 mL of glycerin and 5 mL of vinegar using a 10 mL graduated cylinder and add to the 400 mL beaker.

The 400 mL beaker and its contents were placed on a hot plate and stirred with a stirring rod.

Once the substance becomes clear, thick, and slightly bubbling, pour it into the molds.

Leave the bioplastic to dry for approximately 24 hours before removal from the molds. Upon removal, place the samples on aluminum foil.

Procedure (Phase 2) Cut samples from plastic bags (one oil-based, one bioplastic,

and one made partially from recycled materials) in dog bone shapes and draw two lines in marker a distance of 5 cm apart on each sample. Five samples were used from each bag.

Set up the Vernier Dual-Range Force Sensor using a pole and two supports of the same height. To ensure its security, the pole was taped to the supports.

Connect the device to a computer, on which the Logger Lite 1.5 program had previously been installed.

For each of the fifteen trials, add a clamp to the force sensor to hold the plastic, which should be clipped after the system has been zeroed.

When the plastic sample is hanging from the force sensor, add a clamp to the bottom of it. Attached to the clamp should be a chain which holds a basket, which should have been weighed.

Measure objects of uniform mass and place them in the basket. With every addition of mass, measure the distance between the

marker lines previously drawn on the plastic samples. Record the force calculated on the Logger Lite 1.5 program.

Continue until the plastic sample can no longer hold the basket and its contents.

VariablesControlIndependent

◦ The plastic samples: bioplastic, oil-based plastic, and plastic made partially from recycled materials

Dependent◦ The tensile strength and tensile strain of the

plasticsConstants

◦ Vernier Dual-Range Force Sensor◦ Basket and attachment◦ Batteries◦ Computer◦ Balance ◦ Template for cutting samples

Data: Graph 1

0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

Force (in Newtons) Applied to Plastics

Type AType BType C

Plastic Type

Forc

e (

N)

Data: Graph 2

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

Avg. Force Per Gram

Type AType BType C

Plastic Type

Forc

e (

in N

ew

tons)

Data: Graph 3

0

0.02

0.04

0.06

0.08

0.1

0.12

0.14

0.16

0.18

0.2

Avg. Stretch of Plastic Types

Type AType BType C

Plastic Type

Str

etc

h o

f P

lasti

c (

in c

m)

Data: Graph 4

0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

3.5

4

4.5

Young's Modulus: Stress and Strain

Type AType BType C

Plastic Type

Str

ess o

ver

Str

ain

Data Summary Average Tensile Strain:

◦ Oil-based plastics : 2.1460 N

◦ Bioplastics:1.4276 N

◦ Plastic made partially from recycled materials: 1.3396 N

Average Tensile Stretch:◦ Oil-based plastic: 0.18 cm

◦ Bioplastic: 0.11 cm

◦ Plastic made partially from recycled materials: 0.04 cm

Average Force Per Gram◦ Oil-based plastics: 29 N

◦ Bioplastic:23 N

◦ Plastic made partially from recycled materials: 23 N

T-tests◦ Type A was significantly stronger than both Type B and Type C

There was no notable difference in strength between Type B and Type C.

◦ In terms of elasticity, Type A stretched more than Type C according to T-tests. Type B was not remarkably different from Type A or Type C.

Conclusion

Hypothesis: “If multiple aspects of oil-based plastics and bioplastics are tested, then oil-based plastics will prove the most applicable to everyday lifestyle.”

The hypothesis was partially rejected because although the oil-based plastic was the strongest, it did stretch more than the plastic that contained recycled materials.◦ In regards to strength, the oil-based plastic most likely has stronger

bonds which enable it to tolerate more force than the bioplastic and the plastic made partially from recycled materials can.

◦ It is possible that the plasticizers in both the oil-based plastic and the bioplastic enable both types to stretch the same amount. The plasticizers in plastic made partially from recycled materials probably allow the plastic endure more in terms of elasticity.

In regards to Phase One, it could have been unsuccessful for a variety of reasons:◦ Uneven spreading of ingredients

◦ Ingredients were not compatible

◦ Heating process

Conclusion (cont.) What Could Have Gone Wrong

◦ Accuracy of measurements◦ Transfer of ingredients◦ Changing numbers on the balance and Logger Lite 1.5 program ◦ The way in which the Vernier Dual-Range force Sensor hung

Improvements◦ Phase One could be continued until a successful bioplastic was

created. ◦ Phase Two could be continued by testing more samples of the

three plastics or adding additional types of plastics.◦ More qualities of the plastics could be tested. ◦ Smaller increments of mass could be added to achieve more

accurate results. Advancements

◦ How can a better homemade bioplastic be created?◦ Might there be a way by which one can keep the samples

uniform? ◦ How quickly can the homemade bioplastic deteriorate?◦ if bioplastics were mass-produced, how would this affect the

economy?

References 4-H, Horton, R. L., PhD., Warkentien, C., & Gogolski, J. (n.d.). Agriculture

at Work: bioplastic. Retrieved September/ October, 2011, from 4-H website: http://www.4-h.org/ agriscience/

Archana, T., & Preeti, C. (2011, November 17). Integration of natural and Biological sources for the Production of Biopolymer: Actual and Potential Utilization of various Wastes. Journal of Pharmacy Research, 4(1), 53-55. Retrieved from http://jpronline.info/ article/ view/ 5579/ 2933

Averous, L., Pr. (2007, June). Bioplastics: Agro-polymers and Starch-based biomaterials (Plasticized or Thermoplastic Starch-based materials). Retrieved October 10, 2011, from http://www.biodeg.net/ biomaterial.html

Bioplastics: Uses and Applications. (2009, October 28). Energy Business Daily. Retrieved from http://energybusinessdaily.com/ renewables/ bioplastics-uses-and-applications/

Bortner, L., Dr. (2011, February 15). Young's Modulus. Retrieved November 14, 2011, from http://www.physics.uc.edu/~bortner/labs/Physics%201%20experiments/Youngs%20Modulus/Youngs%20Modulus%20htm.htm

Bourg, V., Berthe, V., & Chivrac, F. (2011, August 4). Overview of the use of bioplastics in packaging [Web log post]. Retrieved from Bioplstic innovation: http://bioplastic-innovation.com/ 2011/ 08/ 04/ bioplastics-in-packaging/

References (cont.) Dictionary.com Unabridged. (2012). Retrieved January, 2012, from

Dictionary.com, LLC website: http://dictionary.reference.com/ Freudenrich, C., Ph.D. (1998-2011). Making Plastics. Retrieved

October 10, 2011, from HowStuffWorks, Inc website: http://science.howstuffworks.com/ plastic5.htm

Statistics in Biology. (n.d.). Retrieved February 15, 2012, from      http://www.usciences.edu/biology/bs130/statistics%20for%20biology-t%20test.html

Theinsathid, P., Chandrachai, A., & Keeratipibul, S. (2009). Managing Bioplastics Business Innovation in Start Up Phase. Journal of Technology Management & Innovation, 4(1), 84, 86-88. Retrieved from http://www.jotmi.org/ index.php/ GT/ article/ view/ art106/ 476

Vernier. (2007, March 24). Dual-Range Force Sensor [Pamphlet]. Retrieved from http://www.vernier-iberica.com/ descargas/ datos%20tecnicos/ dfs-bta.pdf

What Is Polymer Resin? (2003-2011). Retrieved October 15, 2011, from wiseGEEK website: http://www.wisegeek.com/ what-is-polymer-resin.htm

Wilbraham, A. C., Staley, D. D., Matta, M. S., & Waterman, E. L. (2008). 23.4 Polymerization. In Chemistry (pp. 747-752). Boston, Massachusetts: Pearson Prentice Hall.

Woodford, C. (2011, October 3). Bioplastics and biodegradable plastics: Explain that Stuff! Retrieved from http://www.explainthatstuff.com/ bioplastics.html