BIOPLASTICS FROM NATURAL RENEWABLE POLYMERIC RESOURCES: A REVIEW

Abstract

Petroleum-based plastics are durable, flexible, cheap, and widely available, thus remain increasingly in demand by the growing global population. However, being non-biodegradable, conventional plastics (especially single-use products and materials) end-life scenarios pose continuous threats to the environment, including animal and human health. An estimated 20 million metric tons of disposable plastic litter are introduced into the environment annually. Despite recent global initiatives, recycling rates remain low due to underdeveloped infrastructure and a lack of international standardization. Only about 9 % of plastic waste has been recycled globally, primarily by mechanical recycling, and around 12 % is incinerated (quaternary recycling). About 79 % of the annual production volume of petroleum-based plastics, generated by both developing and developed countries, end up in landfills and oceans globally. Being manufactured from different natural renewable polymeric resources, bioplastics, as sustainable alternatives, have several advantages over their commodity fossil-based counterparts. In particular, bioplastics contribute to lowering carbon footprint, may show valuable and unique thermomechanical and physical properties and performance, are versatile, energy-efficient, and, most importantly, often possess inherent biodegradability. This review discusses the bioplastics from selected plant-derived biopolymers-celluloses, starch (and their derivatives), and plant proteins. Chemistry, advantages, and challenges, as well as some applications of resulting polymeric materials thereof, are assessed.