Boo For Plastics

Polymers are now widely used in all aspects of modern life. They contribute, to a great extent, to the comfort and improvement of the quality of life. They owe their importance to their outstanding properties such as low density, durability, consistency and flexibility for a wide range of applications from simple packaging to heavy construction. Because of their low production cost, they have been extensively used for disposable packaging and containers.

It is expected that, during the first few years of the 21st century, there will be 2 to 3 fold increases in plastic consumption in developing countries, and even more than that, in rich developing states. However, this increased use of plastics is accompanied by a vast accumulation of solid waste and plastic litter which, due to their resistance to biodegradation, have a deleterious effect on the environment as an obvious contributor to pollution.

The production and consumption of polymeric materials for commodity and specialty plastic items are subject to all the constraints and regulations dealing with the management of primary and post-consumer plastic-waste. In this respect, the production of environmentally friendly (sound degradable) polymeric materials should be a strategic option among those available for the management of plastic waste. The introduction of degradable polymeric materials is expected to provide a competitive alternative to present solid-waste management such as burial in landfill sites, incineration with energy recovery, and mechanical or chemical recycling. The new degradable plastics should replace the conventional commodity plastics in those segments in which recycling is difficult or economically not feasible.

The global issue of plastic waste has promoted all over the world a great deal of actions tending to provide adequate answers and suggestions for minimizing the negative impact of the increasing production and consumption of plastic materials. Many companies in developed countries are working on developing a wide range of innovative packaging which offer real environmental benefits. Also, scientific organizations focused on EDPs have