An overview of chemical additives present in plastics: Migration, release, fate and environmental impact during their use, disposal and recycling

Over the last 60 years plastics production has increased manifold, owing to their inexpensive, multipurpose, durable and lightweight nature. These characteristics have raised the demand for plastic materials that will continue to grow over the coming years. However, with increased plastic materials production, comes increased plastic material wastage creating a number of challenges, as well as opportunities to the waste management industry. The present overview highlights the waste management and pollution challenges, emphasising on the various chemical substances (known as “additives”) contained in all plastic products for enhancing polymer properties and prolonging their life. Despite how useful these additives are in the functionality of polymer products, their potential to contaminate soil, air, water and food is widely documented in literature and described herein. These additives can potentially migrate and undesirably lead to human exposure via e.g. food contact materials, such as packaging. They can, also, be released from plastics during the various recycling and recovery processes and from the products produced from recyclates. Thus, sound recycling has to be performed in such a way as to ensure that emission of substances of high concern and contamination of recycled products is avoided, ensuring environmental and human health protection, at all times

Thermo- and Photo-Degradation of LDPE and PP Films Using Metal Oxides as Catalysts

Degradation of LDPE and PP films using the photo sensitive metal oxides or pro-oxidants (e.g. Fe2O3, CuxO, ZnO, and TiO2 at various particle sizes) as the catalysts in both thermo- and photo-oxidation of plastic films with oxygen followed by photolytic process to give free radicals has been studied. Our preliminary study in hexane solution found that the carbonyl index (CI) increased under the shortwave ultraviolet (254nm) significantly greater than under the longer wave (366nm) due to its greater energy and highly absorbed by the pro-oxidants generating more free radical concentration which could then be photolysed into carbonyl compounds. The pro-oxidant blended PE and PP films under ultraviolet (254nm) irradiation showed the carbonyl index elevation at the beginning and then reducing to a constant level similarly in most cases. This probably suggested that the carbonyl primarily formed and degraded into other free radicals. Under shortwave ultraviolet irradiation for 72 hours, the LDPE films containing nano-sized rutile-TiO2 and nano-sized anatase-TiO2 (1%w/w) were able to reduce the film tensile strength by 32% and 55%, respectively. The film containing micron-sized commercial TiO2 lower the film tensile strength only by 7-10%. However, the tensile strength of the TiO2 blended PP films tends to increase possibly because the rate of cross linkage exceeds the rate of scission.</jats:p

Acetophenone and Benzophenone Derivatives as Catalysts in Photodegradation of PE and PP Films

Due to their versatile functionalization, acetophenone and benzophenone derivatives as plastic additives were synthesized and blended into PE and PP to study rate of degradation under ultraviolet irradiation by monitoring carbonyl index, tensile strength and weight loss. The photolytic reactions of these ketones in benzene solution showed that acetophenone derivatives, especially 3-nitroacetopheone, underwent rapid degradation under the short-wave ultraviolet (254 nm) rather than in the black light (366 nm) while benzophenone derivatives showed small carbonyl index reduction. However, both groups of ketones, in hexane solution or in PE and PP films, primarily lowered the carbonyl index and rised up again except for the bromo derivatives. At 96 hrs of UV irradiation, the tensile strength of the acetophenone-blended PE film reduced only 20% while the tensile strength of the acetophenone-blended PP film decreased dramatically upto 90% and 95% for the benzophenone-blended PP.</jats:p

Sugarcane bagasse - The future composite material: A literature review

The natural, bio-degradable features and chemical constituents of the sugarcane bagasse (SCB) have been attracting attention as a highly potential and versatile ingredient in composite materials. Eco-friendly and low cost considerations have set the momentum for material science researchers to identify green materials that give low pollutant indexes. Various components of SCB is shown to possess the ability of being applied as raw material for manufacturing of composite materials at multiple levels of properties and performances. Studies on the impacts, performances and applications of SCB in its original condition; transformed forms; treated with appropriate chemicals and/or processes; in combination with materials of distinct properties and manipulation of manufacturing methodologies have been duly considered. This paper attempts to summarize a review of current literature on the extensive studies that have been undertaken in an attempt to explore plausible applications and potentials of SCB for composite material