The answer to the menace of plastics litter - Controlled degradation of plastic products.

Plastics products have become indispensable in packaging. Almost 35% of the 165 million tons of plastics consumed have a short life cycle, as they tend to get disposed off within 3-6 months. A large volume of this plastics makes its way to either municipal waste grounds or land fills, and being lighter, the litter spreads all around. This litter menace is particularly glaring in those countries like India, where the public awareness of sanitation and cleanliness is at miniscule levels. Is there any solution? Or should we depend upon increased public consciousness that is slow and may take decades to be developed? Globally, the plastics industry has developed several alternate solutions, some of them are practical and easier to implement.

It is well known that plastics that are made of macro molecules can be degraded when their molecular weights are reduced significantly. When high molecular weights contribute to mechanical strength of the polymer. When they are broken down or reduced, their mechanical properties get reduced. The plastics products tend to become brittle and can be broken down to smaller pieces. The degradation of polymeric material can be initiated by 3 external environmental conditions:
Heat, Oxygen and Ultra Violet Radiation.
If a plastics materials can be incorporated with any one or all different types of additives that could initiate the controlled degradation by any one of the 3 mechanisms, the plastics litter can be broken into indistinguishable pieces that can mix with the soil. To make plastics biodegradable, starch could be incorporated. Bacteria tend to love starch and consume it leaving the plastic matrix in a very brittle condition. Several masterbatch concentrates are available with starch as a component. However, degradation can be hastened if the masterbatch also contains some of those additives that help in degradation or deterioration of molecular weight using either oxidative, thermal and or ultra violet irradiation.

Such products are now available from leading Indian masterbatch producers. The degradation speed and intensity can be controlled without sacrificing the strength, clarify and physical properties of the film. Applications can be for a broad spectrum including Carry bags, Liners, Garbage bags, Cast PE film products, Liners, Mulch film, Garbage bags, Agri film, etc. The effective performance of the degradable masterbatch products in Polyethylenes carry bags/films can be seen in the following charts. Indeed these masterbatches having controlled degradation of the plastic products could be an answer to the menace of plastic litter that can be easily seen all around India.

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