scholarly journals Polylactic acid (PLA): Improve it, use it, and dump it faster

BioResources ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 2196-2199
Author(s):  
Narongrit Sombatsompop ◽  
Panupong Srimalanon ◽  
Teerasak Markpin ◽  
Benjaphorn Prapagdee
Keyword(s):  
Waste Management ◽  
Environmental Pollution ◽  
Polylactic Acid ◽  
Renewable Resources ◽  
Food Packaging ◽  
Antibacterial Agents ◽  
It Use ◽  
The World ◽  
Single Use ◽  
Alternative Approaches

Today, many people enjoy an easy lifestyle. However, this comfort has come with a price because of plastic that is thrown away after a single use. As such, governments around the world have pushed for biodegradable plastics to be produced, especially for food packaging, and these can be easily seen in supermarkets, for example. Using plastic for only one time has resulted in environmental pollution. To solve this problem, polylactic acid (PLA) has been introduced as an alternative bio-based plastic to replace artificial petroleum-based plastics. PLA comes from renewable resources and is biodegradable under certain conditions. Furthermore, the development of the properties of PLA could solve problems related to its weakness in packaging applications. This editorial proposes expansion of the property attributes of PLA to include hygienic character, through the addition of antibacterial agents. This can be done by introducing two alternative approaches for waste management: PLA recycling and degradation. However, some key research is still needed to improve the properties and waste management of PLA relative to the effectiveness of its reprocessing and acceleration of its (bio)degradation.

Challenges in the context of single-use plastics and bioplastics in Brazil: A legislative review

2021 ◽  
pp. 0734242X2110555
Author(s):  
Lais R Lima ◽  
Rafaela F Gutierrez ◽  
Sandra A Cruz
Keyword(s):  
Waste Management ◽  
Environmental Pollution ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Technological Innovations ◽  
Past Century ◽  
Potential Solution ◽  
The Past ◽  
The World ◽  
Single Use ◽  
Legislative Review

Plastic has been present in our lives for the past century as an essential material for many commodity items. However, the same properties that make plastic convenient are also responsible for the current dramatic environmental pollution. As an alternative, most of the world has been working with technological innovations, and one of its strategies is the use of bioplastics. Despite being considered environmentally beneficial by some people, there are still developments and discussions that need to be made. This article aims to present a legislative review and discusses the difficulty in implementing policies related to the incentive of the bioplastics market, as well as presenting some state and municipal laws, already prohibiting single-use plastics in Brazil. These laws aim to encourage the substitution of these plastics for biodegradable ones. However, it still has gaps and a lack of clarification on how the banning of disposable plastics and their substitution will be beneficial since composting is still an incipient process in the country. It is also the purpose of this article to discuss the challenges in the context of the Circular Economy, as well as the potential solution based on the creation of public policies aimed at improving waste management, in addition to clearer legislation on alternatives to single-use plastics.

scholarly journals Environmental pollution: types and conservation

2017 ◽  
Vol 5 (01) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ashutosh Tripathi ◽  
Ajay Kumar Pal
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Management ◽  
Waste Management ◽  
Environmental Pollution ◽  
Natural Environment ◽  
Pollution Control ◽  
Modern Technology ◽  
Environment Pollution ◽  
The Earth ◽  
The World ◽  
Irreparable Damage

Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into the natural environment that causes adverse change. One of the greatest problem that the world is facing today is that of environment pollution, increasing with every passing year and causing grave and irreparable damage to the earth. Environmental pollution consists of five basic types of pollutants namely air, water, soil, noise and light. The solution of pollution is dilution. Environmental pollution can be controlled by recycling, reusing, waste management, mitigating, preventing and by making compost. Environmental management using modern technology seems to be effective in pollution control.

scholarly journals Characterization and Molecular Identification of Poly Urethane Degrading Bacteria

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. Shree Yazhini ◽  
M. Lakshmi Prabha ◽  
Reya Issac
Keyword(s):  
Waste Management ◽  
Environmental Pollution ◽  
Enzyme Activities ◽  
Degradation Process ◽  
Synthetic Polymers ◽  
Species Level ◽  
Novel Bacterium ◽  
Degrading Bacteria ◽  
The World ◽  
Buried Soil

Plastics can be considered as the world’s largest pollution that is accumulating in the environment. The degradation of these plastics is difficult because they are accumulated over years and also they are dumped in an area which causes more environmental problems. To reduce the environmental pollution under the waste management with the help of microorganism was taken into account. In those bacteria plays a major role in controlling those problems. Polyurethane can be considered as one of the most used synthetic polymers in the world. Hence, the degradation of polyurethane was taken into account in the study with the help of bacteria. In this experiment, we isolated and identified the bacteria that can degrade the polyurethane from the polyurethane buried soil sample. The isolated organism was sequenced and identified at the species level. Enzyme activities of those organisms were also identified along with the degradation process. With the help of this study, we identified a novel bacterium that can degrade polyurethane.

scholarly journals Microbial Enzymes Based Technologies for Bioremediation of Pollutions

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 463-469
Keyword(s):  
Waste Management ◽  
Environmental Pollution ◽  
Biological Treatment ◽  
Management Technique ◽  
Significant Issue ◽  
Chemical Methods ◽  
Microbial Enzymes ◽  
The World ◽  
Living Organisms ◽  
Biological Methods

Environmental pollution comes from a variety of sources. With the development of human civilization, the development of technology, and the increasing population, the world is now facing environmental pollution. Since environmental health has a direct effect on human health, therefore environmental protection is one of the most essential human problems. Removal of pollutants is a significant issue that, if not paid enough attention to, the next generation will face serious problems. Chemical and biological methods can be used to remove contaminants, but since the use of chemical methods will result in wastes that can cause contamination, the use of biological treatment methods such as bioremediation is a better and less dangerous to remove contaminants. In the bioremediation process, fungi or bacteria and their enzymes are used to clean and purify pollution. In this waste management technique living organisms or their enzymes uses to remove or neutralize contaminants. Mechanisms of enzymes that related bioremediation such as hydrolases and oxidoreductases have been widely studied. This chapter investigates information on the microbial enzymes from different microorganisms involved in the biodegradation of a broad range of pollutants.

Perspectives of polylactic acid from structure to applications

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 60-74
Author(s):  
Kalyani Sreekumar ◽  
B Bindhu ◽  
K Veluraja
Keyword(s):  
Polylactic Acid ◽  
Automobile Industry ◽  
Renewable Resources ◽  
Food Packaging ◽  
Renewable Sources ◽  
Packaging Industry ◽  
Tissue Scaffolding ◽  
Almost All ◽  
Hydroxypropionic Acid ◽  
Crucial Part

The demand for an adoption of renewable resources rather than finitely available non renewable sources for industrial purposes are rising, with the growing environmental constraints. Polymers being one of the crucial part of almost all the industries, pioneer in the list of sources needed for various applications. This makes polymers that can be obtained from renewable sources being studied widely and are anticipated to make a revolution in the field of packaging industry, medical field, and automobile industry. Polylactic acid (PLA) is one among such biopolymers, which is an aliphatic polyester derived from lactic acid (2-hydroxypropionic acid), that find wide applications in food packaging industry, tissue scaffolding, and biomedical devices. This paper focuses on an in-depth review on polylactic acid, its structure, and various properties of PLA. The details of different polymer blends/composites based on PLA are also discussed here. The fields of applications, where PLA is being utilized and the future scopes of the polymer are also studied.

scholarly journals Considerations on the Benefits of Using Recyclable Materials for Road Construction

2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-53
Author(s):  
Diana Popescu ◽  
Adrian Burlacu
Keyword(s):  
Waste Management ◽  
Natural Resources ◽  
Fuel Consumption ◽  
Economic Integration ◽  
Renewable Resources ◽  
Road Construction ◽  
Renewable Resource ◽  
Asphalt Mixtures ◽  
The World ◽  
A Current

Abstract A current worldwide economy problem includes both the responsible management of the planet's non-renewable resources and the waste management. The benefits of using recyclable materials and recycling technologies with asphalt mixtures consist mainly of reducing fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. It is well known that oil (from which bitumen is obtained) is a non-renewable resource, hence the its price increase. Therefore, at present, the world is looking for solutions that will lead to a better use of natural resources and to an economic integration of sub-products from various industries. This paper intends to raise awareness of the possibilities for asphalt mixtures recycling and of the recyclable materials that can be used as additives with benefits of each.

scholarly journals Waste Plastic, the Challenge Facing Developing Countries—Ban It, Change It, Collect It?

Recycling ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Linda Godfrey
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
Unintended Consequences ◽  
Consumption Patterns ◽  
Waste Collection ◽  
Waste Plastic ◽  
The World ◽  
Single Solution ◽  
Single Use ◽  
Taking Action

With changing consumption patterns, growing populations and increased urbanisation, developing countries face significant challenges with regards to waste management. Waste plastic is a particularly problematic one, with single-use plastic leaking into the environment, including the marine environment, at an unprecedented rate. Around the world, countries are taking action to minimise these impacts, including banning single-use plastics; changing petroleum-based plastics to alternative bio-benign products such as paper, glass or biodegradable plastics; and improving waste collection systems to ensure that all waste is appropriately collected and reprocessed or safely disposed. However, these “solutions” are often met with resistance, from business, government or civil society, due to the intended and unintended consequences, leaving many questioning the most appropriate solution to reducing the leakage. This paper argues that there is no one single solution to addressing the leakage of plastic into the environment, but that the solution is likely to be a combination of the three approaches, based on local considerations.

Identifying the best practices in green operations strategy of hospitals

2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 1106-1131 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yazan Khalid Abed-Allah Migdadi ◽  
Abeer Ahmad Omari
Keyword(s):  
Best Practices ◽  
Waste Management ◽  
Electrical Power ◽  
Global Reporting Initiative ◽  
Operations Strategy ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Hazardous Waste Management ◽  
The World ◽  
Sustainability Reports ◽  
Two Stages

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to identify the best practices in the green operations strategy of hospitals. Design/methodology/approach A total of 25 cases from all over the world were investigated. The source of data was the annual sustainability reports that were retrieved from Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) database. The present research adopted the benchmarking method and the quantitative content analysis of sustainability reports. Then, the indicative models of best practices were developed by using two analysis approaches; within cluster analysis and across clusters analysis. Findings This study found four major taxonomies of green operation strategy in hospitals. The significant strategic groups were resources/waste management; electrical power management; non-hazardous waste management; and emissions/resources management. Indicative models for the relationship between actions and key green performance indicators were developed in the two stages of the analysis. Originality/value The best practices of green operations strategies in hospitals have not so far been investigated. Countries around the world should obey the new regulations for their environmental footprint; if they do, it will exert pressure on all sectors and organizations at all levels to take immediate steps to measure and improve their environmental performance.

Preface

2003 ◽  
Vol 807 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Waste Management ◽  
Nuclear Waste ◽  
Scientific Basis ◽  
Nuclear Waste Management ◽  
Scientific Program ◽  
The World ◽  
Excellent Work

The symposium “Scientific Basis for Nuclear Waste Management XVII” was held in June 15 – 19, 2003, in Kalmar, Sweden. The symposium, which was officially opened by the County Govenor of Kalmar County, Sven Lindgren, attracted 222 participants from 21 countries. Nearly 200 papers were presented during the three days of scientific sessions.Organizing a symposium this size requires the assistance of a large number of people involved both in establishing the scientific program and in planning and executing the practical organizational arrangements. Our window to the world, the symposium's homepage, was continuously kept up to date through the excellent work of Jonny Rönnfjord.

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