UNIVERSITY OF CAGAYAN VALLEY

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CHAPTER II

Review of Related Literatures and Studies

This chapter contains a summary of relevant

literatures and studies that the researchers have read in

order to gain a better understanding of the subject and

to help them perform their own research.

Related Literatures

Even beyond their persistence in ocean and water

pollution from their production, synthetic polymers are a

significant challenge on land because they are often

disposed of in landfills where they will remain for

centuries into the future slowly leaking toxins into soil

as time passes. According to the Clean Air Council

Organization, Americans alone use an estimated 102.1

billion plastic bags – a synthetic polymer – each year

and less than 1 percent of these bags are recycled. Not

only do these synthetic polymers slowly leach harmful

chemicals in the soil, their longevity and non-

biodegradability means new landfills will be a constant

need as synthetic polymer use continues and grows (King,

2018).

Microplastics and microplastic are often confused by

fish and eaten as food. If they survive eating this, both

the fish and humans are harmed.

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“Fish in the North Pacific ingest 12,000 to 24,000

tons of plastic each year, which can cause intestinal

injury and death and transfers plastic up the food chain

to bigger fish, marine mammals and human seafood eaters.

Plastic is responsible for the death of whales, seabirds,

sea turtles and fish. It also takes over many endangered

species habitats in the ocean. The invention of synthetic

plastic has done wonders for modern civilization.

However, its convenience comes at a heavy price. The

environmental impact plastic no longer makes single use

plastic a viable option for society. Single use plastic

is one of the largest contributors to pollution, yet one

of the easier to replace by consumers (Hogan et al,

2019).

Plastic is terrible for the environment. Countries

and cities around the world are banning plastic use left,

right, and Centre, and the call for the end of single use

plastic is at an all-time high. Some government and

organizations are doing their part to reduce plastic use

and better the environment. According to a report from

The Guardian, an estimated 8.3 billion tons of plastic

have been produced since the 1950s- that is equivalent to

the weight of more than 800,000 Eiffel Tower and only 9

percent of it has been recycled. Other countries that

have been banned, partially banned, or taxed single-use

plastic bags include China, France, Rowanda, and Italy.

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According to National Geographic, 73 percent of all beach

litter is plastic. The litter includes filters from

cigarette butts, bottles, bottles caps, food wrappers,

grocery bags and polystyrene containers. Less than half

of the bottles purchased in 2016 were recycled – with

just 7 percent of those collected turned into new

bottles, and the rest ending up in landfill sites or the

ocean (Mwamba, 2018).

Plastic is a polymeric material – that is, a

material whose molecules are very large, often resembling

long chains made up of seemingly endless series of

interconnected links. Natural polymers such as rubber and

silk exist in abundance, but nature’s “plastic” have not

been implicated in environmental pollution, because they

do not persist in the environment. Today, however, the

average consumer comes into daily contact with all kinds

of plastic materials that have been developed

specifically to defeat natural decay processes –

materials derived mainly from petroleum that can be

molded, cast, spun, or applied as a coating. Since

synthetic plastics are largely persist in natural

environments. Moreover, many lightweight single-use

plastic products and packaging materials, which account

for approximately 50 percent of all plastics produced,

are not deposited in containers for subsequent removal to

landfills, recycling centers, or incinerators. Instead,

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they are improperly disposed of at near the location

where they end their usefulness to the consumer. Dropped

on the ground, thrown out of a car window, heaped onto an

already rubbish bin, or inadvertently carried off by a

gust of wind, they immediately begin to pollute the

environment. Indeed, landscapes littered by plastic

packaging have become common in many parts of the world.

Illegal dumping of plastic and overflowing of containment

structures also plays a role (Moore, 2020).

Throughout the years, plastic pollution on the

planet has been one of the most burning issues. Lakes,

Rivers, and oceans are currently at the risk of being

over contaminated, which increases year after year. This

problem is much more serious than expected. Plastic

pollution literary means a dangerous impact on human’s

health, marine life, and the conditions on the existing

ecosystem of the planet as a whole. The biggest problem

of such pollution lies not in the drinking bottles or

plastic cups thrown away, but in the plastic microbeads,

or microplastic. They are the tiny pieces hardly seen by

the naked eye that are produced by the plastic itself

being in structure. When getting to the global oceans,

the plastic particles can spread all over the globe with

the currents of the wind. Billions of people use them

every single day several times per twenty-four hours,

which causes great damage to the water on Earth and gets

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back to humans through seafood like fish as well as the

oysters, or even sea salt. Plastic also causes death to

the most marine inhabitants like turtles, dolphins, and

whales simply they confuse plastic with food. Turtles do

not feel the difference between jellyfish and a plastic

bag, so after absorption animals feel blockades inside

and their organisms cannot recycle them. It breaks the

digestive system, which is fatal also for the seabirds.

With the longevity of plastics in the oceans for years,

its number increases day by day (Miller, 2018).

We actually consume about 300 million tons of

plastics every year. When not properly disposed, they do

not end just up in a landfill. More than Eight million

tons of plastics gets dumped in our ocean and circle the

Earth about four times in a year. The Philippines is hit

with an average of 20 typhoons a year. Flood is

inevitable; the problem is made worse because garbage

dumping in the river is a habit practiced by many

Filipinos. The country is one of the world’s top three

worst offenders of plastic pollution. You can actually

see a thick layer of garbage floating in the waterways as

if it were some island (Perez, 2019).

The Philippines is the world’s third-largest ocean

polluter despite a waste management act coming into

effect 18 years ago. Masses of plastics trash swirling in

waterways, garbage clogging drainage canals and huge

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stinking dump sites are among the most visible

manifestations of the waste crisis in the Philippines. A

2015 report on plastic pollution by the Ocean Conservancy

charity and the McKinsey Centre for Business and

Environment ranked the Philippines as the third -largest

source of discarded plastic that ends up in the ocean,

behind two other Asian nations: China and Indonesia. The

Philippines generates 2.7 million tons of plastics waste

annually and 20 percent – or half a million tons – of

that leaks into the oceans, the report stated (Vila,

2018).

Single-use plastic have been in the spotlight for

the past years because of its impact on our environment.

it pollutes throughout its lifecycle beginning from

extraction, refining, and ending in their disposal in the

oceans and waterways, soil, and in air we breathe through

burning or incineration. In fact, it does not only impact

our environment but also our health, livelihoods, foods,

and wildlife. Further, plastics do not biodegrade.

Instead, they slowly break down into smaller pieces of

plastic called microplastic. Developing countries like

the Philippines play a pivotal role in the Global plastic

pollution crisis. Global South countries are often

blamed for this problem since their markets are flooded

with consumer products which are often packed in single-

use disposable plastics like sachets or packets aimed at

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reaching lower income brackets in developing countries

(Alegado, 2020).

Freedom Island is drowning in garbage. The last

coastal frontier in the Philippine capital provides

refuge to migratory birds and a thick mangrove forest

there serves as a natural typhoon barrier for millions of

city dwellers. Yet empty plastic water and soda bottles

protrude from the sand, tattered clothes and plastics

sheets hang over mangrove branches, and heaps of shampoo,

toothpaste and soy sauce sachets litter the coastline.

All the garbage swept shore by the waves threatens not

only the birds, who might mistake it for food, but also

the fish and other marine life. At the rate Metro Manila

is generating trash, the city’s three Sanitary landfills

will be full in 20 years, according to a study released

last year by Metropolitan Manila Development Authority

(Sarmiento, 2018)

“Marine pollution arising from plastic debris and

other forms of garbage choking our waterways worsen our

environmental problems,” Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert

Ace Barbers said, referring to a report on plastic

pollution by an international environmental group. The

Philippines’ ranking in terms of plastic trash was

sourced from the 2015 report on plastic pollution by

Ocean Conservancy and McKinsey Center for Business and

Environment. Barbers urged the Department of

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Environmental and Natural Resources and other research

bodies to tap other nations’ technology for turning

plastics into construction materials for the homeless. “I

urge the DENR and other research agencies of the

government to reverse the cycle of plastic pollution by

working with other countries to lessen, if not eliminate,

its toxic impact on human health and ecology,” Barbers

said. He said that this plastics pollution has been

choking waterways across the country and worsens

disasters, particularly during rainy season (Porcalla,

2018).

Review of Related Studies

According to the study conducted by LLyas et al

titled “Plastic waste as a significant – a systematic

literature review” states that materials which exceed the

balance of their production and destruction lead to

deterioration in the environment. Plastic is one of such

material which poses a big threat to environment. A huge

amount of plastic is produced and dumped into the

environment which does not readily degrade naturally. The

objectives of the study are to address the issue of

management of waste plastic. It presents systematic

literature review on plastic waste, its fate, and

biodegradation in the environment. The objectives are

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making conclusion on possible practical techniques to

lessen the effects of plastic waste in the environment. A

systematic literature review protocol was followed by

conducting the present study. A predefined sets of books

section, conference proceeding and high-quality journal

publications during the years 1999 to September 2017 were

used for data collection. The study showed that there are

five fundamental strategies used for handling plastic

waste. It includes recycling, depositing in landfill,

incineration, microbial degradation and conversion into

useful materials. All of these methods have their own

limitations due to which there is need to explore the

studies for optimum solutions of the management of

plastic waste.

On the study conducted by Jalil et al, titled “Using

Plastic Bags and Its Damaging Impact on Environment and

Agriculture: An Alternative Proposal” states that

thousands of plastic factories are producing tons of

plastic bags, which are very popular used by the people

for shopping purposes because of it ease, cheapness and

convenience of use but their hazardous negative impact is

never highlighted or, at the very least, openly discussed

in a more serious tone. Many countries have banned

plastic bags due to public concern over the serious

negative impact on the environment and agriculture,

especially in agricultural countries, such as Bangladesh,

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India, Pakistan, South Africa, etc. In this research

paper, Qualitative Research methodology has used to

analyze their ideas based on literature review and

interview from experts. The objectives of the study focus

on the sustainable agricultural and economic development

by finding out alternatives to the use of ever harmful

plastic bags. The study concluded that plastic bag s

causing irreparable damage to the environment especially

to the agriculture all over the world. The To solve the

current problem, generation of biodegradable plastic has

been considered as an alternative to the toxic producing

traditional plastic. This provide the same environment

friendly positive image of natural fibers and

biodegradability that paper or jute bags.

On the study conducted Dr. Yaradoddi et al,

“Biodegradable Plastic Production from fruit waste

material and its Sustainable Green Applications” states

that Polyhydroxy alkonoates (PHAs) or Polyhydroxy

butyrate’s (PHBs) are the bioplastics, they can replace a

number of traditional plastics, which are currently made

up of petrochemicals. The PHAs or PHBs obtained through

biological origin assures the same commercial properties

with the advantage of being completely natural

biodegradable. Same way bioplastics prepared using the

fruit waste will also serve as potential alternative to

the conventional plastic materials. The present research

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work with emphasis on synthesis of bioplastic material y

using fruit waste mainly banana peel. The polymer

produced using the banana peel blended with the glycerol

could help in the formation of plastic having the

characteristic features of pliability, user friendliness

and strength, other test lie solubility and swelling

studies were conducted to ensure commercial properties of

these bioplastic materials characterization of

synthesized product was carried out by FTIR and XRD

Analysis, confirms the polymer is bioplastic. One of the

most significant result obtained during the research is

degradation tractability of the developed product. There

were plenty of reports on bioplastic synthesis using

banana peel, however, there are less reports on

tractability biodegradation, thus produced biodegradation

tractable plastic could play vital role in the market for

the sustainable use and commercial value added product

development.

Debtera conducted a Synthesis and Experimental Study

of Production Bioplastic from Banana Peels. The synthesis

of Bioplastic material by using waste banana peels, which

can be collected from everywhere nowadays. The aim of the

study was to identify where the most load resistant

plastic with respect to the residence time, PH value and

amount of plasticizer used to for preparing bioplastic.

The paste was hydrolyzed by 0.1m. and 0.5m of HCl for

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breaking the chain of amylopectin in the starch. In

addition to adjust the Ph value according to 0.1m and

0.5m of NaOH and different amount of Plasticizer for

making the prepared sample flexible. The prototype of

this project represents the process of manufacturing

bioplastic from banana peels were carried out with PH

(neutral, acid, and base), residence time (5. 10, and

15min), and amount of Plasticizers (3ml, 4ml, and 5ml) to

test the tensile strength 0.1445N/mm 2 and percent of

water absorption 18.18. Bio-plastic prepared using the

banana peels serve as potential alternative to the

conventional plastic material. Making bioplastic from

banana peels instead of traditional petroleum-based

plastic is believed to be successful solution for

environmental regulation.

A new bioplastic was produced from rice straw, an

agricultural waste that generally is not recovered. For

the synthesis the sample was treated by using the

Naviglio extractor, then it was dissolved by

trifluoroacetic acid. The material exhibits good

mechanical properties, with tensile strength and

elongation break at equal to 45 MPA, and 6.1% and 10 MPA

and 63% for dried and wet dumbbels, respectively. It

results that the mechanical properties of the produced

bioplastic, in its dry state, are comparable to those

polystyrene, while cast bioplastic in wet state is

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similar to plasticized polyvinyl. This demonstrate the

high mechanical performance of newly obtained bioplastic

both in dry and wet status. The morphology of the bio-

based material, investigated by scanning electron

microscopy, showed a uniform and compact surface

structure. 2D X-Ray Diffraction Analysis reveals that

bioplastic is essentially amorphous. Mass loss test noted

that it is completely decomposed after being embedded in

soil for 105 days. Industrials and Environmental

advantages of the newly obtained biomaterial are

evaluated in terms of embodied energy and CO2 production

and in comparison, with thermoplastic starch and other

plastics. Finally, the shape memory test revealed

promising dual shape effects of the biomaterial, with a

partial but significant revealed promising dual shape of

the biomaterial, with a partial but significant shape

recovery. In summary, depending on the environmental

humidity, the materials show a dual mechanical behavior

that can be exploited to obtain shrink films or sheets or

to drive shape memory effect. Therefore, we suggest rice

straw bioplastic as a new potential eco-material for

different application fields.

Processed plant fibers such as those from the

mesocarp of a coconut together are blended with a

biodegradable plastic to produce a biodegradable plastic

product that can be further made into other items.

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Plastic thus made from coconut husk fine fiber powder

will return to the environment after disposal much more

rapidly than those without coconut husk fine fiber

powder. In the process, a dry compressed plat fine fiber

powder is created from fine fibers of the coconut

mesocarp. An example produced from this raw material is

composed of 10-40% by weight of dry coconut husk powder

mixed with environmentally degradable plastic.

Environmentally non-biodegradable plastic may be added to

the dry powder as a biodegradation rate modulator to

create a modified raw material with a modified

biodegradation rate. Plastic additives, standard in the

industry, can be added to achieve additional desired

properties. For a example, a surface active agent may be

added in order to increase the degree of processability;

a colorant may be added to increase marketability;

pesticides may be added as needed in order to protect the

product or the soil in which the product is disposed from

insects; and/or polymerization modifiers such as cross-

linkers, monomer derivatives, heteromonomers, curing

agents and etc. may be utilized to vary properties of the

base plastics.

According to Mostafa et al, on their study on the

“Production of Biodegradable Plastic from Agricultural

Wastes” claims that agricultural residues management is

considered to be a vital strategy in order to accomplish

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resource conservation and to maintain the quality of the

environment. in recent years, biofibers have attracted

increasing interest due to their wide application in food

packaging and in biomedical sciences. These eco-friendly

polymers reduce rapidly and replaced the usage of the

petroleum-based synthetic plastic polymers due to their

safety, low production cost, and biodegradability. This

reports an efficient method of the production of the

cellulose acetate biofiber from flax fibers and cotton

linters. The used process satisfied a yield of 81% and

54% for flax fibers and cotton linters respectively

(based on the weight of the cellulosic residue used). The

structure of the produced bioplastic was confirmed by X-

Ray diffraction, FT-IR, and gel permeation

chromatography. Moreover, this new biopolymer is

biodegradable and is not affected by acid or salt

treatment but is alkali labile. A comparison test showed

that produced cellulose acetate was affected by acids to

a lesser extent than polypropylene and polystyrene.

Therefore, this new cellulose bioplastic can be applied

in food industry and medicines.

According to the study conducted by Marichelvam et

al, on “Corn and Rice Starch-Based Bio-Plastics as

Alternative Packaging Material” stated that due to the

negative environmental impacts of synthetic plastics, the

development of biodegradable plastics for both industrial

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and commercial application is essential today.

Researchers have developed various starch-based

composites for different applications. The present work

investigates the corn and rice starch-based bioplastics

for packaging applications. Various samples of

bioplastics are produced, with different compositions of

corn and rice starch, glycerol, citric acid, and gelatin.

The tensile properties were improved after rice starch.

However, water absorption and water solubility were

reduced. On the basis of these results, the best sample

was analyzed for thickness testing, biodegradability

properties, SEM, Hydrophilicity, thermogravimetric

analysis, and sealing properties of bioplastics. The

results show the suitability of rice and starch for

packaging applications.

Plastic is a material that is used to great

extent. Most plastics that are commercially used today

are petroleum based, meaning that they can take more than

a century to degrade. Nothing in our natural environment

is capable of easily breaking them down since

polyurethane and polyethylene are manmade polymers that

microorganisms don’t recognize as food. When burned,

plastics release cancer causing carcinogenic chemicals

that are equally harmful to people and the environment.

The world is drowning in excess environmentally harmful

plastic which is made from oil- a nonrenewable resource.

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One environmentally friendly alternative to the current

commercial plastic is Bioplastics. Bioplastics are

biodegradable plastics that have components derived

directly from renewable raw plant materials. Their

polymers are made from plant materials and they decay

into natural materials that blend harmlessly with soil.

Some bioplastics can break down in a matter of weeks. In

this project, Corn starch, Agar and Gelatin were used as

biopolymers and Glycerol and Sorbitol as plasticizers.

Seven types of Bioplastics were made using various

combinations of these raw materials and plasticizers.

Then their tensile strengths, biodegradability, thermal

properties, and water degradation properties were

compared. Their tensile strength testing and thermal

analysis (differential scanning calorimetry/

Thermogravimetric analysis) were performed in the polymer

synthesis lab at UALR using their testing apparatus’s.

For Tensile Strength, the average maximum load, load at

break, stress, strain and time to break were calculated

for each Bioplastic sample and various other commercial

plastics using the three strips. For the thermal

analysis, the samples TGA and DSC were measured. To test

the biodegradability, compost was prepared using soil,

green scraps, wood chippings, dry leaves, and newspaper.

Then each of the samples was buried in separate compost

bins for four weeks. After four weeks, the samples were
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taken out, dried, and measured for their final weight. To

test the water degradation, eight containers were filled

with 50 ml of water and the samples, along with the Wal-

Mart bag (used as a control) were dropped into the

containers. They were observed initially at the five

minute mark, ten minute mark, and thirty minute make for

signs of degradation, and after that they were observed

at one hour intervals. This process was continued for a

two-day time period.

 The results suggest that Corn Starch Bioplastic has most

tensile strength with considerable biodegradation and

minimal water degradation. They also suggest that the

gelatin + glycerol sample was the most thermally stable.

(Meghana Bollimpalli, 2017)

Due to the negative environmental impacts of

synthetic plastics, the development of biodegradable

plastics for both industrial and commercial applications

is essential today. Researchers have developed various

starch-based composites for different applications. The

present work investigates the corn and rice starch-based

bioplastics for packaging applications. Various samples

of bioplastics are produced, with different compositions

of corn and rice starch, glycerol, citric acid, and

gelatin. The tensile properties were improved after

adding rice starch. However, water absorption and water

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solubility were reduced. On the basis of these results,

the best sample was analyzed for thickness testing,

biodegradability properties, SEM, hydrophobicity,

thermogravimetric analysis, and sealing properties of

bioplastic. The results show the suitability of rice and

corn-based thermoplastic starch for packaging

applications. ( Mohammad Axim, 2019)

Cassava peels as an agro-industrial waste has

potentials to serve as raw materials for industrial

application. Growing interest geared towards harnessing

the potential of these waste peels towards food

sustainability has prospect for green synthesis. Cassava

peels has high starch content that is biodegradable,

inexpensive and abundantly available as polysaccharide

molecule. Therefore modifying starch into biodegradable

plastics that are less harmful to the environment than

conventional plastics have attracted attention over the

years because of its environmental sustainability. In the

experimental procedure, 10 g of starch to sorbitol were

prepared in the following proportions; 5 : 5, 6 : 4, 7 :

3, 8 : 2, 9 : 1 and 10 : 0. Further enhancement of starch

to microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) with various

concentration of sorbitol as plasticizer (10%. 20%, 30%

and 40%) was investigated based on density, water

absorption, solubility in water and biodegradability.

Results from this study, reflect a clear indication that

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addition of microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) triggers

lower density. The result also revealed that at starch to

MCC ratio beyond 7:3, the impact of sorbitol on the

bioplastic film begins to decrease. Use of sorbitol

revealed an increase in water uptake after some hours

with a 32 % lost in water-soluble organic matter. The

biodegradability test, unveiled that the bioplastic

without reinforcement with MCC, showed a higher

percentage of degradation (55.46 %) after two weeks,

indicating a higher weight loss. In conclusion, MCC

addition triggered the enzymatic degradation more

efficiently. These results also revealed the potential of

MCC towards enhanced physical, and biodegradability

properties. (Otache, Amagbor, Chidioko, 2021)

In the study conducted by Cataquis et al, on the

“Utilization of Indigenous Plants as an Additive for the

Manufacture of Biodegradable Plastics” said that plastic

is the major toxic pollutants that threaten the

environment. This study examines some of the indigenous

such as the potato tuber, cassava tuber, and gabi tuber

as a biodegradable plastic. The effect of glycerin

(plasticizer) to the density and tensile strength of the

finished product was investigated, and the formation of

the layers are visible. The bioplastics made from

cassava, taro and potato were glossy and translucent. The

products resemble the elastomers for packaging and the

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Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) type of plastic which is

commonly used for packaging. The density and flexibility

were both affected directly by the type of starch used.

The bioplastic made from cassava has the highest moisture

content of 70.800%, this means that this plastic shows

signs of high electrical properties while bioplastic made

from pure taro shows the lowest percentage water

absorbed, this signifies that among the six samples

presented, bioplastic from pure taro is the most

dielectric. There are no apparent changes in the

dimensions of the six samples after one week by exposing

to air. The results indicate that the physical

appearances of the bioplastics were not greatly affected

by the atmospheric temperature and pressure. The samples

were disintegrated after two weeks embedded in the soil

and loss some mass that was presumably had been degraded

to the soil.

In the Research in Science presented by Sabino et

al, claims that biodegradable plastics which is said to

be a solution to widespread waste production in the

Philippines are created to replace the synthetic type of

polymers that plastic material are mainly composed of.

With lack of evidence, this information from the study

hopes to supply knowledge gaps in the biodegradability of

plastics that are being used by major markets within

Tuguegarao City for the duration of three months.

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Furthermore, it can be useful information readily

utilized by the different markets as their evaluation

tool to demonstrate and compare the degradability of

their products that are extensively useful to both

consumers and to the environment. the design of this

study is a semi-experimental study which aimed to

describe the degradation ability of biodegradable

plastics among major markets in Tuguegrao City. After the

experiment has been completed in the predetermined time,

several analyses were made where the results show that

product 1, and product 3 showed no visual modification in

only one sample. After doing visual evaluation, results

revealed that there is only 1.67grams, 1.33grams, and

0.67grams in the mean weight of Product 1, Product 2, and

Product 3 respectively. To relatively compare it to their

initial weights, Percent Decomposition was obtained

wherein the results show that there is 16.70%, 33.25%,

and 33.67% decomposition in Product 1, Product 2 and

Product 3 respectively. Lastly the p-value using One-Way

ANOVA was also obtained and the product results having

values of 0.007490434, 0.01613009 and 0.116117 for

product 1, product 2, and product 3 respectively. This

indicates that there is no significant difference in

Product 2 and Product 3 weights after 12 weeks. However,

it can be seen that there is significant difference in

Product 1 weights using the three samples after being

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burrowed. In conclusion having considered possible

evaluations in the three products presented three

randomized samples in each product, the claim that the

biodegradable plastics as an alternative solution to the

growing dilemma of waste accumulation still lacks

evidences.