Malaysia: Durable Degradable Plastic

Plastics are a necessity in our lives, but the problem is that the materials available in the market today are petroleum-based, such as polyethylene, polypropylene and polystyrene, which are non-degradable and environmentally unfriendly. The innovation of Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) researchers in green technology might just be the answer to the global environmental problem arising from the use of non-degradable plastics. Though degradable plastics are already available in the market, they are generally expensive and are not durable. Enviroplast, or more commonly known as green plastic, is an alternative and has the potential to overcome the problems with the use of local expertise besides being very much cheaper compared to the degradable product currently available in the market. Green plastic uses additional chemical compounds such as DegraCHEM (a USM invention), natural polymers and synthetic chemicals that enable the plastic to degrade easily. The plastic is also special because it can be recycled and degrades easily within six months compared to petroleum-based plastics which take 100 years to degrade.

Source: ResearchSEA - News Update, 6^th July 2009