Nature derived bioplastics

• Main Author: Chan, Cheryl Kai Yin
• Other Authors: Ng Kee Woei
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: Nanyang Technological University 2023
• Subjects: Engineering::Materials
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/165773
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

In 2019, the global production of plastic amounted to 460 million tonnes, half of which consisted of single-use products and packaging. It is estimated that a staggering 9.5 billion tonnes of plastic have been produced to date, of which only 9% were recycled. In this study, a biodegradable packaging film with enhanced mechanical properties was developed by upcycling nature-derived keratinous biowastes and incorporating it with various polymers, crosslinkers and plasticizers. The keratin (KIF) used was extracted from human hair via the Shindai Method. Keratin-based bioplastic films were fabricated by solution casting the extracted keratin into customized teflon molds and drying the samples at various temperatures. In order to improve the overall mechanical properties of the bioplastic films, nature-derived cellulose nanofibers (CNF), citric acid (CA) and glycerol (GLY) were added alongside the extracted keratin. The fabricated samples were characterized for mechanical properties, chemical structures and biodegradability. Drying temperature of 40°C was deemed to be the most optimal. In addition, keratin – CNF mass composition of 15/85 yielded the best mechanical properties and glycerol concentration of 5% significantly increased the strain at break value. Biodegradability tests in soil and water were conducted, which revealed that pure keratin and keratin – CNF samples have the ability to biodegrade, albeit at vastly different rates. In conclusion, the biodegradable nature of keratin-based products, coupled with the potential to improve mechanical properties by incorporating different additives, make it a highly promising material for the fabrication of sustainable packaging films.