Prof. Bikiaris and Prof. Papageorgiou are the guest editors of the special issue "Biobased and Biodegradable Polymers" in Polymers (IF 3.164). This special issue belongs to the section "Biobased and Biodegradable Polymers". 5 papers were published in the special issue as of now.
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 May 2020.
Description
Following their initial discovery, the use of polymers has expanded to almost all human activities, making a significant contribution to better living conditions over the years. This is due to their low cost and unique mechanical and thermal properties, in combination with being lightweight and easy to formulate into different shapes and articles. This has led to the development of new polymers not previously found in nature; however, scientists did not also foresee that these materials should be environmentally friendly and degraded shortly after their use, as is the case with natural polymers. It is estimated that most synthetic plastics need 400–500 years to fully disintegrate; therefore, over time, they began to accumulate in the environment. The most important problem now arises from plastic packaging materials and single-use products, the majority of which end up in the marine ecosystem where they degrade slowly in small pieces or so-called “microplastic”. It is estimated that about 50 trillion pieces of plastic, in sizes less than 1 cm, are floating in the seas and are transferred into humans through the food chain. Hence, one solution to prevent this process is to produce eco-friendly polymers.
In recent years, as a potential replacement of fossil fuels, the production of appropriate monomers using inexpensive and renewable starting materials, such as cellulose, is being increasingly explored, with the aim of developing a more sustainable biobased economy. Cellulose is the main part of plant cell walls and the most abundant natural polymer, however, starch, chitin, lignin, proteins, and vegetable oils can also be used as renewable starting materials, and are currently being used to make new materials known as ‘bioplastics’. The production of polymers from renewable resources is an old practice, and the first approach involved the modification of natural polymers and monomer extraction for production of new polymers. Thus, during the middle of 18th century, Parkesine plastic was discovered, followed later by Galalith resin production, Bakelite, and cellophane at the beginning of 19th century. This practice has, however, been diminishing in the years following petroleum discovery. This is because monomers for polymer synthesis can be easily derived during oil refinery, at low cost and high purity, and at a large scale suitable for mass production. Due to the environmental pollution, this practice should change drastically in the next years, and most scientific efforts are focused on the production of plastics using monomers derived from natural and renewable sources.
Biobased polyesters are one of the most important classes of polymers. Various bioderived monomers are available on the market for polymer synthesis, including acids (levulinic acid, succinic, sebacic, adipic, aspartic, terephthalic, 2,5-furandicarboxylic, vanillic, itaconic, lactic, hydroxybutyric, 3-hydroxypropionic acid, etc.), glycols (ethylene glycol, 1,3-propanediol, 1,4-butanediol, isosorbide, xylitol, sorbitol, glycerol, etc.), as well as other monomers (ethylene, propylene, styrene, etc). Some biomass-derived polyesters (such as poly(lactic acid) (PLA), poly(butylene succinate) (PBS), poly(butylene adipate) (PBA), poly(butylene succinate adipate) (PBSA), etc.) and non-degradable alipharomatic polymers (such as poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET), poly(butylene teraphtahlate) (PBT), poly(ethylene furan dicarboxylate) (PEF), poly(ethylene vanillate) (PEV), polyethylene (bio-PE), polypropylene (bio-PP), polystyrene (bio-PS), polyamides (bio-PA), etc.), and several of their copolymers, are currently among the most promising biobased polymers. Bioplastics can contribute to a better life and environment sustainability. It is estimated that by 2050 they will cover more than 40%–50% of the global plastics market. The development of new forms of plastics originating from natural sources also has the benefit of carbon footprint reduction by up to 60% when compared to conventional plastics. Hence, the future of plastics is indeed ‘green’.
The aim of this Special Issue is to highlight the progress and fundamental aspects of biobased monomers derived from renewable resources, as well as of the synthesis, characterization, properties, and applications of biobased and biodegradable polymers, and also of related copolymers, blends, composites, and nanocomposites.
Prof. Dimitrios Bikiaris Prof. Dr. George Z. Papageorgiou Guest Editors