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

Abstract

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.

From a Sustainability Perspective, Why Should Bioplastics Be Used for Additive Manufacturing?

“…Even though they have also been related to some environmental issues, the harm produced is less severe than petroleum-based plastic [36]. 3D printing or AM technologies like Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) use plastics to build objects from 3D model data [8,41,42]. It joins thermoplastic filament layer upon layer until it forms the final object [37].…”

“…Moreover, using PLA and thermoplastic from starch in 3D printing can reduce CO 2 by 50-70% compared to petroleum-based plastics [45]. The waste management of PLA can be addressed by two paths, recycling and degradation [8]. PLA degradation can emit 70% less GHG emissions when the degradation is carried out in a landfill [23,33].…”

“…Economically, AM helps reduce investment costs and material spending because it simultaneously uses what is required, reducing waste management costs [7]. From an environmental point of view, this technology lessens the intensive use of material, chemicals, and energy in conventional manufacturing processes, as well as decreases the disposition of waste in landfills [8]. Additionally, AM technologies transform employees' working environments and reduce their exposure to hazardous components during manufacturing because they are faster and more energy and materialeffective technologies [9].…”

“…PLA is a bioplastic produced from maize, tapioca, and sugar cane through a bacterial fermentation process. PLA is widely used in packaging applications and can be recyclable and biodegradable under specified conditions [8,17,18]. On the contrary, PHA is a bioplastic fully biodegradable even in unfavorable conditions, such as plastics released on the soil or in the aquatic environment.…”

Grafting cellulose nanocrystals with phosphazene-containing compound for simultaneously enhancing the flame retardancy and mechanical properties of polylactic acid

“…With the aggravation of environmental pollution and the shortage of petroleum-based raw materials, renewable resources have gained increasing attention (Sombatsompop et al 2021;Hubbe et al 2021;Lyas et al2021). Polylactic acid (PLA), as one of the degradable thermoplastic polymers, obtains from renewable resources such as corn starch (Xu et al 2019).…”