Evaluación de la degradación ambiental de bolsas plásticas biodegradables

Plastic bags are used as disposable materials, and they are released into the environment at an increasing rate. For this reason many manufacturers are producing degradable polymeric material-based bags, like for example the polyhydroxyalkanoates and the polylactates. In this work, the degradability of bags declared as degradable by their manufacturers, was evaluated by exposure to the environment, and compared to those of the conventional bags. Three parameters were studied: weight loss, water absorption and mechanical strength. The results showed that the degradable bags suffered greater weight loss, increased water absorption and lower mechanical strength before and after exposure to the environment than the conventional bags. This show that the chemical modifications made by manufacturers, actually promote their degradation.