Biodegradability of Blended Polymers: A Comparison of Various Properties

Derived from natural gas, crude oil and petroleum, plastics create major problems due to instability of these petrochemicals. The disposal of plastics, especially those used in packaging, poses a serious challenge to waste management. Growing environmental awareness has imposed a paradigm shift from biostable materials to biodegradable ones that are compatible with the environment to ensure a safe eco-friendly atmosphere for packaging film and processes. The ever-increasing use of plastic film nowadays has resulted in biodegradability becoming an essential characteristic for plastics. An additional advantage of using biodegradable materials is that upon disintegration and composting, they may act as fertilizers and soil conditioners, enhancing crop yield while capitalizing natural resource conservation with an underpinning on environment friendly and safer atmosphere. This review article is thus an attempt to address this pressing problem by discussing a few biodegradable polymeric blends derived from renewable feedstocks with potential applications in our everyday lives.