Bioplastics

Certain microbes use renewable resources, such as agricultural or industrial waste, to produce biodegradable polymers known as bioplastics.

Some bacteria synthesize polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs), a class of microbial polymers, as intracellular carbon and energy storage materials.

Bacteria such as Cupriavidus necator and Pseudomonas putida make and store PHAs as intracellular granules when grown under carbon-abundant but nitrogen- or phosphorus-limited conditions.

PHAs are harvested by collecting the microbial cells.

These cells are lysed using physical methods, such as bead milling, or chemical agents that degrade the cell walls.

The lysate is then treated with solvents, such as chloroform, and gently heated to dissolve the PHAs in the organic phase.

The polymer is purified through precipitation and processed downstream into usable materials.

The resulting bioplastic products are used as packaging material, agricultural mulch films, and drug delivery systems.

After disposal, bioplastics undergo microbial degradation, ultimately breaking down into simple compounds like carbon dioxide and water, or methane.