Environmental Technology - AS > Plastics > Flashcards

Plastics Flashcards

(48 cards)

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1
Q

What are the main uses of crude oil?

A

Gasoline
Diesel
Solvents
Kerosene
heating oil
Liquefied petroleum gas
Lubricants
asphalt
plastics

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2
Q

How much crude oil is used for plastics?

A

2019 - 4 to 6% of crude oil is used for plastics in the EU

Increased in use exponentially since ww2

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3
Q

Uses of plastics?

A

Food packaging
Electronic devices
Clothes
Windows frames
Electronic cables
toys

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4
Q

What is some legislation that has been put in place to stop the use of plastic in food packaging?

A

Plastic bag levy: A 5p levy in 2013 caused an 86% reduction

In 2020, a ban was placed on plastic stirrers and a limitation was placed on earbuds/straws. Taking into account those with medial conditions

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5
Q

What have businesses done to reduce plastic use?

A

Waitrose has introduced a scheme of bringing your own container to collect produce to reduce plastic packaging.

In 2018, the Boston Ta Party banned the sale of single use plastic cups but this caused sales to drop significantly showing people are resistant to change

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6
Q

What are the environmental impacts of plastics?

A

Many plastics do not decompose for hundreds of thousands of years.

Finite and create highly polluting gas emissions

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7
Q

How has the use of plastic increased?

A

1950 - 2 million tonnes of plastic per year
2015 - 381 million tonnes of plastic per year

190x increase

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8
Q

What are the main uses of crude oil today?

A
  1. Transportation
  2. Energy Sectors
  3. Plastics
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9
Q

What is the chemical makeup of crude oil?

A

It is mixture of long and short hydrocarbons

short - more volatile - better fuel
long - less volatile - worse fuel

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10
Q

How does fractional distillation separate crude oil?

A

The crude oil is heated up so all the hydrocarbons are evaporated.

Each fraction of the crude oil has a unique boiling point and condenses at a different temperature to then sperate into a separate fraction.

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11
Q

What temperature does each hydrocarbon condense at and what is it used for?

A

Petrol — Petrol Engines — 70°C
Naphtha — Plastics — 120°C
Kerosene — Aeroplane fuel — 180°C
Diesel — Diesel engines — 260°C
Lubricating oil — Heating oil — 300°C
Fuel oil — Bitumen — 350°C
LPG — Propane & Butane — 0°C

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12
Q

What % of plastics are recycled?

A

As of 2015, 30% of plastic are recycled

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13
Q

What fraction is used for plastics?

A

Naphtha

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14
Q

What are uses of non-degradable plastics?

A

Readily available in a range of colours
Very Cheap
Formed & made into nearly any design/ shape
Very durable

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14
Q

Why do plastics take so long to degrade?

A

Bonds between hydrocarbon molecules are very strong. Taking hundreds or thousands of years to fully break down. Cannot be broken down by micro organisms.

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15
Q

What percentage of plastics does each country recycle?

A

USA <10% of plastic recycled
China 39.1% of plastic recycled
EU 22% of plastic recycled

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15
Q

How do we overcome the issues without plastic taking a long time to degrade?

A

Increase the quantity of plastic recycled
Make plastic degrade quicker by altering how it is manufactured.

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16
Q

Issues with plastic in oceans?

A

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is an example. Nearly 80,000 tonnes of plastic exist there and is twice the size of Texas.

Even when plastics do break down into microplastics they can be ingested by sea life. Humans then ingest these plastics if they eat fish etc.

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17
Q

What gases are released when plastics are incinerated?

A

CO - Carbon monoxide
HCN - Hydrogen Cyanide - very toxic (death)
HCl

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18
Q

What are bioplastics?

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A

Plastics are derived from forms biomass such as corn.

They can decay naturally and in much shorter timeframes from plastics derived from crude oil.

19
Q

Issues with bioplastics breaking down?

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A

To be broken down effectively, the bioplastic needs to be stored within very specific oxygen levels, high temperature & specific moisture conditions.

Many may not degrade in landfill & need specific composting regions. Only 200 facilities in the USA can break them down as of 2017.

20
Q

What are biodegradable plastics?

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A

Plastic that can be broken down by micro-organisms, bacteria or other biological means

Still manufactured by crude oil but additives speed up decomposition to a few years / months

21
Q

Uses Of Biodegradable Plastics?

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A

Food Packaging

Plastic Films

Placed on crops to increase annual yields but still manufactured from crude oil so their ability to be fully absorbed is questioned.

22
Q

Why are plastics films used?

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A

Reduces Weeds - Promotes Growth
Increases soil Temperature - Promotes Growth
Crop yields Increased
Plastic naturally degrades so the farmer does not need to gather up the plastic & transport.

23
What are photodegrading plastics?
The manufacturing process can be altered so under UV light, plastic degrades much more rapidly and as little as a few months.
24
Uses Of Photodegrading Plastics?
Plastic films Slow release fertiliser
25
Conventional drawbacks of applying fertiliser via a tractor & hopper:
Low absorption of nutrients Fertiliser can be dissolved into liquid form but the leachate can be washed away by heavy rain water damaging ecosystems Traditional fertiliser pellets release available nutrients to crops instantly causing a temporary spurt in growth and then nutrient deficiencies in a few months as the release is not constant.
26
How does Slow release Fertiliser work?
Fertiliser with a plastic coating which can be photodegradable Applied to a field. Fields which are highly susceptible to leaching or have a high probability of surface run off, are particularly suitable. Over a period of time, controlled by the plastic coating's thickness, the fertiliser will defuse through the coating into the ground. Can take 6-9 months ensuring uniform distribution, reduces leaching / run-off as they are more difficult to displace in heavy rain.
26
What are oxo-biodegradable plastics?
Plastics that degrade much faster in the presence of oxygen (O₂) via micro-organisms. Symphony Environmental Technologies developed this using a catalyst called d2w, which is added to the base polymer resin.
27
What does the speed of oxo-biodegradable plastics depend on?
UV light Temperature (heat) Concentration of d2w Presence of oxygen (essential)
28
What are the final products of oxo-biodegradable plastics?
CO₂ (carbon dioxide) H₂O (water)
29
Issues with Oxo-biodegradable Plastics?
The European Union is considering banning these plastics: they may not fully degrade and can form microplastics. Chris Packham supported the company but did not disclose he was being paid, Shows the risk of influencers promoting products for companies without transparency.
30
How do you enhance Thermal & Photodegradation of plastics?
Chemicals can be added that are easily broken down by UV light These plastics degrade faster → called photodegradable plastics
31
What are compostable plastics?
Bioplastics are made from biomass (e.g. corn) and are compostable They break down naturally over time into smaller pieces
32
Uses of Polyethylene?
HDPE (High Density Polyethylene): Milk bottles, underground pipes LDPE (Low Density Polyethylene): Plastic bags, food packaging
32
Uses of compostable plastics?
Improves soil composition Used as plastic crop covers - Suppresses weeds Maintains temperature and moisture Leads to higher yields
33
Benefits of bioplastics?
Less plastic sent to landfill Less plastic reaching oceans Reduced use of crude oil → fewer emissions
34
Info about polyethylene?
Over 60 million tonnes produced annually Widely used in food packaging → urgent need for sustainable alternatives Not biodegradable but recyclable
35
How is polyethylene produced?
Monomer: ethene (ethylene) contains a C=C double bond The double bond breaks and forms long chains (polymerisation) Same as chem​
36
How is the type of plastic determined in addition polymerisation?
Chain length determines the properties of the plastic Ethene is made from crude oil
37
What is Bioderived Polyethylene?
Chemically and physically identical to normal polyethylene Made from biomass crops instead of crude oil Recycled easily and not biodegradable
37
How is Bioderived Polyethylene made?
Corn/sugar cane is broken down by microorganisms (fermentation) Produces ethanol Ethanol is converted into ethene Ethene undergoes addition polymerisation
38
What is a polymer?
Polymer = long chain made of repeating monomers
39
Issues with the manufacturing process of plastics globally?
Require large amounts of energy Energy usually comes from fossil fuels Causes pollution and uses finite resources
40
Pros of bioplastics process of plastics globally?
Reduce reliance on crude oil Improve security of supply (less dependence on unstable regions) Lower greenhouse gas emissions: Plants absorb CO₂ during growth
41
Issues with the biodegradability process of plastics globally?
Many plastics take hundreds or thousands of years to degrade Additives can speed up degradation: UV-sensitive chemicals Microorganism-assisted breakdown Microplastics remain a long-term issue
42
Information about single use plastics?
2015: 381 million tonnes produced annually Large percentage used once then discarded Reuse is essential to reduce landfill and ocean pollution
43
Explain the benefits of recycling?
Requires effective waste segregation Reduces need for new plastic production Conserves resources (crude oil / biomass) Reduces landfill and ocean pollution
Environmental Technology - AS
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