As we all know, ordinary PP/PE plastics are difficult to decompose in the natural environment for hundreds of years. Therefore, plastic waste is recognized as a substance produced by humans that pollutes the environment. However, the use of plastics is extremely wide, such as plastic toys, plastic bottles, plastic packaging, plastic bags... Our lives are inseparable from plastic. Therefore, inventing an environmentally friendly plastic is particularly meaningful for environmental protection.

But what is environmentally friendly plastic? In fact, as early as a century ago, a plastic material with the English abbreviation PLA of polylactic acid resin was artificially synthesized. The plastic products produced by this material can be completely degraded into carbon dioxide and water in a compost environment. However, due to the high production cost at the time, it failed to become the raw material for plastic products. In recent years, new advanced synthesis technology has greatly reduced the cost of producing this polylactic acid resin material, so that it can gradually be used in actual blow molding, blister molding, sheet and other grades of plastic products. At present, the more common products at home and abroad are disposable cups, cutlery, plates, plastic bags, non-woven fabrics and so on. In theory, as long as it is a plastic product, it can be made of this kind of bioplastic material called PLA.

Currently, only two companies in the United States and China have their own technology to produce this material. The United States is the only company with an annual output far exceeding 10 million tons, and many countries have even introduced their raw material production lines completely. Unfortunately, in our country, only one company under a well-known university in Shanghai has its own technology. However, because the domestic environmental awareness is generally not strong, the development is relatively slow and unknown. Therefore, there is an embarrassing situation in which my country has its own technology, but many environmentally insightful people import PLA resin for processing from the United States.

Environmentally friendly plastics are environmentally friendly, but the raw materials of PLA materials are mainly corn and other crops that contain a lot of starch and sugar. Usually 1 ton of PLA resin requires 2.3 tons of corn as raw material. The United States produces 10 million tons of PLA annually, which means that more than 23 million tons of food are consumed every year! The United States is a big agricultural exporter. Can we afford it? Compared with environmental protection, is this price worth it? On this issue, I consulted a Greenlitz expert and PhD in materials who has experience in selling PLA plastic products. He believes that there is no need to worry about this problem for the time being, because when there is a shortage of food, food prices will naturally rise, and the cost of polylactic acid resin materials used to produce PLA plastics will also increase, which will inhibit the demand for bioplastic products to a certain extent. So the market itself will have a certain adjustment function. In the long run, the raw materials of traditional plastics come from non-renewable resources such as petroleum, and it is a rule to be eliminated. The main component of polylactic acid is carbohydrates. Carbohydrates such as starch and sugar in nature are easier (and cheaper) to obtain from crops, especially corn. It is hoped that future technology can gradually change this dependence on food.

In the past few years, supermarkets in our country banned free distribution of plastic bags. This can only solve a small part of the problem. According to the author’s observation, many people in the country tend to forget to bring their own handbags when shopping through the supermarket, and young people don’t even care. Spend a few cents more to buy plastic bags. In foreign countries, for example, a plastic bag is sold at a supermarket checkout counter in Germany for 30 Euro cents, which is about 2.7 yuan, and most ordinary German people are used to bringing cloth bags to the supermarket to buy things. Germans love their homeland, so why don't we? I think that even if everyone is a caring person in daily life from now on, the progress will be great enough. The future of environmentally friendly plastics is actually not a concrete material like PLA. I think the future of environmentally friendly plastics is the invisible environmental awareness in our hearts. my country's PET recycled plastic can be used to make clothes, motorcycle helmets, fishing lines, and packing ropes. Or simply used on food packaging, PET recycled plastic bottles can be recycled for unlimited times. This is an environmentally friendly process technology within our reach.

It is understood that PET recycled plastic bottles are expected to enter the Chinese market in the near future. Since the raw material of plastic packaging comes from petroleum, in order to save resources, many developed countries have developed recycling and reuse technologies for plastic packaging. As early as 1991, recycled PET chips were used for food packaging. The good barrier properties of PET material make it the most important packaging material for various carbonated beverages, fruit juices, milk and dairy products, tea beverages, mineral water and other food and beverages.

In my country, all PET plastic bottles are currently made of raw PET raw materials extracted from petroleum. The annual output of 3 million tons of PET plastic bottles consumes more than 18 million tons of oil, and it also creates a huge environment. pressure. The recycling of PET recycled plastic bottles is conducive to resource conservation. Within the scope of Beijing, the total amount of PET plastic bottles discarded every year is as high as 150,000 tons, about 6 billion waste plastic bottles, which cause great harm to the environment. With the development of technology for manufacturing recycled PET chips, recycled food-grade PET chips can be directly used for food packaging, thereby achieving 100% endless recycling. The recycling of PET recycled plastic bottles greatly saves the consumption of petroleum resources.