Affiliation:
1. Okinawa Industrial Technology Center 12-2 Suzaki Uruma-shi Okinawa 904-2234 Japan
2. Biomedical Research Institute National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) 1-8-31 Midorigaoka Ikeda Osaka 563-8577 Japan
Abstract
AbstractPlastics contribute to several industrial activities, but they also cause environmental pollution. Additionally, they rely on an ever‐decreasing supply of natural, but non‐renewable, resources. Such plastics should be replaced by materials that are biodegradable and made from renewable resources such as polymers. They are synthesized from plant‐derived (R)‐3‐hydroxybutyric acid and l‐lactic acid meet these requirements. Most of the synthesized poly((R)‐3‐hydroxybutyrate‐co‐l‐lactate) with various monomer composition ratios were degraded by enzymes (PHB depolymerase or Proteinase K). Evaluation of biodegradability in activated sludge showed that copolymers with 80% or less of l‐lactic acid units were degraded.