Resin particles include mother particles containing a biodegradable resin and a plasticizer, in which an amount of a metal element having an ionic valence of 2 or more, obtained by fluorescent X-ray analysis, is 0.002% by mass or more and 2.0% by mass or less with respect to a total amount of the resin particles.

Hydrogels that degrade under appropriate conditions of pH and temperature by virtue of crosslinking compounds that cleave through an elimination reaction are described. The hydrogels may be used for delivery of various agents, such as pharmaceuticals.

A method for preparing a rooting plug is disclosed. The method calls for mixing a composition comprising (i) 0.2%-10% w/w bio-degradable polymer and (ii) an organic non-hydroxylic solvent with a plug mix. The resulting method prepares a rooting plug.

In the present invention, biodegradable nanocomposites are introduced which include nanoclay particles, titanium dioxide nanoparticles, polyethylene, polypropylene, starch as a biopolymer, maleic anhydride and glycerol. The obtained nanocomposites have very high physical, mechanical and antimicrobial properties. Proper dispersion and distribution of nanoparticles in composite substrate would help in improving the quality of the product to a great extent. The presence of polypropylene next to polyethylene would eliminate the weak points of polyethylene/biopolymer composite as polypropylene helps to modify the physical and engineering properties of nanocomposites in the presence of nanoclay. Titanium dioxide nanoparticles have antimicrobial properties and would result in products which are useful for food and pharmaceutical industries. Another important aspect of this invention is the production of samples in one step by reaction extrusion method.

A biodegradable resin particle, includes: a base particle containing a biodegradable resin; a first layer on a surface of the base particle, the first layer containing at least one cationic resin of a polyalkyleneimine, a polyallylamine and a polyvinylamine; and a second layer on the first layer, the second layer containing an anionic or nonionic hydrophobic compound.

An example starch-based material for forming a biodegradable component includes a mixture of a starch and an expansion additive. The starch has an amylose content of less than about 70% by weight. The expansion additive enhances the expansion and physical properties of the starch. A method of preparing a starch-based material is also disclosed and an alternate starch-based material for forming a biodegradable component is also disclosed.

The present invention relates to plastic composition comprising at least one polyester, biological entities having a polyester-degrading activity and at least an anti-acid filler, wherein the biological entities represent less than 11% by weight, based on the total weight of the plastic composition, and uses thereof for manufacturing biodegradable plastic articles.

There are provided processes for recycling waste such as polystyrene thermoplastic polymer waste and/or polystyrene thermoplastic copolymer waste as well as recycled polystyrene thermoplastic polymer and/or recycled thermoplastic copolymer that may, for example, be obtained from such processes. The processes can comprise dissolving the waste in cymene, xylene or ethylbenzene or a suitable solvent, to obtain a mixture followed by heating the mixture under acidic conditions and then optionally neutral conditions in the presence of a reducing agent then cooling to obtain a supernatant comprising polystyrene thermoplastic polymer and/or polystyrene thermoplastic copolymer and a solid waste residue. The supernatant can optionally be treated with a filtration aid, then the supernatant can be contacted with a hydrocarbon polystyrene non-solvent under conditions to obtain precipitated polystyrene thermoplastic polymer and/or precipitated polystyrene thermoplastic copolymer which can be washed with additional hydrocarbon polystyrene non-solvent, and optionally dried and formed into polystyrene thermoplastic polymer pellets and/or polystyrene thermoplastic copolymer pellets.

The embodiments relate to a biodegradable polyester resin composition, to a nonwoven fabric, to a film, and to processes for preparing the same in which the biodegradable polyester resin composition comprises a specific diol component and a specific dicarboxylic acid component and may further comprise nanocellulose, whereby the biodegradability, flexibility, strength, and processability are enhanced. Since the biodegradable polyester resin composition has enhanced biodegradability, flexibility, strength, and processability as compared with the conventional natural biodegradable polymer widely used, it can be applied to various fields such as films, packaging materials, and nonwoven fabrics to show excellent characteristics.

A composite material includes biodegradable and/or renewable materials such as purified milk protein recovered as a byproduct in cheese making processes. The result is a material suitable for three-dimensional (3D) printing and extrusion based polymer processing, with improved properties but that is still environmentally friendly. Purified milk protein may be used to produce composite thermoplastic materials or resins. Additional chemical modification may improve the blending of purified milk protein.