Faculty Advisor
Gobert, Janice
Faculty Advisor
Thompson, Robert W.
Abstract
An analysis of societal issues involving bioplastics has been carried out. Health, economic, and environmental concerns related to a switch to bioplastics were studied. The possible impacts on energy usage, petroleum usage, and food production including land usage were observed. Bioplastics were found to be superior to petroplastics in terms of energy efficiency, petroleum consumption, and carbon emissions, but inferior to petroplastics in cost and applicability. Negative effects on the food supply were also predicted with a switch to bioplastics. Pollution and safety varied on a plastic-to-plastic basis but in general bioplastics were found to be safer. It has been concluded that bioplastics are not viable for wide scale use in their current form.
Publisher
Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Date Accepted
March 2009
Project Type
Interactive Qualifying Project
Copyright Statement
All authors have granted to WPI a nonexclusive royalty-free license to distribute copies of the work, subject to other agreements. Copyright is held by the author or authors, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise noted.
Accessibility
Unrestricted
Advisor Department
Social Science and Policy Studies
Advisor Department
Chemical Engineering