Despite only being around for roughly 100 years, plastic has become an everyday part of our lives. Known for its convenience, plastic is also known to create significant environmental challenges because it does not biodegrade. Why doesn’t plastic break down in nature, and how is it so different from natural materials like cotton or wood? Let’s look at it from a chemistry perspective to find out.
Atoms come together to form molecules, which make up almost everything around us, including what is called a monomer. These monomers can group together to form more complex structures, called polymers. Depending on the amount and arrangement of the monomers, you can get different polymers, and this is how different plastics are created on a molecular level. For example, Polyethylene is the polymer name for one of the most common types of plastic, used most in grocery store bags. This form of plastic can bend and stretch because of its chemical properties, which are -CH2 -CH2-. The monomers that create the polymer are made stronger if there are more monomers chained together in the link. Plastics are artificially produced; they are made to have these long links, which make them abnormally strong and durable. This is why microorganisms, such as bacteria that would typically facilitate decomposition, struggle to break the complex polymers down into monomers.
Generally speaking, plastic overall is not biodegradable or takes years to achieve this state. Plastics tend to, through exposure to the elements, become increasingly brittle and break into smaller and smaller microplastics instead, where they wreak havoc on living ecosystems in a whole different way. This occurs far before any decomposing seen in materials like wood or wool could happen. For this reason, that is why plastic is so detrimental to our planet how it so easily accumulates, and why landfills are filled with plastics.
Some plastic materials are designed to be recyclable, and plastics with the resin codes 1, 2, and 5 are the biggest contenders for this. The resin code will look like the chasing arrows symbol, with the designated number in the center, somewhere on the packaging. While recycling does help reduce waste, compared to all the plastic produced globally, only 9 percent has been recycled.
Upcycling is another way people are addressing plastic pollution, and this practice is seen most in the art scene. According to Jill Troutman, an art teacher at Pennridge High School, “When you realize how many materials you don’t need to buy to make art it saves money and your repurposing is giving discarded items new life.” Her class has many fun projects that make sustainability a focus. One example is where her class takes discarded books and turns them into wonderful dioramas. When on the road, if Troutman finds discarded wooden chairs or windows, she picks them up for the class to do other projects. Ultimately, upcycling is one of many ways to help the environment, and perhaps with more time and resources, more solutions can be developed, starting at the molecular level.
