Special Lecture on Science of Polymeric Materials I

環境に優しい高分子は、再生産可能資源であるバイオマスから生産されるバイオマスプラスチック、環境中の微生物の分泌する酵素により分解される生分解性プ ラスチックに大別される。本講義では環境に優しい高分子の社会的背景、国際定義、種類、物性、構造、生分解性について解説する。

Considering their widespread usage in various fields, such as food packaging, clothes, shelter, communication, transportation, construction, health care, and the leisure industries, plastics are very important materials. Currently used plastics are mostly produced from petrochemical products. However, there is a growing demand for eco-friendly plastics, namely bio-based plastics, which are produced from renewable resources, and biodegradable plastics, which degrade in the environment, to establish a more sustainable society and to solve global environmental and waste management problems. Next-generation bio-based and biodegradable plastics should not only be produced from non-edible biomass, but also show a superior performance; they must be strong and last a long time. From now on, we must develop an in-depth understanding of the structure of biomass, which nature created so well, and new functional plastics should be produced by modifying the structure and properties of biomass little by little. To that end, biomass researchers, microbiologists, synthetic chemists, and process engineers should make use of their individual expertise and collaborate to develop materials for human prosperity and a more sustainable society.