Obtención de un polímero biodegradable a partir de desechos del desfibrado de abacá (Musa textillis) para evitar la contaminación producida en la parroquia Monterrey del cantón La Concordia.

Abstract

The objective of this research project was to obtain a biodegradable polymer from waste abacá shredding (Musa textillis) in order to avoid contamination in the Monterrey parish of La Concordia Canton. A diagnosis of the current situation was made by applying a survey in which it was determined that there is 27.49 % of waste available to be used as raw material in the production of biodegradable materials; a characterization was carried out by means of moisture, fat and infrared spectroscopy tests which detected the presence of cellulose and lignin. Cellulose was then extracted to be used as the main raw material in the production of biodegradable material. Once the formulations were obtained, the casting method was applied to form the polymer sheets and subsequent molding by thermoforming. The treatment that presented the best characteristics in terms of texture, uniformity, film formation and visual appearance was number three, corresponding to formulations six, seven and eight, which were subsequently subjected to traction, infrared spectroscopy and biodegradability tests. When comparing the results of the mechanical tests with the ASTM D 638 standard for plastics, which establishes that these should reach a maximum effort between 14 to 140 MPa, although it is true that a biodegradable polymer was obtained thanks to the biodegradability test; these did not achieve similar characteristics to conventional plastics, in spite of this, this study represents a great precedent for other investigations for the use of abaca defibering residues and in the industry of bioplastic products it can already be mixed with other products to reduce biodegradability times. Finally, the project was socialized with the producers of the Monterrey parish of La Concordia canton who favorably welcomed the project.