For a long time polymers have supplied most of common packaging materials because they present several desired features like softness, lightness and transparency. However, increased use of synthetic packaging films has led to a serious ecological problems due to their total non-biodegradability. Although their complete replacement with eco-friendly packaging films is just impossible to achieve, at least for specific applications like food packaging the use of bioplastics should be the future. The aim of this review was to offer a complete view of the state of the art on biodegradable polymer packages for food application.

Biodegradable polymers for food packaging: a review

Occurrences and removal of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) in drinking water and water/sewage treatment plants: A review

Various bacterial species accumulate intracellular polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) granules as energy and carbon reserves inside their cells. PHAs are biodegradable, environmentally friendly and biocompatible thermoplastics. Varying in toughness and flexibility, depending on their formulation, they can be used in various ways similar to many nonbiodegradable petrochemical plastics currently in use. They can be used either in pure form or as additives to oil-derived plastics such as polyethylene. However, these bioplastics are currently far more expensive than petrochemically based plastics and are therefore used mostly in applications that conventional plastics cannot perform, such as medical applications. PHAs are immunologically inert and are only slowly degraded in human tissue, which means they can be used as devices inside the body. Recent research has focused on the use of alternative substrates, novel extraction methods, genetically enhanced species and mixed cultures with a view to make PHAs more commercially attractive.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1365-2672.2007.03335.x

Bacterial synthesis of biodegradable polyhydroxyalkanoates

Utilization of waste sludge as a renewable resource for energy recovery is the appropriate solution of how to manage the continuously increasing waste sludge generation effectively in order to meet stringent environmental quality standards, and at the same time, how to sustain the supply of reliable and affordable energy for our future generations and ourselves. The valuable characteristics of sludge, including high energy and nutrient content, with the stringent criteria of sludge disposal, driving the environmental engineers and scientist to change their standpoint to considering sludge as a viable resource of energy instead of a waste. It may be an important move towards the development of a sustainable energy solution to fulfill present and future energy requirements and thus reduce the dependency on non-renewable resource. Thus, this review discusses about the type of resources that can be recovered from waste sludge and, conventional and emerging methods used to convert the sludge into valuable resources. Moreover, the major factors involved in the process, stage of application, advantages and possible drawbacks of the methods are also discussed.

Sludge: A waste or renewable source for energy and resources recovery?

Current trends in biodegradable polyhydroxyalkanoates

Bio-accumulation of environmental residues of rare earth elements in aquatic flora Eichhornia crassipes (Mart.) Solms in Guangdong Province of China

Twelve aerobic bacteria from activated sludge were isolated and identified. These included both Gram-positive (e.g., Bacillus) and Gram-negative (e.g., Pseudomonas) bacteria. The biosorption capacity of these strains for three different heavy metals (copper, nickel, and lead) was determined at pH 5.0 and initial metal concentration of 100 mg/L. Among these 12 isolates, Pseudomonas pseudoalcaligenes was selected for further investigation owing to its high metal biosorption capacity. The lead and copper biosorption of this strain followed the Langmuir isotherm model quite well with maximum biosorption capacity (q max) reaching 271.7 mg of Pb2+/g of dry cell and 46.8 mg of Cu2+/g of dry cell at pH 5.0. Study of the effect of pH on lead and copper removal indicated that the metal biosorption increased with increasing pH from 2.0 to 7.0. A mutual inhibitory effect was observed in the lead-copper system because the presence of either ion affected the sorption capacity of the other. Unequal inhibitions were observed in all the nickel binary systems. The increasing order of affinity of the three metals toward P. pseudoalcaligenes was Ni < Cu < Pb. The metal biosorptive potential of these isolates, especially P. pseudoalcaligenes, may have possible applications in the removal and recovery of metals from industrial effluents.

Biosorption of heavy metals by bacteria isolated from activated sludge.

In this study, activated sludge bacteria from a conventional wastewater treatment process were induced to accumulate polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) under different carbon-nitrogen (C:N) ratios As the C:N ratio increased from 20 to 140, specific polymer yield increased to a maximum of 038 g of polymer/g of dry cell mass while specific growth yield decreased The highest overall polymer production yield of 011 g of polymer/g of carbonaceous substrate consumed was achieved using a C:N ratio of 100 Moreover, the composition of polymer accumulated was dependent on the valeric acid content in the feed Copolymer poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxy-valerate) [P(3HB-co-3HV)] was produced in the presence of valeric acid The 3-hydroxyvalerate (3HV) mole fraction in the copolymer was linearly related to valeric content in the feed, which reached a maximum of 54% when valeric acid was used as sole carbon source When the 3HV U in the polymer increased from 0-54 mol%, the melting temperature decreased from 178° to 99°C Thus, the composition, and hence the mechanical properties, of the copolymer produced from activated sludge can be controlled by adjusting the mole fraction of valeric acid in the feed medium

Accumulation of biopolymers in activated sludge biomass.

Broader usage of biodegradable plastics in packaging and disposable products as a solution to environmental problems would heavily depend on further reduction of costs and the discovery of novel biodegradable plastics with improved properties. As the first step in our pursuit of eventual usage of industrial food wastewater as nutrients for microorganisms to synthesise environmental-friendly bioplastics, we investigated the usage of soya wastes from a soya milk dairy, and malt wastes from a beer brewery plant as the carbon sources for the production of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) by selected strain of microorganism. Bench experiments showed that Alcaligenes latus DSM 1124 used the nutrients from malt and soya wastes to biosynthesise PHAs. The final dried cell mass and specific polymer production of A. latus DSM 1124 were 32g/L and 70% polymer/cells (g/g), 18.42 g/L and 32.57% polymer/cell (g/g), and 28 g/L and 36% polymer/cells (g/g), from malt waste, soya waste, and from sucrose, respectively. These results suggest that many types of food wastes might be used as the carbon source for the production of PHA.

Conversion of Industrial Food Wastes by Alcaligenes Latus into Polyhydroxyalkanoates

A novel technology for bulking control in biological wastewater treatment plant for pulp and paper making industry

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