Abstract
The standard test method ASTM D 5988-96 for determining the degree and rate of aerobic biodegradation of plastic materials in contact with soil was applied to poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) and poly(ɛ-caprolactone). The method proved to be reliable and supplied reproducible measurements of CO2 production, provided potassium (instead of barium) hydroxide was used as a trapping solution. The trends of CO2 evolution, as a function of time, observed for the degradation of polymer powders in soil are similar to those predicted by simple first order kinetics in solution. The experimental data are described by a Michaelis–Menten type model, which accounts for the heterogeneity of the polymer-soil system. The kinetic equation deduced predicts the degradation rate to the proportional to the exposed polymer surface area.
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Modelli, A., Calcagno, B. & Scandola, M. Kinetics of Aerobic Polymer Degradation in Soil by Means of the ASTM D 5988-96 Standard Method. Journal of Polymers and the Environment 7, 109–116 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1021864402395
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1021864402395