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Sustainable Biopolymers in Textiles: An Overview

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Handbook of Ecomaterials

Abstract

Biopolymers are polymers synthesized by living organisms. Biopolymers can be poly-nucleotides such as the nucleic acids DNA and RNA, polypeptides, or polysaccharides. These consist of long chains made of repeating, covalently bonded units, such as nucleotides, amino acids, or monosaccharides. Biopolymers can be sustainable, carbon neutral, and are always renewable, because they are made from plant materials which can be grown indefinitely. Therefore, the use of biopolymers would create a sustainable industry. This chapter details the four different biopolymers which are likely from the natural resources and also from the synthetic pathways. The first method discussed is agro products which are obtained by the different natural biomass like polysaccharide, plant and animal protein with their properties and application areas. The second type of biodegradable fiber conferred is fibers extracted from microorganisms. The other kind of materials spotlighted is synthesis method both from the biologically derived bio-monomers and also by the routine synthetic monomers. All the fibers were detailed for their special properties and potential application areas in our day-to-day life.

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Karthik, T., Rathinamoorthy, R. (2018). Sustainable Biopolymers in Textiles: An Overview. In: Martínez, L., Kharissova, O., Kharisov, B. (eds) Handbook of Ecomaterials. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-48281-1_53-1

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