bioresources. com
PEER-REVIEWED REVIEW ARTICLE
Fig. 2. Polymers and biopolymers shown according to their biodegradability and source (Puls et al. 2010; Xu and Guo 2010; Sabiha-Hanim and Siti-Norsafurah 2012; Philp et al. 2013; Lackner 2015; Yu et al. 2016) The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has determined the minimum content of bio-based material for 109 different product categories (USDA 2017a). In the BIOPreferred program (USDA 2017b), the referenced products need to reach the specified minimum limit in order to be certified as bio-based (Greene 2014). Testing is required according to the ASTM D6866 standard (Greene 2014). The minimum relative content of bio-based material for disposable tableware made of or coated with plastic, for example, is 72% (USDA 2017a). Moreover, in addition to the BIOPreferred label, there are several other bio-based labels, such as OK biobased by Vincotte, which relates to the ASTM D6866 testing. In practice, the content of bio-based material can be determined by quantifying 14 C content, according to ASTM D6866-05 (2005). This is because fossil- based carbon does not include radiocarbon ( 14 C) due to its half-life of 5,730 years (Kijchavengkul and Auras 2008). There is no comparable ISO-standard test method for determining the content of bio-based materials currently available (Greene 2014). Biodegradability There are numerous standards available for biodegradability (Müller 2005; Kale et al. 2007; Rudnik 2012; Philp et al. 2013) from international (ISO, ASTM, CEN) and national ( e.g. , DIN) standardization bodies (Rudnik 2012). The European Committee for Standardization (CEN) has determined that biodegradable material degrades into biomass, carbon dioxide, and/or methane, and water under the influence of micro- organism activity (Müller 2005; Hermann et al. 2011). Likewise, other definitions are found, e.g. , in the European Parliament and Council Directive 94/62/EC; that source states that biodegradable packaging waste is required to undergo physical, chemical,
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Helanto et al. (2019). “ Bio-based barriers ,” B io R esources 14(2), Pg #s to be added.
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