Assessing the biodegradability of water-soluble polymers in standardised laboratory methods
Professor Andreas Künkel Vice-Président, Head of Biopolymer Research, BASF
Talk summary Regulations worldwide are rapidly developing for polymeric materials. A key concern is their uncertain environmental persistency. There is increasing need to identify and evaluate testing guidelines for assessing biodegradability to determine applicability and limitations for polymeric materials. In reviewing biodegradation testing guidelines, several methods have been identified, that may be used to assess the biodegradability of soluble and poorly soluble polymeric materials. Methods such as the OECD test guidelines have been developed for biodegradation for soluble/poorly soluble low molecular weight substances. Whereas media- specific methods e.g. ISO and ASTM test guidelines have focused on insoluble plastic materials, unfortunately, systematic investigations about their applicability for polymers are lacking and there’s limited publicly available data. Questions regarding their laboratory variability, suitable reference
materials and stringency remain. In view of the dynamic regulatory atmosphere, these knowledge gaps need to be urgently filled. We will present a study investigating the applicability of OECD and ASTM methods focusing on respirometric end points to study biodegradability of water-soluble polymers. Biography Andreas undertook his PhD at the Max-Planck- Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg. Having joined BASF’s biotech department in 1999, he then undertook various marketing positions for Fine Chemicals and ecoflex ® and ecovio ® focusing on strategy and new business development. Since 2010, Andreas became head of biodegradable and biobased polymer research and leads as executive expert and vice president for biodegradable and biobased materials corporate program.
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