Plastics are now called "fourth material" and are widely used in various industries, especially in the packaging industry. In today's increasingly stringent environmental protection requirements, some people call for the use of degradable plastic packaging or paper packaging instead of traditional plastic packaging. With China's current conditions, can degradable plastic packaging and paper packaging completely replace ordinary plastic packaging? Can using degradable plastics and paper products eliminate contamination? Recently, the author interviewed some of the experts.
Blind development of degradable plastics is not scientific
According to Yuan Guangkai, a professor at the Department of Environmental Science and Engineering at Tsinghua University, the development of degradable plastics is only one way to solve pollution problems. Degradable plastics can be used in difficult areas such as scenic areas and plastic membranes in high mountains and high mountains. "However, degradable plastics are composted to degrade plastics into organic matter with a molecular weight of less than 5,000 or 10,000, more strictly speaking, instead of actually degrading. There is currently no authoritative data to prove that degradable plastics are harmless to the environment. Blindly developing a large number of degradable plastics is not scientific."
Tang Saizhen, a senior engineer at the China National Light Industry Information Center, also shared the same view. She told the author: “Any degradable plastics, including fully biodegradable plastics, need to have certain environmental conditions and undergo certain cycles to achieve complete degradation and return to natural circulation. Most of the green plastic bags circulating on the market today are plastic bags filled with calcium carbonate, which can be broken under sunlight, but fragmentation does not equate to degradation.†Many plastic bags can be used for 90 days. Degradation signs are mostly signs that merchants use. This product has not undergone rigorous identification. "According to our understanding, at present there is no industrialized production of plastic bags that can meet the packaging performance requirements and prices are moderate, but can be completely degraded in the natural environment in 90 days."
Tangsai Zhen said: "Degradation of plastic bags completely replace ordinary plastic bags is not possible, it is not necessary, because all kinds of plastics have their own positioning, degradable plastics are mainly located in those disposable, difficult to collect, dirty, recycling Uneconomical consumer products."
"Reshaping paper is not the best choice
For the practice of promoting paper packaging instead of plastic packaging in foreign countries, Yuan Guangkai believes that although paper packaging can be biodegradable and can be recycled into the natural world, paper products generate several times more pollution than plastic during production and recycling. In combination with the strategy of sustainable development, it is unscientific to promote the use of paper for plastics.
Tang Saichen believes that although the term "paper-based plastic molding" has a long history, plastic packaging materials such as the United States and Japan have not been replaced by paper or other materials. The main reason is that the excellent performance of disposable plastic packaging materials is beyond doubt in the convenience of people's lives. The use of paper and cloth bags as substitutes for material bags is advocated. It has certain significance only from the impact of post-consumer waste on the environment and from the perspective of renewable resources. However, for the environmental adaptability of various products, it should not only be considered whether it is easy to handle and easy to degrade after its use, but it should comprehensively consider the product's entire life cycle and the product's cost performance.
At the end of the last century, related environmental departments in Japan and Germany had conducted a comprehensive analysis of the environmental impact of the entire production process of polyethylene plastic bags and paper bags. According to the data comparison, plastic bags have better environmental adaptability than paper bags. “But this comparison does not negate the important role of paper bags in the packaging field. It should be emphasized that paper and plastic have their own characteristics and positioning; now and in the future, in the packaging field, they are still coexisting with paper and plastic, and each has its own place,†said Don Seschen.
Dong Jinshi, director of Beijing Kaifa Environmental Technology Consulting Center, also believes that plastic packaging is not only cheap but also has the characteristics of light weight, transparency, strength, waterproof, oil resistance, and corrosion resistance, which are not available in paper products. If paper packaging is used instead of plastic packaging, in order to meet people's requirements, plastic, aluminum foil and other substances must be added to the paper. This will increase energy consumption and make recycling more difficult.
The proportion of ordinary plastics in the packaging market has increased year by year
Tang Saichen said that it is more important to recycle waste plastics than to promote the use of degradable plastics in view of China's current scientific and technological level and economic conditions. Plastic waste recycling is an effective method for the coordination of resources, technology, economy and environment. At present, the proportion of ordinary plastics in packaging materials is still increasing year by year. In the packaging application field, ordinary plastic packaging still occupies an absolute proportion.
Zheng Jian, secretary-general of the China Engineering Plastics Industry Association, also believes that packaging will be the largest application area for plastics in the future, while ordinary plastics are still the protagonists of the packaging materials market. “Some people think that plastics and environmental protection are contradictory, and this is wrong. In fact, the recyclability of plastics is very high, and recycled plastics consume 30% less energy than recycled paper. Even if plastics are used, they cannot be recycled. Treated as a harmless liquid. This technology has been used abroad very widely."
Blind development of degradable plastics is not scientific
According to Yuan Guangkai, a professor at the Department of Environmental Science and Engineering at Tsinghua University, the development of degradable plastics is only one way to solve pollution problems. Degradable plastics can be used in difficult areas such as scenic areas and plastic membranes in high mountains and high mountains. "However, degradable plastics are composted to degrade plastics into organic matter with a molecular weight of less than 5,000 or 10,000, more strictly speaking, instead of actually degrading. There is currently no authoritative data to prove that degradable plastics are harmless to the environment. Blindly developing a large number of degradable plastics is not scientific."
Tang Saizhen, a senior engineer at the China National Light Industry Information Center, also shared the same view. She told the author: “Any degradable plastics, including fully biodegradable plastics, need to have certain environmental conditions and undergo certain cycles to achieve complete degradation and return to natural circulation. Most of the green plastic bags circulating on the market today are plastic bags filled with calcium carbonate, which can be broken under sunlight, but fragmentation does not equate to degradation.†Many plastic bags can be used for 90 days. Degradation signs are mostly signs that merchants use. This product has not undergone rigorous identification. "According to our understanding, at present there is no industrialized production of plastic bags that can meet the packaging performance requirements and prices are moderate, but can be completely degraded in the natural environment in 90 days."
Tangsai Zhen said: "Degradation of plastic bags completely replace ordinary plastic bags is not possible, it is not necessary, because all kinds of plastics have their own positioning, degradable plastics are mainly located in those disposable, difficult to collect, dirty, recycling Uneconomical consumer products."
"Reshaping paper is not the best choice
For the practice of promoting paper packaging instead of plastic packaging in foreign countries, Yuan Guangkai believes that although paper packaging can be biodegradable and can be recycled into the natural world, paper products generate several times more pollution than plastic during production and recycling. In combination with the strategy of sustainable development, it is unscientific to promote the use of paper for plastics.
Tang Saichen believes that although the term "paper-based plastic molding" has a long history, plastic packaging materials such as the United States and Japan have not been replaced by paper or other materials. The main reason is that the excellent performance of disposable plastic packaging materials is beyond doubt in the convenience of people's lives. The use of paper and cloth bags as substitutes for material bags is advocated. It has certain significance only from the impact of post-consumer waste on the environment and from the perspective of renewable resources. However, for the environmental adaptability of various products, it should not only be considered whether it is easy to handle and easy to degrade after its use, but it should comprehensively consider the product's entire life cycle and the product's cost performance.
At the end of the last century, related environmental departments in Japan and Germany had conducted a comprehensive analysis of the environmental impact of the entire production process of polyethylene plastic bags and paper bags. According to the data comparison, plastic bags have better environmental adaptability than paper bags. “But this comparison does not negate the important role of paper bags in the packaging field. It should be emphasized that paper and plastic have their own characteristics and positioning; now and in the future, in the packaging field, they are still coexisting with paper and plastic, and each has its own place,†said Don Seschen.
Dong Jinshi, director of Beijing Kaifa Environmental Technology Consulting Center, also believes that plastic packaging is not only cheap but also has the characteristics of light weight, transparency, strength, waterproof, oil resistance, and corrosion resistance, which are not available in paper products. If paper packaging is used instead of plastic packaging, in order to meet people's requirements, plastic, aluminum foil and other substances must be added to the paper. This will increase energy consumption and make recycling more difficult.
The proportion of ordinary plastics in the packaging market has increased year by year
Tang Saichen said that it is more important to recycle waste plastics than to promote the use of degradable plastics in view of China's current scientific and technological level and economic conditions. Plastic waste recycling is an effective method for the coordination of resources, technology, economy and environment. At present, the proportion of ordinary plastics in packaging materials is still increasing year by year. In the packaging application field, ordinary plastic packaging still occupies an absolute proportion.
Zheng Jian, secretary-general of the China Engineering Plastics Industry Association, also believes that packaging will be the largest application area for plastics in the future, while ordinary plastics are still the protagonists of the packaging materials market. “Some people think that plastics and environmental protection are contradictory, and this is wrong. In fact, the recyclability of plastics is very high, and recycled plastics consume 30% less energy than recycled paper. Even if plastics are used, they cannot be recycled. Treated as a harmless liquid. This technology has been used abroad very widely."
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