JAWAHAR NAVODAYA VIDYALAYA
RAJKOT
CHEMISTRY
INVESTIGATORY PROJECT
Topic: Making plastic from starch
ACADEMIC YEAR – (2024-25)
Submitted To: Submitted By:
P.B.PATIL Manan Dave
PGT Chemistry Roll no-1222
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TABLE OF CONTENT
CONTENT PAGE NO.
01 CERTIFICATE 03
02. ACKNOWLEDGMENT 04
03. ABOUT
AIM 05
INTRODUCTION 06-08
04 .THEORY 09-11
05. REQUIRMENT 12
06. PROCEDURES 13-15
07. RESULT & CONCLUSION 18-19
08. BIBLIOGRAPHY 20
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CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that this project work is submitted
by MANAN DAVE, a student of class XII-PCBhas
successfully completed the research on making a
plastic from starch project under the guidance of
Mrs.PB.PATIL ( PGT CHEMISTRY) during the
academic year 2024-25 in the partial fulfillment of
the chemistry practical examination conducted by
CBSE.
Signature of chemistry signature of external
Teacher examiner
Principal si
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I would like to express my profound gratitude and
appreciation to those who helped me with this project, for
their time expended and for sharing their insights about the
project.
I have been immeasurably enriched by
working under the guidance and supervision of Mrs.
ASHITHA. A .A (PGT CHEMISTRY), who has a great
level of knowledge and has an art of encouraging,
correcting and directing me in every situation
possible, which has enabled me to complete the
project. I would also like to thank all the people who
have helped me in this project and appreciate the
available sources who provide me with the research
papers
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ABOUT ~
AIM:-
: MAKING A PLASTIC FROM STARCH
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INTRODUCTION
Plastic pollution is currently one of the
biggest environmental concerns. Non-
biodegradable plastics accumulate in
landfills, ocean, and ecosystems, harming
wildlife and marine life. Synthetic plastics
are made up of long chain of molecules
(polymers) containing repeated units of
carbon atoms (monomer). These synthetic
polymers has extremely strong carbon-
carbon bond with each other. Because of
this inherent molecular stability. Plastics do
not breakdown into simpler components
easily.
So to find the alternative of this
project, I made a successful attempt to
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make a biodegradable plastic. We say it
biodegradable because natural organisms
are capable of breaking the material down
into smaller parts. We use starch polymer
(amylose) which is biodegradable in nature
and hence successfully converted to
replacement of plastic.
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THEORY~
Why we chose starch?
Starch is made of long chain of glucose molecule
joined together. Strictly, it contains two polymers:
amylose, which is a straight chain, and amylopectin,
which is branched. Glucose (simple sugar) is essential
for life that being the reason many organisms from
bacteria to human to break starch into simple sugar
(glucose).
It is also chosen because it is a natural, renewable,
and biodegradable material, offering a substance
alternative to traditional petroleum-based plastic.
Derived from plants like potatoes, corn and cassava,
starch is abundant and inexpensive, making it an
accessible resource for producing eco-friendly plastics.
How it degrades into simple sugar?
Starch degrades into simple sugar through a process called
hydrolysis. This occurs when water molecules break the
bonds between the glucose units that make up the starch.
The process typically involves the following steps:
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Enzymatic Hydrolysis: Specific enzymes like
amylase catalyze the breakdown of starch. Amylase
acts on the starch polymer, breaking it down into
smaller chains of glucose molecules called maltose (a
disaccharide)
Further breakdown: Other enzymes like maltose
further breakdown maltose into individual glucose
molecules, which are simple sugars.
Acid Hydrolysis (alternative): Starch can also
degrade in the presence of an acid and heat, where
the acid acts as a catalyst, speeding up the hydrolysis
process and converting starch into glucose.
Through these processes, the large starch molecules are
broken down into their basic units, glucose, which can
then be absorbed or utilized by organisms as an energy
source. This conversion is an essential part of digestion
in many organisms and is also applied in industrial
processes like fermentation or biofuel production.
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Structural Representation Is As Below:
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~REQUIREMENTS
1.Potato starch
2.Propan-1,2,3-triol (glycerol)
3.Hydrochloric acid
4.Sodium hydroxide
5.Spirit lamp
6.Tripod
7.Universal indicator paper
8.Stirring rod
9.China dish
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~PROCEDURE
1. Start the experiment by placing tripod over a
spirit lamp with china dish
2. Add some water into the china dish. Note: if too
much water is used, the polymer does not
lithify and remains a liquid.
3. The add starch little by little with continuous
stir. Avoid making air bubbles. Note: when
starch is dried from an aqueous solution it
forms a film as a result of hydrogen bonding
between the chains.
4. Add some Hydrochloric acid into the mixture.
Note: After step 3, however, the amylopectin
inhibits the formation of the film. The addition
of hydrochloric acid breaks the amylopectin
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down, allowing a more satisfactory film
formation.
5. Add propan-1,2,3-triol in suitable amount.
Note: the addition of propan-1,2,3-triol has an
effect because of its hydroscopic (water
attracting) properties. Water bound to the
propan-1,2,3-triol gets in amongst the starch
chains and inhibits the formation of crystalline
areas, preventing brittleness and resulting in
more plastic properties.
6. To neutralize Hydrochloric acid add Sodium
hydroxide
7. After you observe it forming like plastic film or
Vaseline like gel lay it down to flat surface.
8. Spread it into long sheet of desired thickness
9. Let it dry properly for at least an hour properly.
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10. Peal it out from the surface and
your plastic is formed.
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~CONCLUSION
Thus we obtain a fair looking plastic. Things
that could be done better is to pierce out
plastic properly once its prepared and little
food color can be added for good appearance.
~RESULT
We obtain a plastic piece which
demonstrates that starch can be used to
make plastic.
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~COMPARING PETROPLASTICS & BIOPLASTICS
PETROPLASTICS BIOPLASTICS
Renewable No Yes or partly
Sustainable No Yes
Polymer range Extensive Limited but growing
Usage of fossil fuel Relatively high Usually Low
GHG emissions Relatively high Usually Low
Breaking down in the Polymer Oxidation Biodegradable
environment will degrade some and/or compostable
of them
Usage of Arabic land None Currently low
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~BIBLIOGRAPHY
https://scholar.google.com/
https://www.chem.com/
https://www.google.com/
www.wikipedia.org
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