Agriculture at Work:
Bio plastic
Minimum
Completion Time
45 minutes
Skill Level
Intermediate
Age 11-13
Learner Outcomes
• Recognizes properties
of crops make
sustainable industrial
products
• Tests different
properties of plastic
Science Skills
You might have heard the question:
“Paper or plastic?” Why does it
matter? What is plastic made from?
What works for the environment?
Look at the plastic you use everyday. It
can be hard or soft, thick or thin, stiff or
flexible, and it comes in many colors. Today,
most plastics are made from petroleum, a
non-renewable resource. But could plastics
be made from renewable resources?
• Build/construct
• Compare/contrast
• Observe
• Predict
Do • • • • Watch this experiment online.
Life Skills
starch, 1 tsp vinegar, 4 Tbs water, aluminum foil,
cooking spoon, cooking pot. You will need a stove or
hot plate.
2. Put 1 tablespoon of cornstarch into the cooking pot.
3. Add 4 tablespoons of water.
4. Add 1 teaspoon of vinegar.
5. Add 1 teaspoon of glycerin.
6. Mix and turn the heat on medium. Stir continuously. The
mixture will turn from liquid, white mixture to clear, gellike consistency. When it bubbles, it is done! Remove
from heat.
7. Pour the gel onto the aluminum foil. Spread as thin or
thick as you like. Depending on the humidity, it might
take up to 24 hours to cool completely.
What can you do with your plastic?
• Think creatively
• Reason
Educational
Standards
• Properties and changes
of properties in matter
• Science and
technology in society
• Science as a human
endeavor
Success Indicator
• Tests materials
• Describes the starch to
plastic process
1. Gather these materials: 1 tsp glycerin, 1 Tbs corn
Caution: Check with an adult before using the stove or a hot
plate.
Learn More
•• Corn to pastics
•• How plastic bags are
manufactured
•• Bioplastics from switchgrass
•• Turning plants into building
blocks
Virtual Fun
•• How plastic bags are made
•• How stuff works: corn plastic
•• Students make bioplastic
shoes
News & Careers
•• New potatoes for food and
••
feedstock
Starch-Based Biomaterials
Alliance
What’s the science?
Acknowledgements:
Robert L. Horton, PhD, Ohio
State University Extension, Carol
Warkentien and Jeanne Gogolski,
EP&P LLC
Content adapted from DuPont
(www2.dupont.com) and Pioneer
(www.pioneer.com) web pages.
Large cellulose molecules, like starch, are long chain
polymers. In this experiment, two ingredients change the
properties of the polymer plastic. By adding a small amount
of vinegar, you break up some of the polymers chains, making
the plastic less brittle. The glycerin acts as a plasticizer which
“lubricates” the plastic. If you want the plastic more pliable, add
more glycerin. If you want the plastic to be stiff, add less glycerin.
Records
Complete the Observation
Log
The 4-H Name and Emblem is protected under 18 USC 707.
Support for this resource was provided by:
No endorsement of a commercial entity or its products or services is intended or implied.
1
Name— ————————————————
Share • • •
Date — ————————————————
What happened when you made your plastic?
Records—Intermediate Level
Agriculture at Work: Bio plastic
Reflect • • •
What could you do with this plastic?
Generalize • • •
How could edible corn plastic help to solve problems in landfills?
Apply • • •
What future uses or products can you imagine for plastic made out of corn?
The 4-H Name and Emblem is protected under 18 USC 707.
Support for this resource was provided by:
No endorsement of a commercial entity or its products or services is intended or implied.
2
Background
Information
Plastic
The plastic you use everyday is probably
made from a petroleum product. About
95% of all the plastic today started out as
crude oil. Over 6000 products are made
from petroleum: trash bags, sunglasses,
milk bottles, the coatings on medicine,
and much more.
What is plastic?
Plastic is made from long chains of carbon
molecules we call polymers. Different combinations
and different polymers make different kinds of
plastics.
Can polymer chains come from a
renewable resource?
Plastics made from plant sources are called
bioplastics. It all starts with photosynthesis. Plants
form sugars from carbon dioxide using the energy
of sunlight. Large cellulose molecules, like starch,
are long chain polymers. These polymers are
different than the polymers from petroleum, but
if they are mixed with the right chemicals and
“cooked” precisely they become plastics.
What plants can be used?
Corn is the most common plant used, but it isn’t the
only one. Many plants like potatoes, soybeans and
wheat create enough starch that plastics can be
made from them. Potatoes have been developed,
for example, producing starch ideally suited to
industrial processing. Genetic modification of poplar
trees is being used to reduce the pollution created
when making wood pulp into paper. Scientists are
using biotechnology to see if the structure of plant
carbohydrates can be modified to make plastics.
More Challenges
E-Bite • • • • •• Coca-Cola’s efforts at
Glossary
sustainable packaging
polymer—a chain of large, single molecules (monomers) linked
together.
biodegradable—the capacity of a material to decompose
naturally over time, to be broken down by microorganisms.
bioplastic—form of plastic made from renewable plant source
rather than non-renewable petrolum.
• Create different recipes and compare
flexibility, color and strength.
• Research the amount of petroleum
used in plastics. Which ones could be
replaced with bioplastics?
• Test biodegradibilty of a sample of
corn plastic and a sample of petroleum
plastic by creating an experiment and
gathering data over time.
The 4-H Name and Emblem is protected under 18 USC 707.
Support for this resource was provided by:
No endorsement of a commercial entity or its products or services is intended or implied.
3
Name— ————————————————
Agriculture at Work: Bio plastic
Observation Log
Date — ————————————————
Records—Intermediate Level
Agriculture at Work: Bio plastic
• • • • • Making Plastic
Describe your plastic.
Here are some words you can use:
bioplastic
flexible
brittle
transparent
opaque
smooth
rough
thin
thick Design and try some experiments. How can you test your plastic for ....
Flexibility?
Hardness?
Biodegradability?
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