Two-dimensional infrared for monitoring the structural variations of UV-aged recycled polypropylene straps used in the Ecuadorian banana industry
Mechanical stress, humidity, and prolonged UV radiation are the main degradation agents of plastics when exposed to environmental conditions. In Ecuador, besides its usage in the packaging industry, plastic straps are used in banana plantations to support growing crops. However, when straps suffer d...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2023-06-01
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| Series: | Case Studies in Chemical and Environmental Engineering |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666016423000646 |
| _version_ | 1827952338872041472 |
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| author | Nury Mite-Guzmán Miriam Lazo Jairon Triguero Andrés Damián Estephany Adrián Rodrigo Perugachi Joan Vera-Villalobos Andrés Rigail-Cedeño |
| author_facet | Nury Mite-Guzmán Miriam Lazo Jairon Triguero Andrés Damián Estephany Adrián Rodrigo Perugachi Joan Vera-Villalobos Andrés Rigail-Cedeño |
| author_sort | Nury Mite-Guzmán |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Mechanical stress, humidity, and prolonged UV radiation are the main degradation agents of plastics when exposed to environmental conditions. In Ecuador, besides its usage in the packaging industry, plastic straps are used in banana plantations to support growing crops. However, when straps suffer degradation, they become useless, transforming into tons of plastic waste. The plastic strapping industry seeks a more sustainable production model by incorporating recycled plastics without compromising product quality. For this study, industrial straps manufactured with virgin and recycled polypropylene (PP) were exposed to artificial UV radiation at 200, 400, 600, 800, and 1000-h intervals. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) was applied to illustrate the effect of carbonyl peaks due to degradation. Nevertheless, as the carbonyl index proved unreliable for PP degradation monitoring, dynamic changes at the molecular level due to UV exposure were followed through two-dimensional correlation FTIR (2D COS FTIR) methodology. Also, thermo-mechanical properties were assessed to compare and verify variations in the UV-aged straps' crystallinity degree, melting temperature, and tensile strength with the spectra obtained with 2D COS FTIR. Morphological characterization via scanning electron microscopy confirmed the formation of a brittle surface due to the UV radiation effect. Results show that novel two-dimensional correlation tools could be used to correlate the physical properties with photodegradation of PP materials exposed to UV radiation in outdoor applications. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-09T13:56:59Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-9f7094878db04ba0943255b73cfe3dbe |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2666-0164 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-09T13:56:59Z |
| publishDate | 2023-06-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Case Studies in Chemical and Environmental Engineering |
| spelling | doaj.art-9f7094878db04ba0943255b73cfe3dbe2023-05-08T04:09:59ZengElsevierCase Studies in Chemical and Environmental Engineering2666-01642023-06-017100359Two-dimensional infrared for monitoring the structural variations of UV-aged recycled polypropylene straps used in the Ecuadorian banana industryNury Mite-Guzmán0Miriam Lazo1Jairon Triguero2Andrés Damián3Estephany Adrián4Rodrigo Perugachi5Joan Vera-Villalobos6Andrés Rigail-Cedeño7Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Matemáticas (FCNM), ESPOL Polytechnic University, Guayaquil, P.O. Box 09-01-5863, EcuadorFacultad de Ingeniería en Mecánica y Ciencias de la Producción (FIMCP), ESPOL Polytechnic University, Guayaquil, P.O. Box 09-01-5863, Ecuador; Laboratorio de Procesamiento de Plásticos, ESPOL Polytechnic University, Guayaquil, P.O. Box 09-01-5863, EcuadorLaboratorio de Evaluación de Materiales (LEMAT), ESPOL Polytechnic University, Guayaquil, P.O. Box 09-01-5863, EcuadorLaboratorio de Evaluación de Materiales (LEMAT), ESPOL Polytechnic University, Guayaquil, P.O. Box 09-01-5863, EcuadorFacultad de Ingeniería en Mecánica y Ciencias de la Producción (FIMCP), ESPOL Polytechnic University, Guayaquil, P.O. Box 09-01-5863, Ecuador; Laboratorio de Procesamiento de Plásticos, ESPOL Polytechnic University, Guayaquil, P.O. Box 09-01-5863, EcuadorFacultad de Ingeniería en Mecánica y Ciencias de la Producción (FIMCP), ESPOL Polytechnic University, Guayaquil, P.O. Box 09-01-5863, Ecuador; Laboratorio de Evaluación de Materiales (LEMAT), ESPOL Polytechnic University, Guayaquil, P.O. Box 09-01-5863, EcuadorFacultad de Ciencias Naturales y Matemáticas (FCNM), ESPOL Polytechnic University, Guayaquil, P.O. Box 09-01-5863, Ecuador; Corresponding author.Facultad de Ingeniería en Mecánica y Ciencias de la Producción (FIMCP), ESPOL Polytechnic University, Guayaquil, P.O. Box 09-01-5863, Ecuador; Laboratorio de Procesamiento de Plásticos, ESPOL Polytechnic University, Guayaquil, P.O. Box 09-01-5863, Ecuador; Corresponding author. Facultad de Ingeniería en Mecánica y Ciencias de la Producción (FIMCP), ESPOL Polytechnic University, Guayaquil, P.O. Box 09-01-5863, Ecuador.Mechanical stress, humidity, and prolonged UV radiation are the main degradation agents of plastics when exposed to environmental conditions. In Ecuador, besides its usage in the packaging industry, plastic straps are used in banana plantations to support growing crops. However, when straps suffer degradation, they become useless, transforming into tons of plastic waste. The plastic strapping industry seeks a more sustainable production model by incorporating recycled plastics without compromising product quality. For this study, industrial straps manufactured with virgin and recycled polypropylene (PP) were exposed to artificial UV radiation at 200, 400, 600, 800, and 1000-h intervals. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) was applied to illustrate the effect of carbonyl peaks due to degradation. Nevertheless, as the carbonyl index proved unreliable for PP degradation monitoring, dynamic changes at the molecular level due to UV exposure were followed through two-dimensional correlation FTIR (2D COS FTIR) methodology. Also, thermo-mechanical properties were assessed to compare and verify variations in the UV-aged straps' crystallinity degree, melting temperature, and tensile strength with the spectra obtained with 2D COS FTIR. Morphological characterization via scanning electron microscopy confirmed the formation of a brittle surface due to the UV radiation effect. Results show that novel two-dimensional correlation tools could be used to correlate the physical properties with photodegradation of PP materials exposed to UV radiation in outdoor applications.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666016423000646UV agingPlastic strapsRecyclingFTIRDurability |
| spellingShingle | Nury Mite-Guzmán Miriam Lazo Jairon Triguero Andrés Damián Estephany Adrián Rodrigo Perugachi Joan Vera-Villalobos Andrés Rigail-Cedeño Two-dimensional infrared for monitoring the structural variations of UV-aged recycled polypropylene straps used in the Ecuadorian banana industry Case Studies in Chemical and Environmental Engineering UV aging Plastic straps Recycling FTIR Durability |
| title | Two-dimensional infrared for monitoring the structural variations of UV-aged recycled polypropylene straps used in the Ecuadorian banana industry |
| title_full | Two-dimensional infrared for monitoring the structural variations of UV-aged recycled polypropylene straps used in the Ecuadorian banana industry |
| title_fullStr | Two-dimensional infrared for monitoring the structural variations of UV-aged recycled polypropylene straps used in the Ecuadorian banana industry |
| title_full_unstemmed | Two-dimensional infrared for monitoring the structural variations of UV-aged recycled polypropylene straps used in the Ecuadorian banana industry |
| title_short | Two-dimensional infrared for monitoring the structural variations of UV-aged recycled polypropylene straps used in the Ecuadorian banana industry |
| title_sort | two dimensional infrared for monitoring the structural variations of uv aged recycled polypropylene straps used in the ecuadorian banana industry |
| topic | UV aging Plastic straps Recycling FTIR Durability |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666016423000646 |
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