Biodegradable is the process by which organic substances are broken down by other living organisms. A biodegradable product can dissolve easily in the environment without destroying nature. It’s the opposite of plastic and Styrofoam, which harm the environment.

Just What Does Biodegradable Mean?
By John Grimes

There is little doubt that we as a society have become more conscious of the impact we make on the world around us and the need to protect it. This brings us to the subject of biodegradable products.

When you are shopping for products, you tend to see a lot of different claims on products. If you are environmentally conscious, you probably keep an eye out for environmentally friendly products. Once such claim that is commonly made on products is that they are biodegradable. Well, what does biodegradable mean?

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A bean bag is a sealed bag containing dried beans or PVC pellets, with various applications. As bean bag games are not apt to cause injury or insult, they are referenced in the famous aphorism by the Irish-American politico Finley Peter Dunne that “Politics ain’t bean bag.”

What is Bean Bag Chair Filler Made From
By Tricia Treherne 

Traditional bean bag chairs are filled with polystyrene beads. Polystyrene beads make for terrific fill because they are light, airy, cushiony and resist compression. They form to your body and provide the ultimate comfort that comes from bean bag chairs. The reason they provide such excellent comfort is because of the way the beads are made and the material the beads are produced from.

The Making of Polystyrene Beads

Bean bag beads are made from polystyrene, also known as Styrofoam. Styrofoam is actually a brand name from the company Dow. To make polystyrene beads, plastics are combined with chemicals, producing an expandable resin called EPS. The EPS is heated causing the resin to expand. The heating is taken only far enough to get the resin to “pop” into the characteristic resilient, lightweight beads. If it is heated further the resin forms hard little beads and is useless for bean bag chair fill.

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Bio-degradable Fibers Preserves Environment Around Us
By Christopher Mantford

Bio-degradable fibers as an effective way of reducing the impact textiles have on the environment. Bio-degradation of fibers occurs when their constituent polymers are depolymerised, usually by the action of enzymes secreted by microorganisms. These enzymes act by hydrolyzing or oxidizing the polymer, and can work on the ends of the chains or randomly along their length. To do its work, the enzyme has to be able to bond to the fiber and gain access to sites capable of being oxidized or hydrolyzed.

Photo: iop.org

The most bio-degradable fibers therefore tend to be hydrophilic, and made up of short, flexible chains with low levels of crystallization. They will often have chain backbones with oxygen or nitrogen links and/or pendant groups containing oxygen or nitrogen atoms. This description clearly fits most natural fibers and fibers made of natural polymers.

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Some companies have been claiming that they have created an additive that can be added to traditional plastics to make them biodegradable. These products become what is called OXO-Degradable, and sometimes is incorrectly identified as OXO-biodegradable.

Photo: boranmopack.com

Although this allows the plastic to return to the environment, these products are not biodegradable. Instead, the additive allows the plastic material to break down physically when exposed to water, into pieces small enough to be accidentally ingested by microbes. However, the microbes are not able to actually break this material down further. The end result is therefore a material that combines biomass with polymer residue. The plastic never decomposes as a result of interaction with the organisms. This process is therefore more accurately called “disintergration” rather than “biodegradation”.

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Biodegradable Products Online - The Green Business That Helps Other Businesses Go Green
By Hoa Bui

Many online biodegradable product distributors are strongly committed to environmental sustainability. Their major focus is the slow decomposition of garbage in landfills and its devastating affects on the environment. That is why they sell 100% biodegradable, eco-friendly products to speed up the breakdown of trash and to reduce our negative effects on the earth.

Photo: rprogress.org

‘Eco-friendly’ or ‘Environmentally friendly’ means that their products pose no harmful effects on the environment or its inhabitants. This includes the methods being used to produce merchandise. Unlike petroleum-based (traditional) plastics, biodegradable plastic does not produce greenhouse gases as it is formed because it is made from plant fibers. Since the aim to have as little affect on the earth as possible, these companies ensure that all products are made in a way that avoids clear-cutting forests, wasting water, using insecticides, burning fossil fuels, etc. They support the use of eco friendly products and encourage others to pave the way for a brighter, cleaner future.

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