4A.

5 USING PLANT STARCH AND FIBRES

1. Describe the role of plants as food material for humans

 Carbohydrate that gives energy
 Protein helps growth and repair cells, peas and beans
 Extensive fat in seed and nuts as they are for long term survival
 Rich in minerals
 Cellulose which is indigestible, so this acts as roughage preventing constipation
 Plants can synthesize all of their vitamins so source of vitamins
 Plants have huge amount of water
2. What are plant fibres

Exist in plants to give it tensile strength

Fibres are long sclerenchyma cells and xylem tissue with cellulose and lignified cellulose

The cellulose or lignified cellulose cannot be broken down by chemicals or enzymes

The matrix of pectates around can be easily dissolved or removed with the help of decomposers

3. How can we process plant fibres?

Retting is a process where decomposers break down the material around the plant fibre naturally

It takes a very long time so it has been replaced by manufacturing processed using chemicals and
enzymes to make it quicker

Cotton appears in the form of pure fibres so processing is not required

However, spinning pulls out the short single fibres to make a long continuous thread. The resulting
threads can be woven together to form a fabric

4. Give the advantages and disadvantages of cotton and nylon

Advantages of cotton:

 Porous material so it allows liquids (bodily fluids) to pass through and evaporate. This results in a
cooling effect and hence cotton fabric is comfortable to wear in summers
 Sustainable
Disadvantages of cotton:

 Expensive
 Wear out after some time and lose their shine
 Can easily tear

Advantages of nylon:

 Cheap
 Hardwearing and does not crease
 Does not tear easily
 Long-lasting

Disadvantages of nylon:

 Made from non-renewable resources

 Non-porous material so does not allow liquid to pass through, this causes the body to become
overheated
5. How can we test the tensile strength of a plant fibres?

 Measuring the tensile strength of a nylon fibre and jute fibre

 Both fibres have the same length, thickness and circumference

 Each fibre is taken and clamped tightly between two stands

 A weight Is added by a hook in the middle of the fibre

 Increasing measured force (weights) is applied to the fibre

 The weight at which the fibre breaks is the tensile strength of the fibre

6. Discuss the role of wood as an excellent building material with reference to composite
material

Wood is a composite material made of lignified cellulose fibres embedded in hemicellulose and lignin

The cellulose fibres make wood resistant to compression

Wood does not crack easily as it keeps some of the matrix flexibility

Saves energy as wood houses stay cool during summer, no need for ACs, and remain warm during
winter, so no need for heaters

Wood is carbon neutral, burning it would not create a greenhouse effect

Renewable resource but very expensive

7. What are bioplastics

Bioplastics are plastics produced based on biological polymers

8. Describe different types of bioplastics giving their uses

a. Cellulose – based bioplastics

Made from wood pulp

Used to make plastic wrappings for food

An example would be cellophane

b. Thermoplastic starch

Made from starch and maize

Mixed with gelatin

Used to make the capsule to contain drugs

c. Poly – lactic acid (PLA)

Made from maize or sugarcane

Used to make computer casings, mobile phones, drinking cups, etc.

d. Poly-3-hydroxybutyrate (PHB)

Used in ropes, bank notes, car parts, etc.

9. What are the advantages of bioplastics over plastics?

 Bioplastics are a sustainable resource while plastics are not
 Bioplastics are bio-degradable while plastics are not
10. Will bioplastics take over oil-based plastics

Manufacture of bioplastics is more expensive than making oil-based plastics

Crops cannot be used extensively because these crops are used to feed millions of people

11. Compare the advantages and disadvantages of bioplastics over oil-based plastics

Bioplastics Oil-based plastics

 Expensive  Cheap
  Sustainable  Non-sustainable
 biodegradable  Non-biodegradable
 Releases methane upon being broken  Releases carbon dioxide upon being
down by decomposers burned
 Is made from plants or crops  Is made from crude oil
 Made from renewable resources  Made from non-renewable resources

12. Burning bioplastics is less harmful that leaving them

When broken down by decomposers, bioplastics release methane which has a more potent effect than
release of carbon dioxide by burning

Plastic
 Plastics are synthetic polymers
 Plastics can be soft flexible solids with a low melting point
 They can also be hard, bitter solids with a high melting point
 They are used to made packaging, artificial joints, cutlery, parts of cars, etc.
 Plastics are made from a non-renewable resource: crude oil
 Non-biodegradable so they cannot be broken down by decomposers
 Burning and discarding of plastics causes pollution and global warming
 It is also endangering marine and animal life and they can choke on the plastics