LIKHA - PROJECT PROPOSAL TEMPLATE

(1) PROJECT PROFILE

Project Title: Xanthosoma sagittifolium Corm Starch as Bioplastic
Names of proponent/s:Ivan Jhed Dumolong, Rhylle Venz Delino, Benz Daniel Eusebio
Region: VI Division: Capiz
School: Maayon National High School Grade Level: Grade 10
Project Duration (number of months): 4 months
Email: rhyllevenz@gmail.com Contact number: 0916-529-2130
bdeusebio2468@gmail.com /09273094450
ivanjheddumolong@gmail.com

(2) CATEGORY OF RESEARCH (4)THEME

Physical Science Agriculture and Environment

(3) Team Category

(5) EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Plastic products have played a very important role in the life of man, but these

are basically non-biodegradable and are resistant to microbial attack and they remain

impenetrable to change for almost a lifetime, forcing most communities to burn them.

Burning in return results to a large scale carbon emission that contributes to pollution,

global warming and climate change that are some of the issues that greatly challenges

the environment. This in turn poses the humanity to a great test in finding long term

solutions. Given a fair display of the grave problems, the search for potential alternatives

for plastic has become a noble investigation.

(6) INTRODUCTION

(6.1)RATIONALE/SIGNIFICANCE

We used plastics for so many things, water bottles, milk jugs, forks, knives, coffee-

cup lid even shopping carts to carry our groceries. With so much plastics all around us,

have you ever thought what plastics could bring about to our environment? A new report

on plastic pollution by international group Ocean Conservancy and Mckinsey center for

business and environment states that Philippines is among the five countries in the
Southeast Asia that contributes more than half of the plastics leaking into the ocean.

The demand for plastic is likely to double in the next twenty years. In fact, nearly 1

trillion of them are created every single year. Added to the fact that some of these are

unpleasant to the eyes if scattered on the ground and could take hundreds of years to

decompose making it a tough foe to the environment.

Interestingly, the best way to deal with this problem is to avoid products that

generate waste materials that take more than a year to decompose in landfills. From a

sustainability perspective, it's important to know how long it takes various types of

garbage to decompose and focus our efforts especially on reducing the consumption of

products that generate waste materials that take a long time to completely break down

(Leblanc, 2021).

In addition, the extensive production of conventional plastics in different

commercial applications poses a significant threat to both the fossil fuels sources and the

environment. Alternatives called bioplastics evolved during development of renewable

resources. Utilizing renewable resources like agricultural wastes (instead of petroleum

sources) and their biodegradability in different environments enabled these polymers to

be more easily acceptable than the conventional plastics as discussed by Emadian, M. et

al., (2017). Bioplastics are promoted as an alternative to conventional petroleum-based

non-biodegradable plastics and this study will utilize Palauan (Xanthosoma

sagittifolium) Corm Starch as an alternative component for bioplastics.

(6.2)SCIENTIFIC BASIS/THEORITICAL FRAMEWORK/MATHEMATICAL

THEORY INVOLVED

Using conventional plastics comes with a multitude of drawbacks: the large

amount of energy that is required to produce the plastic, the waste that is a result of
plastics production, and the use of materials that do not biodegrade readily. In order to

shift the production of plastic to more sustainable path, research is being conducted to

create a bioplastic using an abundant plant in our country .

A common theme for various bioplastic that will replace conventional plastics

is their tendency to be biodegraded compared to petroleum-based plastic that are derived

from petrochemicals which are obtained from fossil crude oil, coal or natural gas. The

most widely used petroleum-based plastics such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET),

polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP) and polystyrene (PS) are not biodegradable and

are resistant to chemical and biological attacks (Zimmermann L. et al., 2020). On the

other hand, what if we could use or engineer materials that could break down easier.

Fruits and vegetables breakdown or rot very easily when they are left out over time. In

fact they only take 3-4 weeks to break down when they are thrown away.

In this regard, the researchers have developed a study entitled, Xanthosoma

sagittifolium Corm Starch as Bioplastic to create a fully biodegradable plastic made of

cheap, renewable and abundant root crops in the community and also to create a safe

biodegradable plastic that do not leach out toxic chemicals which is dangerous to the

health in response to this economic world-wide problem. Using Xanthosoma

sagittifolium underground corm is more sustainable because it could replace the

synthetic and conventional materials used in plastics and make use disregarded root

crops in Capiz. Instead of throwing it away and leaving it rot and eventually dies, we can

minimize the global impact of pollution by creating biodegradable plastics and make use

of our abundant resources.

(6.3) OBJECTIVES

General Objective

This study generally aims to determine the potential of Palauan (Xanthosoma

sagittifolium) corm starch as an alternative bioplastic component.

Specific Objective

1. To determine if Xanthosoma sagittifolium can be used a s an alternative

component in making bioplastics.

2. To determine if their is a significant difference in the following physical

properties in terms of acidity, solubility, water absorption, flammability and

biodegradability.

(7) REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Plastic products are very common in our modern life. According to the Pacific

Institute, we used approximately 17 million barrels of oil just for producing plastic water

bottles in 2006. Plastic waste is one of many types of wastes that take too long to

decompose. Normally, plastic items can take up to 1,000 years to decompose in landfills.

Even plastic bags we use in our everyday life take anywhere from 10 to 1,000 years to

decompose, and plastic bottles can take 450 years or more as cited in Leblanc (2021).

In addition, the world has produced over nine billion tons of plastic since the

1950s. 165 million tons of it have trashed our ocean, with almost 9 million more tons

entering the oceans each year. Since only about 9 percent of plastic gets recycled, much

of the rest pollutes the environment or sits in landfills, where it can take up to 500 years

to decompose while leaching toxic chemicals into the ground (Cho, R.,2017).

Traditional plastic is made from petroleum-based raw materials. Some say

bioplastic—made from 20 percent or more of renewable materials—could be the

solution to plastic pollution. The often-cited advantages of bioplastic are reduced use of

fossil fuel resources, a smaller carbon footprint, and faster decomposition. Bioplastic is

also less toxic and does not contain bisphenol A (BPA), a hormone disrupter that is often
found in traditional plastics.

While biodegradable plastic can be broken down completely into water, carbon

dioxide and compost by microorganisms under the right conditions, “Biodegradable”

implies that the decomposition happens in weeks to months.

Bioplastics are currently used in disposable items like packaging, containers,

straws, bags and bottles, and in non-disposable carpet, plastic piping, phone casings, 3D

printing, car insulation and medical implants. The global bioplastic market is projected

to grow from $17 billion this year to almost $44 billion in 2022. There are two main

types of bioplastics. PLA (polylactic acid) is typically made from the sugars in corn

starch, cassava or sugarcane. It is biodegradable, carbon-neutral and edible.

To transform corn into plastic, corn kernels are immersed in sulfur dioxide and hot

water, where its components break down into starch, protein, and fiber. The kernels are

then ground and the corn oil is separated from the starch. The starch is comprised of

long chains of carbon molecules, similar to the carbon chains in plastic from fossil fuels.

Some citric acids are mixed in to form a long-chain polymer (a large molecule consisting

of repeating smaller units) that is the building block for plastic. PLA can look and

behave like polyethylene (used in plastic films, packing and bottles), polystyrene

(Styrofoam and plastic cutlery) or polypropylene (packaging, auto parts, textiles).

Minnesota-based NatureWorks is one of the largest companies producing PLA under the

brand name Ingeo. PHA (polyhydroxyalkanoate) is made by microorganisms, sometimes

genetically engineered, that produce plastic from organic materials. The microbes are

deprived of nutrients like nitrogen, oxygen and phosphorus, but given high levels of

carbon. They produce PHA as carbon reserves, which they store in granules until they

have more of the other nutrients they need to grow and reproduce. Companies can then

harvest the microbe-made PHA, which has a chemical structure similar to that of
traditional plastics. Because it is biodegradable and will not harm living tissue, PHA is

often used for medical applications such as sutures, slings, bone plates and skin

substitutes; it is also used for single-use food packaging.

While bioplastics are generally considered to be more eco-friendly than

traditional plastics, a 2010 study from the University of Pittsburgh found that wasn’t

necessarily true when the materials’ life cycles were taken into consideration.

The study compared seven traditional plastics, four bioplastics and one made

from both fossil fuel and renewable sources. The researchers determined that bioplastics

production resulted in greater amounts of pollutants, due to the fertilizers and pesticides

used in growing the crops and the chemical processing needed to turn organic material

into plastic. The bioplastics also contributed more to ozone depletion than the traditional

plastics, and required extensive land use. B-PET, the hybrid plastic, was found to have

the highest potential for toxic effects on ecosystems and the most carcinogens, and

scored the worst in the life cycle analysis because it combined the negative impacts of

both agriculture and chemical processing.

However, bioplastics do produce significantly fewer greenhouse gas emissions

than traditional plastics over their lifetime. There is no net increase in carbon dioxide

when they break down because the plants that bioplastics are made from absorbed that

same amount of carbon dioxide as they grew. A 2017 study determined that switching

from traditional plastic to corn-based PLA would cut U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by

25 percent. The study also concluded that if traditional plastics were produced using

renewable energy sources, greenhouse gas emissions could be reduced 50 to 75 percent;

however, bioplastics that might in the future be produced with renewable energy showed

the most promise for substantially reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Furthermore, a promising alternative results about bioplastic in Full Cycle

Bioplastics from organic waste such as food waste, crop residue such as stalks and

inedible leaves, garden waste, and unrecycled paper or cardboard. Used to make bags,

containers, cutlery, water and shampoo bottles, this bioplastic is compostable, marine

degradable (meaning that if it ends up in the ocean, it can serve as fish or bacteria food)

and has no toxic effects. Full Cycle can process the PHA at the end of its life, and use it

to make virgin plastic again.

Right now, it’s hard to claim that bioplastics are more environmentally friendly

than traditional plastics when all aspects of their life cycle are considered: land use,

pesticides and herbicides, energy consumption, water use, greenhouse gas and methane

emissions, biodegradability, recyclability and more. But as researchers around the world

work to develop greener varieties and more efficient production processes, bioplastics do

hold promise to help lessen plastic pollution and reduce our carbon footprint.

(8) METHODOLOGY

In this proposed study, two treatments will be prepared in which Treatment A is

the Xanthosoma sagittifolium and Treatment B is the control or the petroleum-based

plastic. As to the collection of specimen, Xanthosoma sagittifolium will be gathered

during broad daylight to allow the researchers to fully inspect it ensuring it is fresh and

free from contusions and bruises. Then it will be submitted to the Department of

Environment and Natural Resources for plant identification. After that, starch extraction

will follow and preparation for bioplastic making.

The next phase of this study will require each treatment to undergo five (5)

physical test to ensure its effectiveness: Solubility in Acidic Solution, Solubility in

Organic Solvent, Solubility in Alkaline Solution, Water Absorbency and Flammability,

and Test for Biodegradability. The experimentation will be conducted at the Office of

the Provincial Agriculturist Laboratory located at Bilbao co, Mabini Street, Roxas City,
Capiz to ensure safety and reliability of the results with the guidance of the laboratory

analyst.

Method

Materials will be used in this investigation includes: 30mL glycerol, 30mL

HCL (Hydrochloric acid), 1.8L distilled water, fresh sample of Xanthosoma

sagittifolium root crop, 100 mL graduated cylinder, stirring rod, osterizer (food

processor), stainless steel molders, beakers, paper towel, scissors, cutter, grater,

peeler, plastic vessels, analytical weighing scale, electric stove, chemical fume

holder, crucible tongs and alcohol lamp for testing the physical properties of the bio-

plastic. Masking tape, felt tip pen for labeling, masks, laboratory gown, and rubber

gloves will be worn by the researchers to ensure cleanliness and safety during the

whole conductance of the study.

Collection of Plant Specimen

Fresh samples of Xanthosoma sagittifolium will be taken from Poblacion

Ilawod, Maayon, Capiz, where they are abundant. This starch source will be selected

in broad daylight so as to allow the researcher to fully inspect it. The sample will be

checked for possible contusions and bruises. Only fresh ones will be used in the

experiment. The sample will be collected early morning before the plants show any

photosynthetic activity because if plant become active for photosynthesis, there will

be decrease in the production of the secondary metabolites (Hussein R. & El-

Anssary A. 2018).

Plant Identification

The Xanthosoma sagittifolium sample will be submitted to the Department of

Environment and Natural Resources- DENRO for plant identification located at

Brgy. Lanot, Roxas City, Capiz.

 Starch Extraction

The Xanthosoma sagittifolium will be collected and will be washed in the

school laboratory. After washing it, the plant will be peeled and cut into small

pieces. Then, it will be grinded using food processor (osterizer) and will be stored in

clean containers. Afterwards, the sedimentation process will be applied by placing

the extract in wide-mouthed plastic vessels filled with water. For about 6 hours,

extracts will be submerged in water. The process will be repeated 3 times with less

amount of water to purify and to get rid of the yellow stains produced by the

Xanthosoma sagittifolium. The ones that floated will be disposed while extracts that

remain submerged will be classified as starch. The starch will then scrape off from

the plastic vessels and transferred in Petri dishes which will then put in a location

that is exposed to sun for drying for 20-25 minutes enough for it to be powderized.

After it dried, it will be collected and set aside.

Preparation of Laboratory Materials

Paper towel, masking tape, felt tip pen, scissors, cutter, and analytical

weighing scale, beakers, graduated cylinder, stirring rod and petri dishes were also

prepared. Lab gown, masks and rubber gloves will be worn by the researchers. The

tools and materials used in the study will be disinfected, to ensure sanitation as well

as cleanliness for the bioplastic production.

Preparing the Materials for Bioplastics

The 50g starch, 10mL of hydrochloric acid, 300mL of distilled water and

20mL of glycerin will be added to the beaker and mixed together.

Heating and Baking of Ingredients for Bioplastics

When the solution is ready, Xanthosoma sagittifolium starch along with other

ingredients will be mixed together. Meanwhile, the stove will be prepared by setting it to
low heat. The solution will be placed and continually stirred while being heated. As it

starts to thicken, raise the heat from low to medium up to high. Once it finally thickens,

allow the solution to boil on medium high heat for another five minutes. The darkening

of the solution is now evident it also now has become very thick and hard to move

around. Allow the mixture then to cool for a couple of minutes so it's easy to handle.

Then shortly after, the stainless steel mould was greased with a little bit of oil so that it

easier to remove the plastic once it dries. The mixture will then now poured and spread

in the mould with thickness of 0.5 cm and baked in an oven with a temperature of 65°C

or 150°F for one hour. When the baking will be over, the sample will be exposed to sun

drying for a day. After it was totally dried, the sample will be scraped off from the

molder. Direct contact with the bioplastic surface will be avoided.

Cutting and Weighing of Bioplastic Samples

The finished products will be cut into 1.5 x 2-inch strips of bio-plastic to

standardize their measurement. The initial weight of each sample will be determined

using the analytical weighing scale.

Test for Solubility in Acidic and Alkaline Solutions

The following tests will be conducted at the Agri-Aqua Laboratory: The (1.5 x

2" inch) strip bioplastic sample will be immersed in beakers containing 50mL of 3M

hydrochloric acid and will also immersed in a 3M sodium hydroxide solution, just

enough for the sample to be totally submerged, for an hour where the sample will be

replicated 3 times. The samples will be removed and weighing will be applied and data

is recorded to determine the amount of acid absorbed by the bio-plastic sample.

Test for solubility in organic solvent

Methanol will be used as the organic solvent. 50ml of methanol will be poured

in beakers and (1.5 x 2" inch) strip will be submerged. the sample will be replicated 3
times. after an hour, the samples will be removed and weighing is applied and data is

recorded to determine the amount of methanol absorbed by the bioplastic sample.

Test for Water Absorption

Initial weights of samples will be recorded. Fifty milliliters of distilled water

will be poured in a 50 mL beaker and the (1.5 x 2" inch) strip of bio-plastic sample will

be submerged. The weight of the sample will be taken every 15 minutes. The process

will continue until such time that the increase in weight will no longer observed. It will

be replicated 3 times. The change in weight will be recorded and results will be

computed from the equation: % water absorbed= [Change in weight/original weight] x

100 (Raheem, Z., 2019).

Test for Flammability

The bioplastic samples will be burned with an alcohol lamp in a closed room.

The temperature will be kept constant throughout the test. Each sample is suspended

vertically (Vertical Burn Test - American Standard for Testing Materials (ASTM)- D-

568 and D-3801) so that it can be ignited at the bottom. After ignition, it will be

withdrawn from the flame and the length of time of burning will be taken and recorded

Crucible tongs will be used to prevent from direct contact to the flame.

Test for Biodegradability

The bioplastic will be measured using an electronic weighing scale. Then, each

sample will be cut into four pieces and will be buried in the prepared soil to test its

biodegradability. Then, the weight of the sample will be measured again after 3 months

and the change in weight will be the basis for the results of this controlled composting

test.

Statistical Data Analysis Procedure

The following descriptive and inferential tools were used to analyze the data
collected.

The mean and standard deviation were used to describe the physical properties of

the bioplastic.

The t-Test was used to test whether the result means from the three replicated

sample have significant differences in comparison with a petroleum-based plastic.

(9) EXPECTED OUTPUTS/POTENTIAL IMPACTS

This study is founded on our desire to provide a beneficial and environment

friendly bioplastics out of Palauan starch as the main ingredient, create objects without

the environmental threats posed by conventional synthetic plastics and make use of

cheap abundant root crops in the community. Furthermore, farmers will be encouraged

to help planting Palauan root crop for additional income and to supply the needed raw

materials for bioplastics production.

(10) WORK PLAN AND TARGET DELIVERABLES

Date Task
May 19, 2022 Topic selection
May 20, 2022 Consult the School Science Coordinator/STE Coordinator to
allow the conduct of the study proposal
Write initial proposal
May 21-25, 2022 Begin secondary research
May 26, 2022 Write first draft of research proposal
May 30, 2022 Submit first draft of research proposal for suggestions and
feedback to research adviser and School Science and STE
Coordinator
May 31, 2022 Submit research proposal

Theme: Agriculture and Environment

Priority: Developing environment and sustainable product made from resources in the

locality that is cheap and abundant

Project Title: Xanthosoma Sagittifolium Corm Starch as Bioplastic

Project Summary: The aim is to determine the potential of Palauan (Xanthosoma

sagittifolium) corm starch as an alternative bioplastic component.

Start Date: May 19, 2022

End Date: Phase 1 - Research Proposal - 05/31/2022

Phase 2 - Experimentation - 06/06/2022 - 09/07/2022

Data analysis - 09/09/2022 - 09/10/2022

Writing of the first draft of manuscript - 09/11/2022 - 09/13/2022

Edited and reviewed - 09/14/2022 - 09/19/2022

Submission of Manuscript - 09/20/2022

(11) REFRENCES

Cho, R. 2017. “The Truth About Bioplastics.” State of the Planet, December 13, 2017.
https://news.climate.columbia.edu/2017/12/13/the-truth-about-bioplastics

Dodd, C. 2021. “10 Countries Producing the Most Plastic Waste.” World Atlas,
September 29, 2021. https://www.worldatlas.com/geography/10-countries-
producing-the-most-plastic-waste.html

Emadian, M. et al., 2017. “Biodegradation of Bioplastics in Natural Environments.”

Science Direct, January 2017.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0956053X1630561X

Hussein R. & El-Anssary A. 2018. “Plants Secondary Metabolites: The Key Drivers of
the Pharmacological Actions of Medicianl Plants.” November 5, 2018
https://www.intechopen.com/chapters/61866

Leblanc R. 2021. “The decomposition of Waste in Landfills: A Story of Time and

Materials.” The Balance Small Business, January 16, 2021.
https://www.thebalancesmb.com/how-long-does-it-take-garbage-to-
decompose-2878033

MacKinsey & Co., 2015. “Saving the Ocean from Plastic Waste.” MacKinsey
Sustainability, November 1, 2015. https://www.mckinsey.com/business-
functions/sustainability/our-insights/saving-the-ocean-from-plastic-waste

Raheem, Z. 2019. “Standard Test Method for Water Absorption of Plastics 1” Research
Gate, March 2019.
researchgate.net/publication/331906905_Standard_Test_Method_for_Water_
Absorption_in_Plastics_1
Zimmermann L. et al., 2020. “Are Bioplastics and Plant-based Materials Safer than
Conventional Plastics? In vitro Toxicity and Chemical Composition.”
Science Direct, December 2020. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32951901/