Covestro Lectureship in Sustainability: “An Environmental Chemist’s View of Biodegradable Plastics”
Thursday, Oct. 15, 2020
12-1 p.m. (Central)
Contamination of the environment with plastic is a long-recognized problem but, in recent years, there has been a remarkable increase in public attention and outcry regarding plastic pollution. There is a growing interest and market for non-persistent, biodegradable plastic materials, which could help the problem of accumulation of plastic in the environment.
In this virtual lecture, Professor Kris McNeill (ETH Zurich) will address several key questions about these alternative biodegradable materials: How do we know that a material is really biodegrading instead of just breaking down into microplastic? How does the receiving environment affect biodegradability? Are there applications where biodegradable plastics are viable alternatives to conventional plastics? What are the challenges that we face from an environmental chemistry perspective?
For questions or accessibility accommodations, please contact CSP Director of Education, Outreach, and Diversity Jennifer McCambridge at csp@umn.edu.