How do Eco-additives work?

How do Eco-additives work?

Eco-additives accelerates the natural biodegradation of commodity types of plastic through a series of chemical and biological processes when disposed of in microbe-rich environments such as landfills or compost.

Modified plastics

They allow the plastic to be consumed (as a food and energy source) by the microbes.  Eco-additives work by allowing treated plastics to be more susceptible to enzymatic attack.  These enzymes attack the surface of the treated plastic, thereby allowing both moisture and microorganisms to break down the polymer matrix and continue the biodegradation process.  This process requires the presence of soil bacteria, and as such will not initiate until the treated product is disposed of in a biologically active land fill or compost.

Eco-additive treated products are able to rapidly biodegrade in both anaerobic and aerobic conditions. Eco-additive treated plastics biodegrade faster than “compostable” plastics, and because of the limited availability of industrial composting facilities, Eco-additives were optimized to perform in anaerobic, landfill-conditions.  The Eco-additives formulas has been designed to biodegrade in both biologically active land fills and compost.

In anaerobic conditions Eco-additive treated plastics will produce humus, carbon dioxide gas, and methane gas as by-products.  In aerobic conditions, Eco-additive treated products will produce humus, water, and carbon dioxide gas as by-products.  

Previous aeptis ChroniclesWhat are Eco-additives?
Next aeptis ChroniclesQ & A about Eco-additives