Lecture #14

Question 1

Virtually all plastic was created…

Answer 1

in the last 100 years

Question 2

bakelite

Answer 2

-the first fully synthetic polymer -made in 1907 -meant to replace shellac as an insulator -takes a really long time to make actual shellac -ivory for combs was scarce too

Question 3

plastic production increased greatly during…

Answer 3

WW2 -worried there wouldn’t be enough natural resources to make things critical to the war effort (ex: tires, parachutes, etc…)

Question 4

early perception of plastics

Answer 4

-high end, NOT cheap -can be bent, shaped, and colored in unique ways

Question 5

fastest growing segment of waste

Answer 5

electronic waste

Question 6

throwaway living

Answer 6

-1955 -shift from “use it up, wear it out, or do without” to single use items -“easier” to use it once and throw it away -supposed to help transition of mothers into the workplace after world war 2 -EX: zippo lighter (refillable) –> disposable plastic BIC lighter

Question 7

American consumption of plastic

Answer 7

~3x more than global average

Question 8

most plastic products were reduced and recycled in ____ until the recent trade war

Answer 8

China (potential environmental problem if they stop accepting our plastic to recycle)

Question 9

5 major plastics constitute 75% of plastic today

Answer 9

Question 10

polyethylene (PE)

Answer 10

low density PE = plastic bags longer chains = higher density and shorter chains = lower density

Question 11

polyvinyl chloride (PVC)

Answer 11

shower curtains, pipes

Question 12

polypropylene

Answer 12

monobloc chairs

Question 13

polystyrene

Answer 13

hard plastics or foam

Question 14

polyethyleneterephthalate (PET)

Answer 14

soda bottles

Question 15

Which monomer is this?

Answer 15

PE

Question 16

Which monomer is this?

Answer 16

PET

Question 17

Which monomer is this?

Answer 17

PVC

Question 18

What compound is this?

Answer 18

bis-(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP) -plasticizer to turn PVC into a shower curtain -leaches out

Question 19

plastics in the ocean

Answer 19

-can concentrate in certain areas bc of the currents -can concentrate chemicals like DDT that prefer being adsorbed to plastic over being in the water -break down very slowly into small particles -virtually inert -30% of plastics in the ocean will wash up on the beach somewhere -very difficult to remove bc the ocean is so vast

Question 20

Midway Atoll

Answer 20

-small island in the middle of the pacific -home to Laysan albatross -dying of large amounts of plastic in their stomachs

Question 21

microplastics in the sea

Answer 21

-particles less than 5 mm in diameter -plastic fibers from washing machine

Question 22

how much plastic does the average American consume in a year?

Answer 22

one credit card

Question 23

plastic packaging

Answer 23

-1/3 of plastic used for packaging -each American uses 300 lbs of packaging per year

Question 24

plastic bags

Answer 24

-SF bans it (expensive) -ACC was very anti-this bc worried about single-use plastic market –> but paper is worse!! :( and taxes suck!! :( -pandemic meant negative progress

Question 25

resin codes

Answer 25

-imply recycling but many kinds of plastics are not recycled at all