Chitosan-based micro-beads for industrial applications and biodegradation
발표자
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초록
내용
The global ban on non-degradable plastic-based micro-beads for personal care products has forced researchers to find sustainable alternatives. However, today's biodegradable micro-beads rarely offer competitive qualities including mechanical properties, stability, and accessibility. Here, we introduce bio-renewable chitosan-based micro-beads those can meet the above requirements and evaluated their practicality, biodegradability, and plant toxicity. Uniform spherical micro-beads are prepared by reacetylating chitosan from crustacean waste via an inverse emulsion system. Micro-beads show higher cleansing efficiency than traditional petroleum-based microbeads and have a superior hardness. In addition, they can be used to remove potentially toxic elements and function stably in commercial cleanser. The used beads are completely degraded without negatively affecting model plants. Our alternatives can be used as competitive eco-friendly micro-particles in sustainable daily products.