NOVEL BIODEGRADABLE BLOCK COPOLYMER

THE PROPER DISPOSAL OF PLASTIC SOLID WASTE IN THE PAST DECADE HAS BECOME A SERIOUS PROBLEM FOR SEVERAL NATIONS AND FOR SOME U.S. MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENTS. THIS PLASTIC SOLID WASTE HAS BEEN BLAMED FOR POLLUTING THE ENVIRONMENT AND POSING AN ECOLOGICAL THREAT TO MARINE LIFE. DEGRADABLE PLASTICS ARE CONSIDERED TO BE A VIABLE SOLUTION FOR PLASTIC SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL. SPIRE PROPOSES TO DEVELOP NOVEL BIODEGRADABLE PLASTICS BY BLOCK COPOLYMERIZATION. THESE HETEROCHAIN BLOCK COPOLYMERS WILL BE PREPARED UTILIZING DIODEGRADABLE POLY(B-HYDROXYALKANOATES), PHA, AS "HARD" SEGMENTS WITH COMMERCIALLY AVAILABLE BIOCOMPATIBLE POLYMERS SUCH AS POLY(OXYETHYLENE) AS "SOFT" SEGMENTS. IN THIS WAY, SPIRE ANTICIPATES DEVELOPING A WIDE RANGE OF DEGRADABLE PLASTIC MATERIALS WHICH ARE CURRENTLY UNAVAILABLE BY DIOSYNTHETIC METHODS. UPON SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION OF THIS PROGRAM, SPIRE WILL BE ABLE TO PROVIDE THE NAVY WITH AN ENTIRELY NEW FAMILY OF BIODEGRADABLE, ENVIRONMENTALLY SAFE PLASTICS WITH THE DESIRED PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF CONVENTIONAL PLASTICS.