BRAINCAKEPolymer Waste
Addition polymers such as poly(ethene), poly(propene) and PVC are cheap, strong, light and long-lasting, so huge amounts are made. The same properties cause a waste problem.
Why they persist: an addition polymer chain is saturated and held together by strong, non-polar C-C and C-H bonds. There are no polar bonds for water or enzymes to attack, so most addition polymers are non-biodegradable: microorganisms cannot break them down. A plastic bag may last for hundreds of years.
Consequences:
• waste plastics fill landfill sites, which uses up land and wastes a useful material
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More in Alkenes
- Electrophilic Addition of Hydrogen Halides
- Unsymmetrical Molecules
- Addition Polymerisation
- Identifying the Monomer
- Identifying the Repeating Group
- Recycling
- Incineration
- Biodegradable Polymers
All 19 lessons in Alkenes · All Edexcel AS-level Chemistry topics