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Seawater biodegradation of a microbial lactate-based polyester (LAHB) as an advanced version of non-degradable
Sangho Koh1, Miwa Suzuki2,3, Ken-Ichi Kasuya2,3
1Institute for Aqua Regeneration, Shinshu University, 4-17-1 Wakasato, Nagano, Japan.
Abstract:
Here, we have demonstrated the good decomposition of microbially synthesized poly[45 mol% lactate (LA)-co-3-hydroxybutyrate (3HB)] (LAHB) in seawater, considered as a severe condition for plastic biodegradation. This provides the ecofriendly utility of LAHB over marine non-biodegradable polylactide (PLA). Accordingly, LAHB can be recognized as an advanced version sharing the beneficial properties of the biodegradable 3HB homopolymer and the widely used PLA.
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