Characterization and Biodegradability of Bioplastic Produced from Haematococcus Sp. Residues

Petroleum-based plastic has been extensively used over the years in industries for its desirable properties which is durability, flexibility, lightweight and resistance towards degradation. However, these properties have caused accumulation of one-time usage plastics which give rise to other environmental problems such as depletion of fossil resources, consumption of plastics by aquatic life, carbon dioxide emission from incineration, soil contamination and chemical released in the ocean. The bioplastic production from starch, waste biomass and bacterial fermentation has been done to substitute the petroleum-based plastic production. However, the sources are non-compatible due to lack in structure variability, pose threat to food security and high production cost. Therefore, this study was focussing on bioplastic made up of extracted polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) from Haematococcus sp. by sonication method for application in bioplastic. The research was divided into cultivation of microalgae, extraction of PHA and characterization of bioplastic film. The centrifugation of microalgae was done after 14 days of open-system cultivation. The extraction of PHA was done by using sonicator at 37 kHz, followed by purification using cold methanol and bioplastic film casting using carboxymethyl cellulase (CMC), extracted PHA and water.
The presence of PHA in Haematococcus sp. was studied using Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GCMS). The characterization of bioplastic was consisted of Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) analysis and biodegradable test. The functional group found in FTIR are related to the presence of PHA in the bioplastic and the biodegradability test proved the degradability properties stated in the past study which will encounter the problems and alternative solution for petroleum-based plastics