6-Pack Loop Rings Photodegradable?
|
|
|
6-Pack Loop Rings Photodegradable? |
|
|
Developers: |
|
Sister Frances Boyle RSM |
Dr. Eugene Dougherty | ||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||
|
Grade Levels: |
|
Grades 10 through 12 | |||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||
|
Disciplines: |
|
Chemistry | |||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||
|
Goals: |
|
To have students take a closer look at the current status of an environmental problem: the 6-pack loop ring. | |||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||
|
Specific Objectives:
|
|
The student will:
| |||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||
|
Background: |
|
Newspapers widely covered the damage to ocean animals caused by the 6-pack loop ring. Dolphins and porpoises may be at considerable risk. These rings are light enough to float on top of the water, so they may be mistaken as food. President Reagan responded by ordering that all 6-pack loop rings are to be photodegradable. | |||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||
|
Introduction: |
|
6-pack loop rings are made from polyethylene-carbon
monoxide copolymer. Several short experiments were done to
see if the 6-pack loop ring currently in use is
photodegradable. The experiments and their results are
listed below. Experiment A 1.0097 g of small pieces of ring were placed in a small
beaker of sodium chloride (aq) saturated solution, covered
with plastic wrap and a watch glass, and left in a hood
under regular light. After five (5) days, the sample was
washed and dried in the oven at about 150ƒ F and 0.8372
g remained. Apparent change = 0.1725 g or 17.1%. Experiment
tried once. Experiment B 1.0500 g of small pieces of ring was placed in a small
beaker of sodium chloride (aq) saturated solution, covered
with plastic wrap and a watch glass, and left in a hood
under IR light. After five (5) days, sample was washed and
dried in oven at about 150ƒ F and 0.9987 g remained.
Apparent change = 0.0513 g or 0.05%. No significant
change. Experiment C 0.9196 g of small pieces of ring were placed in a small
beaker of distilled water, covered with plastic wrap and a
watch glass, and left in a hood under IR light. After five
days, the sample was dried in an oven at about 150ƒ F
and 0.9212 g remained. Limitations of balance or water still
clinging to the sample seem to explain results. Experiment D Three 6-pack loop rings were removed from a soda case. The first was rinsed and weighed 3.11 g. The second was left on the ground outside in a sunny area for sixty (60) hours, rinsed, air dried, and weighed 3.08 g. The third was left in a bucket of salt water covered with plastic wrap for sixty (60) hours, rinsed, air dried, and weighed 3.12 g. There seemed to be no significant photodegradability. | |||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||
|
Material: |
|
6-pack loop rings | |||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||
|
Procedures: |
|
As a chemist, you are to devise procedures for testing
the photodegradability of 6-pack loop rings. First you
search the literature. Introduction tells some work that has
already been done. What else has or should be done?
Photodegradability - how is it defined? How long a time
period does it imply for the 6-pack loop ring?. HYPOTHESIS ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________
TESTING PROCEDURES ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________
RESULTS ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ | |||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||
|
Teaching Note: |
|
SEPARATION BEFORE PLASTIC RECYCLING. 6-PACK LOOP RINGS - PHOTODEGRADABLE? and LATEX HELIUM BALLOONS - ANY ALTERNATIVES can be used independently or they can be used as an environmental concerns packet, as I used them with my physics classes. All students had had Chemistry the year before and had at least some discussion of environmental concerns. The Physics course called for a review of density and so I began with SEPARATION BEFORE PLASTIC RECYCLING. SEPARATION BEFORE PLASTIC RECYCLING was completed with the class. Then the students were given a choice of an independent research project. The choices were:
Organization Activity List Students gave preliminary reports of their progress two and four weeks after the assignment was given. A final report of their experimental work or information learned from letter-writing was due in six weeks. Students were told that experiments were successful when they gave report of process used and data obtained. They did not have to reach an undisputable answer on whether the 6-pack loop ring is photodegradable or come up with a successful alternative to the latex helium balloon. They needed to be involved in the process of scientific research.
| |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
