ABSTRACT
Petroleum-based plastics cause substantial environmental problems at disposal because of their slow degradation and harmful degradation products. Most of the plastic wastes end up in landfills, creating water and soil pollution. This chapter discusses the current state of knowledge on the behavior of biobased polymers and their composites when subjected to accelerated weathering, ultraviolet, thermal, moisture, water, soil, and aerobic and anaerobic degradation. It presents a range of biobased polymer composites focusing on their degradation characteristics and mechanism, properties, physical and mechanical common standards, and evaluation methods. Low degradation rates and harmful degradation products such as carbon dioxide of synthetic polymers create substantial environmental problems at disposal. Biobased polymers serve as the matrix or substrate material in biocomposites, with natural fibers and other biobased materials serving as the fillers or reinforcement.
