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Chemical Reactions and Equations
What are some of the waste materials that we generate in our homes?
Some of the the waste materials that we generate in our homes are :
Spoilt food, vegetable peels, plastic, PUC, used tea leaves, milk packets, empty cartons, used cloths, paper waste, empty medicine bottles, broken foot wear, etc.
How much time does it take for certain commonly used products to biodegrade, when they are scattered around as litter?
The following chart shows the time taken for commonly used materials to biodegrade:
|
Item |
Time taken to biodegrade |
|
Cotton rags |
1-5 months |
|
Paper |
2-5 months |
|
Rope |
3-14 months |
|
Orange peels |
6 months |
|
Wool socks |
1-5 years |
|
Plastic coated paper milk cartons |
5 years |
|
Leather shoes |
25-40 years |
|
Nylon fabric |
30-40 years |
|
Tin cans |
50-100 years |
|
Aluminium cans |
80-100 years |
|
Glass bottles |
1 million years |
|
Plastic bottles |
Do not biodegrade at all |
The food we eat is digested by various enzymes in our body. Why the same enzyme does not breakdown everything we eat? What significance does this have for degradation of waste material?
Enzymes are specific in their action, specific enzymes are needed for breakdown of a particular substance. For example, pepsin is needed to breakdown proteins while lipase is needed to digest fats. Because enzymes are specific in their action many human made materials like plastics cannot be broken down by bacteria and other saprophytes. These materials will be acted upon by physical processes like heat and pressure but under the conditions found on the earth these materials persist for a long time.
Mention some substances that are biodegradable?
Spoiled food, used tea leaves, vegetable peels, cotton rags, waste paper were biodegradable materials.
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