Polylactic acid face masks: Are these the sustainable solutions in times of COVID-19 pandemic?

ABSTRACT: The global massive consumption of disposable face masks driven by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has emerged as a blooming disaster to both the land and marine environment that might last for generations. Growing public concerns have been raised over the management and control of this new form of plastic pollution, and one of the proposed sustainable solution is to use renewable and/or biodegradable resources to develop mask materials in order to minimize their environmental impacts. As a representative biodegradable polymer, polylactic acid (PLA) has been proposed as a promising candidate to produce non-woven face masks instead of those fossil-based polymers. To further explore the feasibility of this alternative mask material, the present work aims to study both the hydrolytic and bio-deg

SUBMITTER: Soo XYD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8531277 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature