Development of biodegradable plastic films from cassava starch

Plastic has become part of daily life because it is used in all industrial applications. Although it is beneficial and practical, it is the material that generates the most pollution in ecosystems. Therefore, the main objective of this research is to produce plastic films capable of degrading the environment in a shorter time (bioplastics). For this purpose, different samples were made with cassava starch (pulp or commercial), using amounts in the solution of 4% w/v and 30% w/w of cassava starch and glycerol, respectively, considering variations between the percentages of chitosan. The results showed that it is possible to obtain bioplastic by the casting method with the mixture of cassava starch (pulp or commercial), glycerol, and chitosan. Likewise, thanks to the laboratory tests carried out, was possible to determine that the use of commercial starch to produce biodegradable plastic films significantly favors moisture adsorption, solubility, and biodegradability, compared to starch extracted from cassava by hand, with good statistics validity of the analyzed data.