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Towards a Circular Economy of Plastics: An Evaluation of the Systematic Transition to a New Generation of Bioplastics
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This review evaluates the transition from petroleum-based plastics to bioplastics within a circular economy framework, assessing the sustainability, production challenges, and environmental trade-offs of current bioplastic alternatives.
Plastics have become an essential part of the modern world thanks to their appealing physical and chemical properties as well as their low production cost. The most common type of polymers used for plastic account for 90% of the total production and are made from petroleum-based nonrenewable resources. Concerns over the sustainability of the current production model and the environmental implications of traditional plastics have fueled the demand for greener formulations and alternatives. In the last decade, new plastics manufactured from renewable sources and biological processes have emerged from research and have been established as a commercially viable solution with less adverse effects. Nevertheless, economic and legislative challenges for biobased plastics hinder their widespread implementation. This review summarizes the history of plastics over the last century, including the most relevant bioplastics and production methods, the environmental impact and mitigation of the adverse effects of conventional and emerging plastics, and the regulatory landscape that renewable and recyclable bioplastics face to reach a sustainable future.
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A Review of Bioplastics and Their Adoption in the Circular Economy
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This review examines the current landscape of bioplastics, including bio-based and biodegradable materials, as potential alternatives to conventional fossil-fuel-derived plastics. Researchers assessed standards, life cycle analyses, and environmental performance of various bioplastic types. The study highlights that while bioplastics offer potential benefits for reducing fossil resource dependency, challenges remain around their actual environmental performance and integration into circular economy systems.
Bioplastic production in terms of life cycle assessment: A state-of-the-art review
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Researchers conducted a state-of-the-art life cycle assessment review of bioplastic production, finding that while bioplastics can reduce fossil fuel dependency, their environmental benefits vary substantially by feedstock, processing route, and end-of-life scenario within a circular economy framework.
Bioplastics in the circular bioeconomy: Production pathways, biodegradation mechanisms, and environmental implications
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This comprehensive review examines how bioplastics — plastics made from renewable biological sources — fit into a circular economy, covering how they are produced, how microorganisms break them down, and the environmental risks when degradation is incomplete. A key concern is that even bio-based plastics can form microplastics if they do not fully degrade in real-world conditions like marine or soil environments, meaning that simply switching to bioplastics does not automatically solve the microplastic pollution problem.
Bioplastics for a circular economy
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Researchers reviewed the role of bioplastics — made from bio-based or biodegradable polymers — in circular economy systems, finding that while they can lower carbon footprints and enable end-of-life biodegradation, trade-offs including land competition, unclear recycling compatibility, and higher costs limit their scalable sustainable impact.
Understanding bioplastic materials - current state and trends
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This review summarizes the current state of bioplastic materials, examining their properties, applications, and potential as alternatives to conventional petroleum-based plastics that contribute to environmental pollution. The authors assess both the promise and limitations of bioplastics in reducing the global plastic waste crisis.
Research digests by email
When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.