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Groundnut Shell-Based Drinking Straws Coated with Soy Wax:
An Eco-Friendly Alternative to Plastic Straws
Author: Agnas, Nathan David D., Magsombol, Lyness Joana B., Mercado, Camylle Alaine, & Misiona, Yurimi
ABSTRACT The extensive production and usage of plastic straws has become a threat to the environment since it is composed of materials that don’t fully biodegrade. While past research has carried out to form environmentally friendly disposable straws, there are no present studies where groundnut shells have been used for such purposes. This study therefore assesses whether the production of disposable drinking straw from crushed groundnut shells is more water-repellent than common paper straws and has characteristics that are not much different from plastic straws. Kraft’s pulping process followed by straw molding was done to produce straws from groundnut shells (GNS straw). The GNS straws were tested using relevant standards in terms of biodegradability, water absorption and acidity level. Using Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), the straws from groundnut shells are compared to commercial plastic and paper straws with the said parameters. The results show that GNS straw has a 27.15% mean biodegradability rate after 10 days being buried in soil. The results obtained from the water absorption test indicate that the performance of GNS straws, while not reaching the same level as that of conventional plastic straws, surpasses that of commercially available conventional paper straws by a significant margin—making it a significant candidate for paper straws.
Keywords. Groundnut Shells, Biodegradable straw, Paper straw. Eco-friendly. Disposable
INTRODUCTION Throughout the years, the use of plastic has been growing rampant and one of the key contributors are plastic straws. Plastics can be obtained from our daily actions such as buying, packing and eating in restaurants. The common reason why drinking straws are made is that it makes enjoying beverages convenient, it helps those people with mobility issues, and people with conditions from choking. Moreover, the straw promotes proper hygiene because it prevents our mouths from touching the opening of the beverages that may have been kept in unsanitary conditions. It keeps your nose out of the drink, acts as a stirrer, and being unable to tip the beverage towards the mouth makes it much less likely to spill. However, the more it is produced and used, the more waste it creates. Among the 8 million tons of plastic that flow into the ocean each year, 0.025% are plastic straws (Yan, 2018). Furthermore, in the United Kingdom alone, at least 4.4 billion straws are estimated to be thrown away annually. According to Nationwide Plastic (2022), the plastic straws take up to 200 years to degrade but will never fully biodegrade. They only break up into smaller pieces called microplastics which could be more harmful in comparison to regular-sized plastics, as they are smaller, and it can be transferred through the food chain. Therefore, despite the convenience plastic straws bring, they are considered a threat to the environment. In light of this, the research community found one potential option is to utilize paper straws, which are more environmentally friendly than standard single-use plastic straws. Non-wood materials also have been used to produce most paper products, such as paper straws. Plazonić et al. (2016) used wheat, barley and triticale as the main material in making straw. The results showed that it was evident that straw as non-wood plant material has nearly the same cellulose content as most wood spices, lower content of lignin and higher amount of ash and solvent extractives, which indicates a good outcome. On the other hand, some concerns are raised about their quality and stability over time in a study conducted by Gutierrez et al. (2019). According to the study, paper straws gained 30% to 50% of their weight and lost 80% to 90% of their strength practically immediately after being exposed to liquids and gained weights within 30 to 60 minutes. Therefore, the focus of this study is to produce a biodegradable drinking straw made out of pulped groundnut shells. The groundnut shell fibers possess good physical strength properties. The higher pentosan content, gums, and mucilage in the sheath of certain species of groundnut plant may be a suitable source for producing paper (Ramgopal et al, 2016). Although reports are available on utilization of groundnut shell fiber for textile, pulp and paper making, no reports are available of developments of paper straws using groundnut shell fiber. With its physical strength, there exists potential for pulped groundnut shells to be made into paper drinking straws. With this, the type of straws produced is expected to be more water-repellent than common paper straws but has characteristics that are not much different from plastic straws.
