Natural Polymer Essay

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NATURAL POLYMERS
Naturally occurring polymers in the environment are called natural polymers. Some examples of natural polymers are,
• Nucleic acids: DNA, RNA
• proteins
• Polysaccharides :cellulose, starch
• collagen
• silk
• cotton
• wool
• natural rubber
Cellulose is the most abundant polymer, natural or synthetic, on the earth.

Applications of natural polymers
1. Cellulose
Cellulose is the most abundant natural polymer on earth since it can be found in cell walls of plants. Applications of cellulose are gone way back to Chinese dynasties where writing materials were invented.
Sources of cellulose:
Wood, cotton, hemp, linen, jute, sugar beet, cereal straws
Bacteria types such as Asetobactor, algae, marine animals of Ascite family are …show more content…

Starch glues are mostly based on unmodified native starches, plus some additive such as borax and caustic soda. Part of the starch is gelatinized to carry the slurry of uncooked starches and prevent sedimentation.
• Clothing or laundry starch is a liquid that is prepared by mixing a vegetable starch in water (earlier preparations also had to be boiled), and is used in the laundering of clothes. Aside from the smooth, crisp edges it gave to clothing, it served practical purposes as well. Dirt and sweat from a person's neck and wrists would stick to the starch rather than to the fibers of the clothing, and would easily wash away along with the starch. After each laundering, the starch would be reapplied.
• Another large non-food starch application is in the construction industry, where starch is used in the gypsum wall board manufacturing process.
• Starch is used in the manufacture of various adhesives or glues for book-binding, wallpaper adhesives, paper sack production, tube winding, gummed paper, envelope adhesives, school glues and bottle labeling. Starch derivatives, such as yellow dextrins, can be modified by addition of some chemicals to form hard glue for paper

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