Question

Which of the following is a biodegradable substance?
A. Cotton cloth
B. Thermosetting plastic
C. Thermoplastic
D. PVC pipes

Answer 1

Hint: Biodegradable substances are organic substances which can be deteriorated by nature with the help of microbes by aerobic or anaerobic digestion , such as in sewage waste and domestic wastes, etc.

Complete Answer:
- Cotton cloth is biodegradable as it is made out of cotton and is natural polymer made from cellulose which is grown on plant that means it is organic in nature and can be easily degraded by microbial activity and break down the natural cotton product into carbon dioxide, water , methane or other simple organic molecules.
- Biodegradable waste can be easily reduced in the environment and in such a way helps in waste management and is nature's Recycling system.
- Biodegradable substances/waste/ pollutants become part of the biogeochemical cycle.
- On the other hand, thermosetting plastic is a polymer synthetic polymer . These polymers are made up of relatively low molecular mass semi-fluid polymers, which when heated in mould become infusable and form an insoluble mass. This occurs because of extensive cross- linking between different polymer chains forming three dimensional networks of bonds.
- The in Thermoplastic also a synthetic polymer are linear or slightly branched long chain molecules which are capable of becoming soft on heating and hard on cooling. There is no cross-linking between polymer chains. PVC pipes are the example of thermoplastic.

The correct answer is (A) i.e. Cotton cloth.

Note: Biodegradable pollutants are easy to handle in comparison to the one biodegradable as the rate of decomposing organic substances is higher than that of synthetic waste such as glass, plastic, etc.