INTRODUCTION:
Nowadays, the population in our country is increasing and mostly of the
society are the children. We could not say that they are all safe especially
when they are playing. We could not say all of the things they touch are
harmless. We also cannot say that all the toys they are using are safe. in this
situation, our group manage to find a good investigatory project for this
school year. We’re going to make materials such as toys, accessories and
other things that people may use. We decide to turn milk into plastic. As we
all know, some plastic nowadays are not allowed to use anymore, so why not
turn milk into plastic, plus, it is harmless and totally safe. We found this
experiment that can turn milk into plastic by making it curdle. In this project,
we’re going to discover if our product will lessen the danger of a high
chemical-made plastic.
OBJECTIVES:
1. To know if turning milk into plastic can lessen the dangers in plastic
materials.
2. To find out how safe is the product.
3. To know the right safety precautions of this experiment.
STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM:
Can this product will be more harmless than other plastic and if it is more
eco-friendly than the other products.
SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY:
This study gives importance of using alternative products that is safer and
non-toxic and more eco-friendly than the other products.
SCOPE AND LIMITATIONS:
This study is about turning milk into plastic. In this study, we are going to
prove that the components in our product is less toxic and less harmful
compared to usual products we usually buy. This product can be alternative
products that we have; it is less toxic and less harmful especially for children.
HYPOTHESIS:
If we can produce plastic made up of milk and vinegar, can it be also
effective to promote more harmless and more eco-friendly plastic materials
especially for children.
DEFINITION OF TERMS:
a. Early-Lactation – secretion or formation of milk by the mammary glands
b. Colostrum – the thin yellowish fluid secreted by the mammary glands at
the time of parturition that is rich in antibodies and minerals, and
precedes the production of true milk.
c. Curdling – The process of forming semisolid lumps in a liquid.
d. Coagulate - change to a solid or semisolid state
e. Formaldehyde - an organic compound with the formula CH2O or
HCHO. It is the simplest aldehyde, hence its systematic name methanol.
The common name of the substance comes from its similarity and
relation to formic acid
f. Polymer – a chemical compound or mixture of compounds formed by
polymerization and consisting essentially of repeating structural units.
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE:
We combined milk and vinegar in making a harmless plastic. The vinegar
is acidic that when you combine it with the milk there is a curdling process
happening. When you add the vinegar with the milk, the vinegar separates
the water and protein found in the milk due to the vinegar’s acidity. The
protein found in the milk is also called cottage cheese or paneer. This product
maybe used such as toys, accessories etc. but this plastic is less toxic and less
harmful because there is no other chemicals combined with this only the
dried curds after the milk and vinegar were combined.
MATERIALS:
1. Measuring cup
2. Stirring spoon
3. Milk (fat free, skimmed)
4. Plain vinegar
5. Pan or bowl
6. Cloth towel
7. Heating source
8. Drying place
9. Formaldehyde (optional)
10. Dyes (optional)
PROCEDURES:
1. Measure a cup of non-fat milk into a pan to experiment with and warm
it until it is simmering; stir to avoid scorching; allow a little foaming
around the edges.
2. Pour in one tablespoon of vinegar using measuring spoon, stir and wait
for the reaction.
3. Add foil strips or other decorative material to the batch while stirring it.
4. Add dye, for streaking it in the wet casein plastic or can dye surface
later.
5. Cool it carefully to be comfortable to the touch; avoid touching or
splashing the material or container while it is hot.
6. Strain slowly to separate the coagulated, curdled milk out of the liquid,
using a colander. Strain the liquid twice or more if needed.
7. Place the soggy casein onto paper or smooth kitchen towel.
8. Fold towel and blot excess liquid. Squeeze gently.
9. Unfold, unwrap and place the curd on an appropriate paper or wax
paper and place it to dry.
10. Shape it by drying in some kind of form, such as bottle cap, for the
basic shape or dry it in sheets, rod form or in other forms.
11. Harden the plastic, (optional) when dry by immersing it in
formaldehyde and re-drying it. This is a porous material it goes more
than surface than surface deep.
IMPLICATION:
In making our own plastic, it is crumbly and fragile and the contents are
perfectly safe for consumers compared to usual plastics that are being used
because plastics are manufactured from petroleum. This brings a host of
issues like destruction of habitat, extraction of crude oil, security issues from
the volatile countries where oil is produced, processing of crude oil, chemical
manipulation into various types of plastics. The manufacture involves many
chemicals, many of which have not been sufficiently tested for their
toxicological impact on humans or animals. There are also certain plastics
that are durable materials. Thus, they are hard to eliminate once used and
create tremendous waste, While some common plastics can be recycled. In
our product, it is perfectly safe and non toxic because each casein molecule
is a monomer and chain of casein monomers is a polymer. The polymer can
be scooped up and molded.
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION:
The whole experiment was a success. We successfully turned milk into a
plastic. We have proven that it is less toxic and less harmful compared
to any other usual plastics. In this experiment we knew that there will be
separation of water and curds in the milk if we put some vinegar. We
also knew that the curds can be molded and turned into a plastic
without any other chemicals mixed to it, just only the curds and let it dry
Materials used
milk was poured to the pan
one cup of milk
one tablespoon of vinegar
The milk is simmering
we added the food coloring
stir until molds are formed and strain to separate the coagulated, curdled milk
out of the liquid
until it gets hard. We recommend that consumers should stop using the
usual plastic that we have and instead use this less toxic and less
harmless. This product would be good especially for children. We also
recommend that people should try this experiment so they can prove it
on their own when they have thoughts about it.
ABSTRACT
Our investigatory project tackles about turning milk into plastic. Plastic
is a polymeric material that has the capability of being molded or
shaped, usually by the application of heat and pressure. This property
of plasticity, often found in combination with other special properties
such as low density, low electrical conductivity, transparency, and
toughness, allows plastics to be made into a great variety of products.
Our group discussed that it would be better if we do an alternative
material for plastic but using different materials that are more harmless
and more eco-friendly to the society since several of us are avoiding
plastics for the environment’s sake. We gathered information about
Plastic, and we used certain alternatives materials to make our own
plastic and how will it become more eco-friendly.
MILK SOLIDATION
9-St. James
Angelica Cruz
Colleen Tubungan
Francelle Tuaño
Paolo Parreñas
Francis Bustamante