Foam peanut - Citizendia

Foam peanuts

Foam peanuts, also known as packing peanuts, are a common loose-fill packing material which is also used to prevent damage to fragile objects during shipping. They were introduced circa 1965 by Dow Chemical. The Dow Chemical Company () is an American Multinational corporation headquartered in Midland Michigan. They are roughly the size and shape of a peanut (in its shell) and usually made of polystyrene. The peanut, or Groundnut ( Arachis hypogaea) is a species in the Legume family Fabaceae native to South America, Mexico Polystyrene ˌpɒliˈstaɪriːn ( IUPAC Polyphenylethene is an aromatic Polymer made from the aromatic Monomer Styrene They are shaped to interlock when compressed and free flow when not compressed. Originally made from 100% virgin polystyrene resin, peanuts made from 100% recycled polystyrene have been commercially available since the mid-90s. In the loosefill world, the color and shape tell what it is made of and who made it. Green is 70% or more recycled polystyrene, white is 70% or more virgin resin and pink means anti-stat has been applied; although there are some variations. For example, few green peanuts have pink applied even though they may be sprayed with anti-stat, just as there are expanders who make 100% recycled white peanuts. The most common shapes are the "S" for the STOROpack PelaSpan peanut and the "W" for the RAPAC WingPac peanut. The Figure 8 peanut shown in the photo attached to this article is made of extruded polyurethane manufactured by Free Flow. A polyurethane, commonly abbreviated PU, is any Polymer consisting of a chain of organic units joined by urethane links The advantage of polystyrene loosefill as a void-fill for shipping is that it is very light (usually 0. 17 to 0. 2 lb per cu ft) and easy to use. The biggest negative is that it can develop a static charge and that heavy objects tend to migrate to the bottom of the box during shipping, reducing the protection offered.

Polystyrene peanuts may be used and reused many times with little or no loss in protection for the product shipped. They may be recycled at virtually any packing and shipping store.

In the early-1990s, a more environmentally friendly starch-based alternative was developed. Starch, CAS # 9005-25-8 Chemical formula (C6H10O5n is a Polysaccharide One of the first brands of biodegradable peanuts, Biofoam, is made from the grain sorghum; other brands are made from corn starch. Biodegradation is the process by which organic substances are broken down by the enzymes produced by living organisms Sorghum is a genus of numerous species of grasses, some of which are raised for grain and many of which are used as Fodder plants either cultivated or as part Cornstarch, or cornflour, is the Starch of the Maize grain commonly known as Corn. Biodegradable foam peanuts have no electrostatic charge, another benefit over polystyrene. Electrostatics is the branch of Science that deals with the Phenomena arising from what seems to be stationary Electric charges Since Classical Being biodegradable and nontoxic, they are also edible. Their main drawbacks are a lesser resilience, higher weight relative to polystyrene (0. 4 to 0. 8 lb per cu ft), dusting and they are more expensive. In addition, since they are edible, starch-based peanuts do tend to attract rodents and bugs.

Starch-based peanuts are soluble in water, and polystyrene peanuts are soluble in acetone, but not vice versa. Acetone (also known as propanone, dimethyl ketone, 2-propanone, propan-2-one and β-ketopropane) is a colorless mobile flammable Because polystyrene peanuts are non-soluble in water, they are also used as a light-weight aggregate in hydroponics. Hydroponics (from the Greek words hydro (water and ponos (labour is a method of growing Plants using mineral Nutrient solutions without

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