Biodegradable disposable hand warmer
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Solution Overview
Problem
Disposable body warmers face challenges in maintaining sufficient physical strength during use while achieving biodegradability after use, as existing biodegradable materials are prone to degradation and leakage due to insufficient strength and environmental impact from non-biodegradable plastics.
Innovation Solution
A disposable body warmer design featuring an inner bag with an exothermic composition containing potassium chloride and/or sodium chloride, along with an oxidative degradation agent, which promotes biodegradability and maintains physical strength by using a breathable laminate of polyolefin resin film and woven or nonwoven fabric.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If hydrolytic biodegradable plastic is used in the inner bag, then biodegradability is improved, but strength and physical properties deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the degradation mechanism parameter from hydrolysis to oxidation by incorporating an oxidative degradation agent. This allows the use of hydrolysis-resistant materials that maintain strength while achieving biodegradability through oxidative pathways instead of hydrolytic pathways.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention creates a composite system by combining hydrolysis-resistant plastic material with an oxidative degradation agent. This composite structure maintains the strength properties of the resistant material while introducing biodegradability through the oxidative agent, resolving the contradiction between strength and biodegradability.
2Strength
If petroleum-based plastic materials are used in the inner bag, then strength is improved, but biodegradability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The oxidative degradation agent acts as an intermediary substance that mediates between the hydrolysis-resistant plastic material and the environment. It enables the plastic to degrade oxidatively without requiring hydrolysis, thus maintaining strength while achieving biodegradability through the intermediary's catalytic action.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the degradation pathway parameter from hydrolysis-resistant to oxidation-susceptible by adding the oxidative degradation agent. This parameter change allows petroleum-based plastics to become biodegradable through oxidative pathways while preserving their inherent strength properties.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If the inner bag is made biodegradable, then environmental impact is improved, but physical properties during use deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the temporal parameter of degradation by controlling when oxidation occurs. The oxidative degradation agent remains dormant during use, maintaining physical properties, and activates only after disposal, achieving both reliability during use and environmental friendliness after disposal.
Solution Approach 2:
The oxidative degradation agent is preliminarily incorporated into the inner bag structure during manufacturing, but the actual degradation action is postponed until after use. This preliminary preparation without immediate action maintains physical properties during use while ensuring environmental degradation occurs after disposal.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution ensures quick degradation of the inner bag after use, preventing environmental contamination and maintaining physical properties during use, thus providing a practical and environmentally friendly disposable body warmer.
Implementation Method 1
an oxidative degradation agent, which allows plastic materials to depolymerize by oxidative degradation
Implementation Method 2
an exothermic composition, which generates heat in the presence of air
Data Source
AI summary
An object of the present invention is to provide a disposable body warmer that exhibits sufficient physical properties (strength) of the inner bag during use, and that is excellent in biodegradability after use. The disposable body warmer is prepared by allowing an exothermic composition comprising potassium chloride and/or sodium chloride to be contained in an inner bag comprising an oxidative degradation agent.