In some alarming new research, a discovery has been made about chemicals in the plastic containers consumers use daily. These convenient packaging resources that millions of people use daily could be extremely hurting human life and also the environment. Although the contents in these plastic packages are safe from any harmful metals, it is after the plastic has been thrown out and dumped in a landfill where we can see the consequences. After some degrading of the material harmful metals are released such as led, mercury, chromium, cadmium, and antimony. These heavy metals can then find their way into bodies of water that could potentially be someone's drinking water. This can cause some serious harm to not only to human beings, but also the planet we inhabit. Keith Vorst, and associate professor of food science and human nutrition at Iowa State has been working to develop a "sophisticates sensor array that helps manufacturers track potentially harmful materials in plastic polymers in real time." This new technology will be extremely helpful in stopping this problem right away in its tracks. The metals can be detected right in the manufacturing stage and can be taken care of before it becomes harmful to any humans or our environment. Already, a couple of companies are implementing this technology in their work. This topic is very important and concerns every human being because it pertains to what we use everyday. If one has a look in any persons house who lives in a developed country, one would find many sources of plastic packaging. Sooner or later, this plastic will be thrown out and can become harmful to the same person who benefited from it just years later. We can help with this issue by cutting back on the amount of plastic we consumers purchase.
http://www.news.iastate.edu/news/2015/08/21/vorstplastics
http://www.news.iastate.edu/news/2015/08/21/vorstplastics