Molekul, Vol. 19. No. 1, March 2024: 36 – 45 36 MOLEKUL eISSN: 2503-0310 Articles https://doi.org/10.20884/1.jm.2024.19.1.8394 Sustainable Bioplastics Made from Cassava Peel Waste Starch and Carrageenan Formulations: Synthesis and Characterization Esa Ghanim Fadhallah 1* , Ahmad Sapta Zuidar 1 , Amarilia Harsanti Dameswary 2 , Indah Nurul Assa’diyah 3 , Nana Juwita 1 , Sholeha Tullaila 3 , Muhammad Kahfi Kharisma Yudistiro 1 1 Department of Agricultural Product Technology, Faculty of Agriculture, Universitas Lampung, Bandar Lampung 35145, Indonesia 2 Center for Food Technology and Processing Research, National Research and Innovation Agency, Special Region of Yogyakarta 55861, Indonesia 3 Undergraduate Program of Agroindustrial Technology, Department of Agricultural Product Technology, Faculty of Agriculture, Universitas Lampung, Bandar Lampung 35145, Indonesia *Corresponding author email: esa.ghanim@fp.unila.ac.id Received March 09, 2023; Accepted December 04, 2023; Available online March 20, 2024 ABSTRACT. Plastic waste has become a global environmental problem as it is difficult to decompose and harms the environment. The alternative solution to overcome this problem is to produce biodegradable plastics made from renewable materials. Cassava peel waste contains starch that can form a thin film but has poor mechanical properties. Therefore, it is necessary to include additional substances to enhance its strength. Carrageenan is a substance that can improve bioplastic mechanical properties. This study aims to determine the characteristics of bioplastic made from cassava peel waste starch and carrageenan formulation. Nine formulations were tested in this study using the randomized complete block design factorial with the two factors of cassava peel starch (S) and carrageenan (C) concentrations, both at three levels and carried out under three replications. Bioplastics characteristics are observed in thickness, swelling, biodegradation, tensile strength, elongation, and elasticity. The formulation S2C1 (starch 20%; carrageenan 5%) produced the bioplastic with the best mechanical properties, including a tensile strength of 1.1 MPa, elongation of 1.33%, and elasticity of 0.87. Meanwhile, the formulation S3C1 (starch 30%; carrageenan 5%) had the best results for swelling, thickness, and biodegradability, with a swelling value of 57.79%, thickness of 0.36mm, and 11-day biodegradability. Keywords: bioplastic, carrageenan, cassava peel, formulation, starch INTRODUCTION Plastic waste pollution has become the primary environmental issue and source of pollution that is discussed annually on a worldwide scale. The yearly growth in plastic usage parallels with the expansion of the food sector and the population. In the past three years, from 2020-2022, The Ministry of Environment and Forestry of Indonesia (2022) reported that plastic waste generation in Indonesia gradually increased. It increased by 4.7% from 2020 to 2021, amounting to 5.2 million tons, and then drastically increased by 23.2% in 2022, amounting to around 6.5 million tons. Indonesia is the second largest contributor to global plastic pollution after China (Jambeck et al., 2015) and is currently reported as the top country in the Southeast Asia region for around 30% contribution to land-based marine plastic litter (Gutberlet, 2023). Plastic waste harms the environment because it may impair soil fertility, contaminate the ocean, and threaten the existence of marine life. Furthermore, when plastic garbage is burnt, it releases CO2 and HCN gas, contributing to global warming and air pollution (Purwaningrum, 2016). Governments in most countries around the world have been tempted to implement the 3R concept (reduce, reuse, recycle) to minimize plastic waste (Evode et al., 2021; Knoblauch & Mederake, 2021). However, using eco-friendly plastic packaging or bioplastics is one of the options that may be adopted to support solving this issue. Bioplastics are biodegradable plastics that are readily decomposed by soil microbes. They are made of polysaccharide compounds, such as starch, cellulose, protein, or lipid, which can be degraded by soil microorganisms (Jacoeb et al., 2014). Since bioplastics consist of organic compounds, they can replace synthetic plastic polymers and are more environmentally friendly. Additionally, the raw materials used to make bioplastics are abundant in nature and renewable (Maneking et al., 2020). Due to its abundance, cassava peel waste has excellent potential as a raw material for bioplastics. FAO (2023) reported that from 2019 to 2021, cassava production in Indonesia showed an average positive