RT Journal Article
T1 Chemistry inquiry conducted by secondary school students into material degradation in the context of sustainability
A1 López-Fernández, María del Mar
A1 Cano-Iglesias, María José
A1 Franco-Mariscal, Antonio Joaquín
K1 Educación ambiental
K1 Desarrollo sostenible
K1 Materiales - Deterioro
K1 Estudiantes de enseñanza secundaria
AB This study presents an inquiry conducted by ninth-grade secondary school students on material degradation in the context of sustainability. The inquiry is developed as a collaborative project, with students working together throughout most stages, while some tasks such as data collection and analysis were performed individually to encourage autonomy. Furthermore, the inquiry spans a full quarter, enabling students to observe long-term changes, deepen their understanding of the studied processes, and engage more deeply with the environmental issue. Among their key findings, students concluded that a period of 100 days is insufficient for the complete degradation of paper, cardboard, plastic, and metal, with the latter two showing minimal changes despite exposure to environmental conditions that favor photodegradation (solar radiation), thermal degradation (temperature fluctuations between day and night), hydrolytic degradation (humidity variations on rainy days), biodegradation (fungal growth), and chemical degradation or corrosion. Additionally, they developed explanatory models on material degradation, considering environmental factors and their impacts, which allowed them to reflect on sustainability, responsible consumption, and the importance of green chemistry.
PB Royal Society of Chemistry
YR 2025
FD 2025
LK https://hdl.handle.net/10630/40022
UL https://hdl.handle.net/10630/40022
LA eng
NO RSC Sustainability, 2025, 3, 3997
NO MCIN/AEI/
NO European Union “NextGenerationEU”/PRTR
DS RIUMA. Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de Málaga
RD 19 ene 2026