Daicel Chemical Industries, Ltd.

Tayca Corporation

Osamu Ikemoto

Masanori Itoh

Teruo Aoe

Akira Miyazawa

A composition comprises a cellulose acetate or other cellulose ester, and an anatase-type titanium oxide having (1) a specific surface area of not less than 30 m.sup.2 /g, (2) a primary particle size of 0.001 to 0.07 .mu.m, or (3) a specific surface area of not less than 30 m.sup.2 /g and a primary particle size of 0.001 to 0.07 .mu.m. For improving the photodegradability and the dispersibility, the surface of the titanium oxide may be treated with a phosphoric acid salt or other phosphorus compound, a polyhydric alcohol, an amino acid or others. Use of a low-substituted cellulose ester with an average substitution degree not exceeding 2.15 insures high biodegradability. The composition may further contain a plasticizer and/or an aliphatic polyester, a biodegradation accelerator (e.g. organic acids or esters thereof). The degradable cellulose ester composition is highly photodegradable and moldable and hence useful for the manufacture of various articles.

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Okayama, Japan

Osamu Ikemoto