bioplastics MAGAZINE 04-2011

04 | 2011

ISSN 1862-5258

July / August

Highlights Bottles | 14 End-of-Life |36 Personality Isao Inomata | 42 Basics

bioplastics

MAGAZINE

Vol. 6

Blow Moulding | 48

1 countries

... is read in 9

FKuR plastics – made by nature!® Bio-Flex® multilayers – engineered to clarity!

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Editorial

dear readers I’m sure that many of you (just like me …) did not know (or perhaps you did know!) that the first plastics materials in history were bioplastics. I stumbled over this piece of information when I started researching the background for a book project that I am currently working on. Obviously the first plastic resins were developed to substitute materials which were becoming scarce and expensive - materials such as ivory, tortoiseshell, or mother-of-pearl. Hence celluloid was developed following a $10,000 competition for the creation of a billiard ball material to replace ivory in 1863. Another example is galalith, made from casein, a protein commonly found in mammalian milk. And there were quite a number of other plastics made from crops and animal products. All of that began in the mid19th century. And it was only due to the massive availability of petroleum and the invention of new materials in the 20th century that the boom in oil based plastics was triggered and bioplastics fell into oblivion …

Well that was just daydreaming…

One of the highlights in this issue is the subject of bottles, or — more generally — the blow moulding of bottles and containers, including the materials needed. PLA bottles were a hot topic during the last few years, but these days our attention is more attracted by the large soft-drink companies announcing the use of partly, or even 100%, biobased PET for beverage bottles. One component to make PET, the monoethylene glycol based on sugar cane, had already been introduced a while ago. But now there seem to be ways to produce, economically and thus commercially, terephthalic acid from renewable resources. Read more details in this issue.

Nevertheless, PLA is still, and will be even more, a very attractive material for a multitude of applications. Research and development to improve heat resistance and other properties using different approaches continues apace.

The areas of application grow every day. This is why bioplastics MAGAZINE, after our first successful PLA World Congress in 2008, will now organize the 2nd PLA World Congress. In May of 2012, we invite all who are interested in PLA to come to Munich in Germany. And right now we invite all those involved in the aforementioned developments to submit proposals for presentations in our ‘Call for Papers’ (see page 11).

The team at bioplastics MAGAZINE is looking forward to welcoming you to Munich next spring.

Until then we hope you enjoy reading bioplastics MAGAZINE

Sincerely yours Michael Thielen

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bioplastics MAGAZINE [04/11] Vol. 6

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Content Editorial.................................................... 3 News ........................................................ 5 Application News ................................... 28 Events .................................................... 10 Event Calendar ...................................... 54 Bookstore............................................... 51 Glossary ................................................. 52 Editorial Planner ................................... 56 Companies in this issue ........................ 58

04|2011 July/August Material

Personality

Novel Bio-Composites for Structural Applications............ 12

Isao Inomata ........................................................................ 42

Too Cool for School ............................................................. 20

Opinion

Maxi-Use .............................................................................. 32

Is All ‘Non-Bio‘ Plastic Bad?............................................... 44

Advanced Research in Bionanocomposites ....................... 35

Basics

Bottles

The of Blow molding of Bioplastics .................................... 48

Completing the Puzzle: 100% Plant-Derived PET.............. 14 New Bottle Material .......................................................... 18

Applications A cleaner hospital, a cleaner environment ........................ 23

Testing Measure Biodegradability of Plastics More Accurately ..... 26

End-of-Life The Role of Standards for Biodegradable Plastics ............ 36

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bioplastics MAGAZINE [04/11] Vol. 6

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Unitika

Cover

A part of this print run is mailed to the readers wrapped in BO-PLA envelopes sponsored

by Taghleef Industries S.p.A. and Maropack GmbH & Co. KG

Envelopes

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More Responsible End-of-Life Options .............................. 40

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News

4th Annual ‘Green Plastics‘ in Israel Israel is going through a real change in it’s attitude towards waste management in general and specifically management of packaging waste, as a new government law was passed and declared active from July 2011.

This law, created in the format of known European similar structures, along with the new strategy of the Israeli Ministry of environmental protection, gives way for new waste separating methodologies, both for municipalities and Industrial bodies. It is safe to say, that within 2-4 years, most of the households in Israel, will be separating waste into an organic stream and other 1-2 ‘dry’ streams. Within this atmosphere, Shenkar College of Engineering and Design, located in Ramat Gan, a dynamic city adjacent to Tel Aviv, Israel, had held the 4th annual ‘green plastics’ convention in Ramat Gan, Israel.

As in previous years, the day was full of speakers concentrating on Bio-Plastics (bio-based and biodegradable). The first half of the day was held in English with speaker guests from BASF, FKUR and University of Massachusetts, Lowell.

A noted speech was given by Patrick Zimmermann of FKuR, who spoke of using Bioplastics in ‘Multilayer systems’, offering new possibilities and more applications then ever.

The second half of the day was dedicated to Israeli speakers, Researchers from Shenkar institute and from Israeli compounding companies such as Tosaf and Kafrit. Israel is expecting a breakthrough in the Bioplastics market. An infrastructure is being built in the form of the Israeli standard SII 6018 - ‘Bioplastics and it’s products’ and a soon to be formed standard for determining of bio-based content.

First Biological Material Industry Union in China Founded At the 3rd China International Biological Plastic Application Conference (Guangzhou, May 15-16, 2011) a new Low-carbon Biomaterial Production & Research Innovation Alliance was established by over 30 organizations, all engaged in low carbon biological plastic industry. It is the first industrial alliance that specializes in biological material field in China.

The union was mainly initiated by Shenzhen Esun Industrial Co., Ltd.. Yang Yihu, chairman of this company was appointed as the President of the union. Zhuo Renxi, an academic of Chinese Academy of Sciences was designated as the chief science consultant of the alliance. The more than 30 members include Tsinghua University Shenzhen Research institute, General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (Shenzhen) and RP TOPLA (Shenzhen).

Yang Yihu said: ”The Innovation Union devotes to advocating low carbon, developing biological plastic industry, promoting low-carbon biological plastic economy, and building a harmonious happy lifestyle between man and nature. The innovation union aims at building a comprehensive resource platform of politics, production, study, research and capital, excavating industry technology & resources advantage of upstream and downstream, establishing sharing mechanism of innovation coalition resources, and realizing the breakthrough of key technology, the core technology and common technology in low carbon biological plastic industry.”

In addition the alliance is going to create a good condition and operation environment for the cohesion of upstream achievements and downstream industry application, facilitate the conversion achievements to industrialization, and bring out a rapid development of low-carbon biological plastic industry. MT

With Hi-tech plastic & packaging producers, an innovative market and an awakening environmental awareness, Israel could very well be, a surprising market for Bio-Plastics in the coming years. www.shenkar.ac.il

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News

Solvay and Avantium Cooperate Solvay, headquartered in Brussels, Belgium and Avantium, headquartered in Amsterdam,The Netherlands, recently announced that they have entered into a partnership to jointly develop a next generation of green high-performance polyamides for engineering plastics. The partnership combines Solvay’s leading position in specialty polymers and Avantium’s YXY (pronounced icksy) technology for producing building blocks for green materials.

The companies will work together to explore the commercial potential of engineering plastics on the basis of YXY building blocks. YXY is a patented technology that converts biomass into Furanic building blocks, such as FDCA (2,5-Furandicarboxylic acid).

Through the partnership, new high-performance polyamides will be developed that are produced using renewable, bio-based feedstock. Solvay and Avantium target a next generation of polyamides with new properties that can serve a range of engineering applications in areas such as automotive and electronic materials. Price and performance of the polyamides will be key drivers for the success of the project.

“We are very happy to be able to look at the potential of YXY building blocks in specialty polyamides together with Avantium”, said Antoine Amory, in charge of renewable based chemistry developments within the newly created Innovation Center of Solvay. “Avantium’s success in making such building blocks available through a unique manufacturing route is an essential key step that opens up new opportunities in the field of specialty polymers which we are impatient to explore.

“We are excited about our collaboration with Solvay. The polyamides we will develop together will become another novel and exciting outlet for our YXY building blocks,” said Tom van Aken, CEO of Avantium. “Solvay’s expertise in the field of polyamides is very important to understand the polyamides we will focus on and bring them closer to commercial applications. This agreement is another important step to explore high-value added applications for our YXY building blocks, in addition to work we are already doing in a complementary polyamide area.” MT www.solvay.com www.avantium.com www.yxy.com

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Consumers to Opt for Bioplastics Packing As the disposal of packaging in applications such as food has had an adverse impact on the environment, it has opened up numerous opportunities for retailers and packaging manufacturers in bioplastics. This is a result of a study, the market researchers of Frost & Sullivan published in their new study ‘European Bioplastics Packaging Market’.

Most traditional packaging materials are oil based. But consumers are increasingly seeking bio-friendly options to conventional plastics to safeguard their environment and sources of renewable energy.

New analysis from the study find that the European bioplastics packaging market earned revenues of €142.8 million in 2009 and estimates this to reach €475.5 million in 2016, boosted by increasing production capacities of key industry participants and increasing consumer awareness about environmental-friendly products.

Governments could offer tax exemptions and other subsidies to encourage the production of bio-based, environment-friendly products from renewable resources to conserve non-renewable energy and reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emission.

Market participants can tap the sizeable market potential once they address bioplastics’ drawbacks of low material performance and prohibitive pricing caused by the high costs of production and processing. The cost issue can be effectively resolved by increasing the production capacity of key industry participants.

“A focus on increasing production capacities and their effective utilization will help close the price disparity between biopolymers and conventional plastics,” says Frost & Sullivan Research Analyst Sujatha Vijayan. “This will enable the market to grow and replace plastics in several applications.”

While increasing consumer awareness is opening up more avenues for growth, the market’s success also depends on emerging technologies that can improve the quality and properties of the material used. For instance, in food packaging, technical developments in barrier properties will make considerable improvements to the material that is currently in use.

Meanwhile, retailers are pressuring bioplastics manufacturers to use active packaging to remove odours. Smart technology is likely to find traction in this application, as it can actually monitor the quality of the food through freshness, temperature or quality indicators built into the package.

“Companies are innovating various technologies to improve the properties of existing biopolymer and their inventions are expected to change the way plastics is used in packaging applications,” notes the analyst. MT www.frost.com

News

NatureWorks to Offer New Products NatureWorks recently announced a major capital investment project at its Blair, Nebraska, USA, manufacturing facility for the production of new grades of highperformance Ingeo™ biopolymers as well as a new generation of lactide intermediates.

Samples of the new polymers and lactide intermediates will be available next year with commercial sales commencing by 2013.

For the last 10 years, NatureWorks has supported applications development across this broad range of market segments, resulting in more than 16 commercial grades of Ingeo resin, each with chemistry and physical properties tailored to a specific end use. According to NatureWorks chief operations officer, Bill Suehr, “The new capital investment will significantly broaden our processing capabilities, allowing us to produce with appropriate economies of scale additional Ingeo products well suited to the global injection molding and fiber/nonwovens markets.”

New Ingeo grade The new Ingeo grade for injection molding, for example, will contribute to lower molded part cost through faster cycle times and higher production rates. Fiber and nonwoven products made from the new Ingeo grade will have reduced shrinkage and improved dimensional stability. These improved features are expected to enable the use of Ingeo biopolymers across a broader range of fiber and nonwoven applications, providing larger processing windows. NatureWorks also will assess new market and application opportunities for these new Ingeo grades in the thermoforming, film extrusion, injection stretch blow molding, and formed extrusion arenas.

New Lactide In addition the company will be the world’s first to offer in commercial quantities a high-purity, polymer-grade lactide rich in the stereoisomer meso-lactide. Identified as Ingeo M700 lactide, the new material can be used as an intermediate for copolymers, amorphous oligomers and polymers, grafted substrates, resin additives/modifiers, adhesives, coatings, elastomers, surfactants, thermosets, and solvents.

Until now, several niche-focused producers have attempted to address the functionality requested by the market with what are described chemically as racemic lactides. “Compared to these, the high-purity Ingeo M700 will be lower in cost, easier to process, and an overall better alternative to high-priced racemic lactide, as well as L- and D-lactides, in a host of industrial applications,” said Dr. Manuel Natal, global segment leader for lactide derivatives at NatureWorks.

As compared to racemic lactide’s melting point of nearly 130°C, and L- and Dlactide’s 97°C, Ingeo M700’s melting point is below 60°C. This makes for a more effective chemical intermediate on a number of different levels. For example, Ingeo M700 offers a more efficient way to deliver ester functionality and, because it is effectively an anhydrous form of lactic acid, processors will not have to deal with water when using Ingeo M700. Meso-lactide is up to two times more susceptible to ring-opening reactions than L-, D-, or racemic lactides, which can mean less catalyst usage, lower reaction temperatures, or both. It can be processed below 70°C, which under most circumstances eliminates the need to handle expensive solid particles and allows easier processing.

By early 2013, the company will offer thousands of tons of Ingeo M700 lactide. Prior to this availability, meso-lactide samples will be available in 2012 to advance market development. MT www.natureworksllc.com

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News

Letter to the Editor Re: Blue Cat (issue 03/2011) I have just been reading the latest issue of your magazine. I am concerned about the article on Blue Cat cat litter in which it is said that the bio-waste from litter can be composted. I don’t know what would happen in an industrial compost system, but in a home compost system, the temperature would not be high enough to kill off Toxocara canis which can cause blindness in children. Home composting is quite popular in many countries such as the UK and Belgium, and I understand it is becoming more popular in Germany. For this reason, we would never recommend composting cat litter, not even that made from wood shavings.

Iain Ferguson, Environment Manager The Co-operative Group, Manchester, UK

Francesco Degli Innocenti, Harald Käb, Mark Vergauwen, Andy Sweetman, Jens Hamprecht, Jöran Reske, Rainer Barthel (left to right)

European Bioplastics Elected New Board On 16 June, the industry association European Bioplastics elected a new Board which represent the association and its members for the coming two years.

Andy Sweetman (Innovia Films) was confirmed as Chairman. Jens Hamprecht (BASF) and Mark Vergauwen (NatureWorks) are ViceChairmen.

At the beginning of his second term as Chairman of European Bioplastics Andy Sweetman says: “The awareness of bioplastics has risen immensely within the last year as bioplastics reach more and more consumer products. The Board will therefore continue to dedicate its expertise to encourage political support and to strengthen communication about bioplastics”.

Further members of the Board are: Rainer Barthel (Danone), Francesco Degli Innocenti (Novamont), Joeran Reske (Interseroh), and Harald Käb (narocon), who was designated treasurer.

The cover photo of this issue does not exactly reflect one of our highlight topics. But it reflects the topic of our next conference. In May 2012 bioplastics MAGAZINE will present the 2nd PLA World Congress (see 1st announcement and call for papers on page 11).

And our cover girl Erica obviously likes PLA. The 2011 mascot of the Japanese company UNITIKA uses cups made from TERRAMAC, a heat resistant PLA resin by Unitika. Their technology makes PLA heat-resistant suitable for making injection moulded products. Unitika’s moulding partners are providing various products, such as cups, dishes, bowls, plates, chopsticks, and so on, in various colours, made from heat-resistant Terramac PLA resin. And Erica’s knitted shirt is made of Terramac fibres. www.unitika.co.jp

www.European-bioplastics.org

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www.shutterstock.com / Toria

Events

2nd PLA World Congress LA is a versatile bioplastics raw material from renewable resources. It is being used for films and rigid packaging, for fibres in woven and non-woven applications. Automotive industry and consumer electronics are thoroughly investigating and even already applying PLA. New methods of polymerizing, compounding or blending of PLA have broadened the range of properties and thus the range of possible applications.

Call for Papers

That‘s why bioplastics MAGAZINE is now organizing the 2nd PLA World Congress on:

Market overview

14-15 May 2012 in Munich / Germany

Barrier issues

Experts from all involved fields will share their knowledge and contribute to a comprehensive overview of today‘s opportunities and challenges and discuss the possibilities, limitations and future prospects of PLA for all kind of applications. Like the first one the 2nd PLA World Congress will also offer excellent networking opportunities for all delegates and speakers as well as exhibitors of the table-top exhibition.

Additives / Colorants

P

nd

2 PLA WORLD C O N G R E S S 14 + 15 MAY 2012 * MUNICH * GERMANY

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bioplastics MAGAZINE invites all experts worldwide from material development, processing and application of PLA to submit proposals for papers on the latest developments and innovations.

The conference will comprise high class presentations on Latest developments

High temperature behaviour

Applications (film and rigid packaging, textile, automotive, electronics, toys, and many more) Fibers, fabrics, textiles, nonwovens Reinforcements End of life options (recycling,composting, incineration etc) Please send your proposal, including speaker details and a 300 word abstract to mt@bioplasticsmagazine.com. bioplastics Munich.

MAGAZINE

is looking forward to seeing you in

Online registration will be available soon.

Watch out for the Early–bird opportunities at www.pla-world-congress.com

Events

The Bio-based Economy and Bioplastics – The Plastics Evolution 011 is set to be a defining year of the bioplastics industry in Europe, with implications for the industry around the world. The European Commission is expected to finalise European Strategy and Action Plan towards a sustainable bio-based economy by 2020 in October or November 2011. This will act as the roadmap for the bio-based economy in Europe and for European policy-making for the next decade. Ahead of this, European Bioplastics has organised a high-level conference entitled ‘the Bio-based Economy and Bioplastics – The Plastics Evolution’ at the European Parliament in Brussels (Belgium) on 22 September 2011. The conference will be preceded on 21 September by a cocktail reception and product exhibition close to the European Parliament to demonstrate to all European stakeholders the tangible and demonstrable reality and potential of bioplastics today.

2

Save the date

The conference, will be hosted and chaired by Mr. Lambert van Nistelrooij MEP, the Chair of the Governing Board of the Knowledge4Innovation Forum of the European Parliament. The conference will be a unique opportunity to engage with key European stakeholders – policy-makers, politicians and industry – on the bio-based economy and bioplastics.

The event will feature the benefits and potential contribution of bioplastics to the EU’s commitment to a transition to a bio-based economy. High-level representatives from the European Commission, the European Parliament, EU national governments and industry will provide their insights into the future of the bio-based economy in Europe.

Mr. van Nistelrooij is a leading voice in the European Parliament on innovation in Europe. His hosting the conference recognises the important role that the bio-based economy plays in the innovation agenda of the European Union. It also emphasizes the potential contribution of the bio-based economy to regional development in Europe. This potential has been demonstrated in the Netherlands through the development of regional and cross-border ‘bio-based clusters’ throughout the country.

The Dutch Bioplastics Value Chain Dutch leadership on the bio-based economy has been reflected in recent months by a new initiative established in the Netherlands entitled the Dutch Bioplastics Value Chain. The Value Chain initiative, which has been supported by European Bioplastics and the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs, Agriculture and Innovation, has brought together actors across the full spectrum of the bioplastics value chain to address the opportunities and constraints of bioplastics in the European markets. Constraints that were highlighted included access to feedstock, access to finance, and the importance of consumer communication. Mr. van Nistelrooij further raised awareness around the issues raised in the course of the Value Chain discussions by posing a written question directly to the European Commission on the issue of bioplastics and what support to the bio-based economy the Commission will be providing. The question dealt with many of the issues raised by the Value Chain, and emphasised the opportunities for regional and rural development through the bio-based economy.

As demonstrated by the recent announcements of global brand leaders such as Coca-Cola, Heinz and Danone, the bioplastics message is becoming more and more mainstream within industry.

What is needed now is to ensure that this momentum is reflected at the highest levels politically and through policy which can help stimulate the growth of the industry in the coming years. www.european-bioplastics.org

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Materials

Novel Bio-Composites for Structural Applications by Miguel Angel Sibila, Chemical Laboratory Department Sergio Fita, Composites Department Inma Roig, Composites Department all Technological Institute of Plastics (AIMPLAS) Paterna (Valencia), Spain

www.natex.eu www.aimplas.es

B

io-composites manufactured from natural materials such as fibres and bio-derived polymers offer a sustainable alternative to traditional ones, but at present they are still not available for their use in structural applications.

Researchers at the Technological Institute of Plastics (AIMPLAS), Spain, in close collaboration with several Technological Institutes, Associations, and SMEs from eight different European countries, are currently developing aligned textiles from natural fibres that are suitable for their use as highstrength reinforcing fabrics to produce structural composite materials. This includes the incorporation of orientated woven natural fibres in both bioderived thermoplastics and thermoset resins, to produce high-tech products from renewable resources.

The European Research Project, entitled Natural Aligned Fibres and Textiles for Use in Structural Composites Applications (NATEX), is funded by the European Commission1. The partners involved in this project are:

NETCOMPOSITES LTD (United Kingdom) EUROPEAN PLASTIC CONVERTERS ASSOCIATION (Belgium) AGCO (France) FORMAX UK, Ltd. (United Kingdom) EKOTEX (Poland) TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY OF DENMARK (Denmark) CHEMOWERK GmbH (Germany) INSTITUT FÜR VERBUNDWEKSTOFFE GmbH (Germany) (a)

ASFIBE (Spain) PIEL,S.A. (Spain) TRANSFURANS CHEMICALS (Belgium) AALTO-KORKEAKOULUSÄÄTIÖ (Finland) INSTYTUT WLOKIEN NATURALNYCH I ROSLIN ZIELARSKICH (Poland) ABENSI ENERGÍA (Spain) BAFA BADISCHE NATURFASERAUTBEREITUNG, GmbH (Germany) VTT TECHNICAL RESEARCH CENTRE OF FINLAND (Finland)

(b)

The innovation of the NATEX project has been focused on four main aspects: Modification of the fibre surface in order to obtain the desired interface properties when combined with the polymer matrix.

New spinning processes to reduce the yarns’ twisting during the textile manufacturing process, increasing the fibre volume fraction and the wetting of the fibres, potentially leading to better mechanical properties of natural fibre-reinforced composites.

(c) Composite plate made of PLA reinforced with flax fibre: (a) Image of the surface, (b) microscopy image of the surface, (c) micrograph from the cross-sectional area.

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New weaving techniques to improve impregnation and to obtain innovative 3D textiles.

New commingling and film stacking methods for thermoplastic composites, in order to improve the permeability of the composite and to obtain well mingled yarns.

Materials

Adaptation of diverse resin processing methods (Vacuum bagging, Compression moulding, Infusion and Resin Transfer Moulding) in order to fulfil the characteristics of the modified fibres The mechanical properties of bio-composites are being enhanced by means of the improvement of the aligned natural fibres properties: good impregnation, improved interface area between fibres and matrix, most of the fibres oriented in the axis in which stress is applied, reduction of moisture uptake, high and homogeneous quality fibres, reduced twist and linear density of the yarn, suitable fibre architecture minimizing the nesting.

The final aim of the project consists of the incorporation of these bio-materials in applications with high mechanical requirements in different sectors: transport, energy, agricultural machinery and shipbuilding. As an example, a panel system structure, which will be used in photovoltaic solar systems and thermal solar systems, is being designed and developed in order to obtain a part by using new biocomposites to replace current metallic materials.

With these new biomaterials, the corrosion drawbacks experienced by traditional panel system structures and components based on metallic materials is expected to be overcome, whilst obtaining other benefits such as reduced weight or increased sustainability at a competitive cost.

The behaviour and durability of these materials under high temperature conditions will be assessed in order to satisfy the requirements for such structures.

However, the impact of NATEX will mainly affect the European Textile sector, which mostly consists of small and medium-sized companies, by increasing market competitiveness through the creation of high added value customized materials as reinforcement for structural parts made of composites. Additionally, the project will also provide benefits to the other sectors involved in the new material supply chain: agriculture (fibre growers), renewable and synthetic resin producers and end users (transport systems, energy systems, agricultural machinery and shipbuilding).

Besides, in general terms, the project could also be potentially applied to other sectors where structural parts are required: furniture, sports and leisure, aircraft, building, etc.

Since the beginning of the project, an important effort has been focused on the development and modification of natural fibres. As a result, the relationship between fibre processing, fibre defects and fibre properties has been determined.

Additionally, the modification of surface properties of natural fibres in order to improve interfacial characteristics with both thermoplastic and thermosetting polymers has been performed, showing a good potential for better compatibility with hydrophobic polymers.

For the development of natural fibre based textile preforms suitable for biocomposites, diverse configurations by using

the most suitable spinning systems have been obtained leading to different twisting angles and mechanical properties of the yarns. Moreover, blends of natural fibres with both petroleum-based and bio-based thermoplastic fibres have been developed and characterized with good results. 2D and 3D fabrics from natural fibres and blends of thermoplastic and natural fibres have also been successfully prepared and characterized.

Regarding polymers, sheets obtained from modified petroleum-based and bio-based thermoplastic resins with different additives have featured better extrusion processability, leading to higher dimensional stability, less defects, better aesthetics and higher outputs. Moreover, better mechanical properties and adhesion to natural fabrics have been observed compared to raw polymers. In the case of thermosetting resins, the addition of suitable additives have shown improved adhesion of unsaturated polyester resins to natural fabrics, leading to higher mechanical properties. The processing of unsaturated polyester resins and natural fabrics by different methods such as resin transfer moulding (RTM) and infusion has been carried out with good impregnation properties and surface finishing. Renewable thermosetting furan resins have shown a comparative performance to that of phenolic resins. Furthermore, a specific furan resin has been found ideal for prepreg applications.

From all the developed materials, an important effort has been focused in the modification and adaptation of suitable processing techniques for both thermoplastic and thermoset biocomposites production. Thermoplastic biocomposites have been successfully processed by defined manufacturing techniques such as compression moulding, leading to good mechanical properties and surface finishing. Considering thermosetting biocomposites, parts with good mechanical properties and surface appearance have been processed by RTM and methods. Prepregs from furan resins and natural fibres have been processed by compression moulding leading to good mechanical properties and finishing.

With regard to the final applications of the project, different case studies have been selected to be developed from natural fabrics and both thermoplastic and thermosetting resins. Requirements for these parts have been established and current work is focused on the development of first prototypes. Good preliminary results have been obtained from the shipbuilding and transport system case studies showing a good prospect for the development of biocomposites from polymers reinforced with natural fibres.

1: Acknowledgement: NATEX project has received funding from the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) NMP area (Nanosciences, nanotechnologies, Materials and new Production Technologies) under grant agreement No 214467.

The information above reflects only the NATEX beneficiaries’ views and the Community is not liable for any use that may be made of the information contained therein.

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Bottles

By Dan Komula Business Analyst Virent Madison, Wisconsin, USA

Completing the Puzzle: 100% Plant-Derived PET

T CH3

O

OH

O

OH

O2 -H2O CH3

Paraxylene is converted into Terephthalic Acid (Graph: Simon, KR)

he interest in bio-based plastics falls into two main areas – sustainability and economics, and there is significant overlap between these areas. Many companies including Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Danone, WalMart, Heinz, Nike and others, have initiated sustainability goals including recycled PET (rPET), lightweighting and the most recent introduction of partially bio-based PET. These sustainability goals and programs have been driven by companies’ desires to reduce their environmental footprint and to respond to a growing consumer demand for sustainable and renewable packaging. Non-Government Organizations, such as the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), have also played a large part in raising concerns over traditional petroleum based packaging materials. The sustainability of packaging is no longer just a ‘nice to have’ or exclusively part of a company’s corporate social responsibility, but is seen as a business necessity to attract consumers and protect market share in certain regions.

The other main driver for interest in bio-based plastics is the need to find an alternative to crude oil as a basic feedstock. In the long run, crude oil will increase in price as demand continues to grow and new oil resources become ever more expensive to locate and develop. Therefore, companies using PET packaging are seeking alternatives that will help them to reduce costs and minimize volatility.

While switching to other materials such as glass, metal and paper composites is an option in certain cases, PET has replaced these materials in many uses

Figure 1. Bio-based feedstocks for both MEG and PTA allow for the production of a 100% renewable and recyclable PET bottle.

Plant-Based Material

BioFormPX

Bio-PTA 70% Bio-PET Resin

Plant-Based Material

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Ethanol

Bio-MEG 50%

Bottle Forming

Bottles

because of a variety of benefits it offers (light-weight, clarity, resilience, etc). Users will not give up these benefits easily. In addition to the long run cost increases that will result from using oil, the recent volatility of crude oil prices has also caused problems for end users of PET. Since January 2008, PET prices have fluctuated between $1,400 (€ 985) and $2,400 (€ 1,700) per tonne with recent prices in April 2011 hitting alltime highs (source: CMAI Chemical Market Ass. Inc.). These price fluctuations put pressure on the end users of PET and wreak havoc with business planning, profit margins and supply contracts. The risk that such volatility introduces into the PET supply chain has a real economic cost.

Meeting sustainable packaging goals requires an efficient and economical manner for producing renewable chemicals that are identical to existing petroleum-derived counterparts.

Molecules that can be ‘dropped-in’ to existing supply chains and recycling infrastructure take advantage of the extensive capital infrastructure and production know-how already in place today. Virent’s technology allows for leveraging of the existing infrastructure for the production of biobased chemicals and polymers.

PET Overview PET (Polyethylene Terephthalate) was developed in the 1940s as a synthetic fiber polymer. Demand for the polymer grew exponentially in the 1960s and 1970s as knit fabrics gained popularity in fashion apparel. Today, it is a major part of the polyester family of polymers. According to CMAI, global demand for PET will be ~54 million metric tons in 2011.

Fibers are the dominant application of PET, accounting for 62% (CMAI) of total PET demand. PET is a high performing synthetic fiber, as the polymer keeps its shape, color and is extremely stain resistant. The second largest use (31%, CMAI) of total PET demand is found in PET bottle resin. This application started commercially in the 1970s as the soft drink industry was attempting to source a lighter-weight

bottle to replace glass, while still maintaining the clarity and appeal of a glass bottle. The industry found PET resin was ideal for its needs, and the stretch blow molding process was born. The remaining demand for PET is in films (4%) and other small niche market applications (3%).

There are two streams of raw materials which comprise PET: Mono-Ethylene Glycol (MEG), and Purified Terephthalic Acid (PTA). PTA is made from paraxylene, and historically, all of these raw materials have been sourced from fossil resources (crude oil and natural gas).

The MEG portion of PET can be produced from traditional petrochemical routes via ethylene or can be produced from natural plant sources (via fermentation to ethanol and dehydration to ethylene). The PTA/paraxylene portion, representing approximately 70% (by wt. or even 80% if we just look at the carbon atoms) of the PET molecule has remained a fossil-fuel component derived from petroleum refinery streams, due to the difficulty of producing the aromatic paraxylene molecule from bio-based sources. That has been the difficulty for companies seeking a 100% bio-based PET polymer. Now Virent has demonstrated a route to make biobased paraxylene that opens up the potential for 100% biobased PET.

BioFormPX™ Production Enabling a 100% Biobased PET bottle Virent is making paraxylene as well as other chemicals and biofuels through its patented technology. Coupled with biobased MEG, Virent’s BioFormPX allows bottlers and other packaging companies to offer their consumers 100% renewable and recyclable PET bottles as well as fibers and films.

Virent’s BioForming® Platform Virent’s process, trademarked BioForming®, is based on a novel combination of Aqueous Phase Reforming (APR)

Bioforming Process

Reactive Intermediates Aqueous Phase Reforming

Aromatic-rich BioFormate Virent Modified ZSM-5

BioParaXylene BioBenzene

Aromatics Complex

BioToluene BioXylenes BioFuels

Corn

Sugar Cane

Biomass

Converting Multible Feedstocks to High Value Hydrocarbons

Figure 2. Virent’s BioForming process utilizes the patented APR process coupled with conventional catalytic conversion technologies and petrochemical operations to produce BioFormPX.

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Bottles R

OH

O

O

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Xylose Oligomers HO

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OH Glucose O

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O

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O

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O

O

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OH

OH

HO

Cellulose Oligomers

O O Levulinic Acid

OH R R

Benzoic Acid

APR Reactant

APR Products

Figure 3. Virent uses catalysts to reduce the oxygen content of the feedstock. Once formed, the mono-oxygenated species are converted to non-oxygenated hydrocarbons in a continuous process using conventional catalytic condensation and hydrotreating techniques.

Virent Energy Systems, Inc. Virent was founded in 2002 and is headquartered in Madison, WI, USA. The company produces the chemicals and fuels the world demands from a wide range of naturally occurring, renewable resources. Using patented catalytic chemistry, Virent converts soluble biomass-derived sugars into products molecularly-identical to those made with petroleum, including gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, and chemicals used for plastics and fibers. Virent’s technology has the potential to replace over 90% of the products derived from a barrel of crude oil.

technology with modified conventional catalytic processing technologies.

The APR technology was discovered at the University of Wisconsin in 2001

by Virent’s founder and Chief Technology Officer, Dr. Randy Cortright. The BioForming platform expands the utility of the APR process by combining APR with catalysts and reactor systems similar to those found in standard petroleum oil refineries and petrochemical complexes. The process converts aqueous carbohydrate solutions into a mix of hydrocarbons. The BioForming process has been demonstrated with conventional sugars as well as a wide variety of cellulosic biomass from non-food sources.

Virent’s aqueous phase reforming methods utilize heterogeneous catalysts at moderate temperatures (450 to 575 K) and pressure (10 to 90 bar) in a number of series and parallel reactions to reduce the oxygen content of the feedstock.

The reactions include: (1) reforming to generate hydrogen, (2) dehydrogenation of alcohols/hydrogenation of carbonyls; (3) deoxygenation reactions; (4) hydrogenolysis; and (5) cyclization. Once formed, Virent has found that these mono-oxygenated species (e.g. alcohols, ketones and aldehydes) can be converted to non-oxygenated hydrocarbons in a continuous process using conventional catalytic condensation and hydrotreating techniques.

The production of Virent’s bio-paraxylene, branded BioFormPX involves the APR process followed by a modified acid condensation catalyst (ZSM-5) which produces a stream similar to a petroleum derived reformate, branded BioFormate™. In the acid condensation step, the APR products are converted into a mixture of hydrocarbons, including paraffins, aromatics and olefins.

The similarity between Virent’s BioFormate stream and a typical petroleum reformate stream is shown in Fig 4.

The resultant BioFormate stream has been blended into the gasoline pool and can be subsequently processed into high value chemical intermediates, such as paraxylene using commercially proven and practiced technologies.

Virent’s BioFormate stream has been blended by Royal Dutch Shell into a gasoline fuel used by the Scuderia Ferrari Formula 1 racing team.

Virent has produced sufficient quantities of its BioFormate through operation of its 37,800 Liter (10,000 gallon) per year demonstration plant to generate volumes for further processing to paraxylene. Virent completed in house purification through the use of commercial crystallization techniques to produce a purified bio-paraxylene product. The use of crystallization technology is used to meet the industry required specification of 99.7+% purity.

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Bottles

Petroleum Reformate Petroleum ReformateStream Stream

Virent’s Virent’sBioFormate BioFormate

Figure 4: Virent’s plant-based reformate bears striking resemblance to that found at a typical refinery

Road to Commercialization

Figure 5. Virent’s 10,000 gallon/yr BioFormate demonstration plant (top) and Virent’s BioFormPX (bottom) in its crystalline form during in house purification.

Virent is currently in discussions with a number of major end users of PET fiber, bottle resin and film, to commercialize the BioForming platform for the production of BioFormPX. Manufacturers involved in the traditional petrochemical PET supply chain have also expressed interest in contributing to building out the biobased PET supply chain. The ability of Virent to use existing petrochemical assets and technologies accelerates the time to commercial deployment. Virent is targeting commercial production of its BioFormPX by 2015 or earlier and believes that the demand pull from the major end users of PET is crucial to the initial commercialization and success of bio-based PET. Virent’s BioForming platform for BioFormPX produces other bio-based aromatic intermediates, including benzene, toluene and other xylenes, as well as biofuels. These other aromatic intermediates can be used to produce biobased polystyrene, polycarbonate, and polyurethane. This diversified product slate allows for de-risking of commercial deployments as the profitability is not dependent on one molecule or market. Virent has produced material that would be suitable using today’s aromatics processing infrastructure from its 37,800 Liter per year demonstration plant. While that is sufficient volume to provide samples to prospective partners, the current demand for plant-based paraxylene is even more significant and is poised to grow at high rates in the future. Virent envisions the BioForming platform as being an industry wide solution enabling 100% bio-based PET while complementing petroleum based PET. The ability of Virent to use existing petrochemical assets and technologies accelerates the time to commercial deployment. The scale of this plant is yet to be finalized and will depend on a number of factors including feedstock source, logistics, and customer demand. Potential plant sizes range from 30,000 tonnes/yr to 225,000 tonnes/yr of BioFormPX production. The large scale plant could produce 30 Billion 0.295 Liter (10 oz) bio PET water bottles or 17 Billion 0.590 Liter (20 oz) bio PET soft drink bottles. The introduction of this first plant can have a large impact on the PET bottle industry and the implementation of future plants will increase the impact. www.virent.com

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Bottles

By Kim Ji Hyun R&D center SK Chemicals Gyeonggi-Do, KOREA

New Bottle Material A new bio-based, BPA-free and high-temperature copolyester

S

K Chemicals, the leading copolyester resin manufacturing company based in Korea, has recently developed ECOZEN®, the world’s first eco-friendly high-temperature copolyester resin. The new Ecozen range of products is being produced at the SK Chemicals plant in Ulsan, Korea, in a proprietary process, alongside the existing SKYGREEN copolyester and SKYPET PET products. Ecozen provides an increased performance over existing copolyester materials in almost all areas, particularly temperature resistance and is seen by the manufacturer as a viable alternative to materials such as polycarbonate (PC). Other advantages over PC include the fact that Ecozen contains no Bisphenol-A (BPA), the ingredient of PC that has recently caused it to be banned for use in children’s products in many countries worldwide. In addition, Ecozen is the first copolyester in the world to be made using a bio-based monomer that is derived from renewable resources such as corn or wheat. The biomass contained in the currently available grades of Ecozen ranges from 9% up to 30%.

Ecozen Properties Since they were first discovered, copolyesters have enjoyed rapid market acceptance and growth due to their combination of easy-processing and excellent properties. However, the relatively low maximum service temperature of copolyester has, until now, limited their use to low temperature applications up to about 70°C. This has made the material unsuitable for critical applications such as hot-filled and pasteurised containers, and dishwasher-proof reusable cookware and food-storage containers. Ecozen retains all the advantages of traditional copolyesters but now has the high HDT properties necessary to compete with materials such as PC or heat-set PET in temperature-resistant containers for hot-filled or pasteurised products, or for baby’s products that require sterilisation. (Fig. 1)

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Bottles Ecozen is kinder to the environment since it is the first copolyester to contain a substantial content of renewable bio-based material, and it is also compatible with traditional copolyesters such as PET and PETG. This offers a whole new dimension compared to other competitive transparent plastic materials.

HDT-B (°C) 120 100 80 60 40

For food storage and packaging applications, Ecozen offers excellent oxygen-barrier properties for long shelf-life food and beverage products. Table 1 shows typical oxygen permeation coefficients for polycarbonate (PC), polypropylene (PP), copolyester (PETG) and Ecozen. The oxygen permeation coefficient of Ecozen is about ten times lower than either PC or PP and it is therefore the ideal material to produce food storage jars and bottles to extend the storage-life of oxygen-sensitive items such as fruit juice or dairy products.

In addition, Ecozen also provides the high chemical resistance required to package products such as cosmetics, and has an excellent resistance to food-staining, a main requirement for food-storage containers and cookware.

Ecozen Processing.

The many advantages of copolyesters include their versatility and ease of processing using standard injection moulding, injection- and extrusion-blow moulding, and sheet, film or profile extrusion equipment. Similarly, Ecozen can also be used in all the above processes, with only minor changes to process parameters and no changes to mould design. This means that new users of Ecozen will not have the cost or inconvenience of setting up new processing conditions, or having to invest in new equipment or mould modifications.

20 0 HDT 85°C HDT 100°C HDT 110°C PET

PETG

ECOCEN

Fig. 1. HDT-B of PET, PETG and Ecozen (ASTM D648, 0.455MPa)

Material

ASTM

Unit

Polycarbonate (PC) Polypropylene (PP) PETG

Oxygen 93

D 3985 cm³∙mm/(m²∙day∙bar)

Ecozen

98 10 8

Table 1. Typical oxygen permeation coefficients of PC, PP, PETG and Ecozen at 23°C

Ecozen Applications The excellent high-clarity and gloss properties of Ecozen combined with ease of processing offer the improved design flexibility required by packaging designers for high-quality cutting-edge cosmetics and perfume containers.

Ecozen has the high melt-strength necessary to manufacture large-volume containers with an integral handle made by the extrusion-blow moulding process.

Ecozen represents an attractive alternative to PC, which contains BPA, regarded by many authorities as an endocrine disruptor. Ecozen not only offers a BPA-free alternative to PC that is both durable and dishwasher-safe, but it also encourages consumers to use refillable bottles for products such as sports beverages.

In addition to packaging, Ecozen, with a heat distortion temperature (HDT-B) increase of between 10°C to 40°C higher than that of other existing copolyesters, is also already replacing more traditional materials such as PC in many highperformance engineering applications within the electrical, electronics, construction and automobile sectors because of it’s unique combination of excellent impact-strength, high chemicalresistance and outstanding transparency. http://skecozen.com

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Materials

Too Cool for School Nanofibrillar cellulose and their industrial promising future in combination with bioplastics.

Fig. 1. Top: Cellulose kraft pulp fibres.

Bottom: The surface structure of a single cellulose fibre, where the microfibrils are clearly visualized

C

ellulose is the most frequently used biopolymer in material science, occurring in wood, cotton, hemp and other plant-based materials and serving as the dominant reinforcing phase in plant structures.

Cellulose is used already for many purposes that include its use in packaging, composites, structural materials (wood is still the principal element in building constructions in many countries) and many other applications.

The biorefinery concepts introduced in the last 30 years and the advancement of research in the nano area are now allowing new possible developments for cellulose: nanofibrillar cellulose (MFC) is the new trend in the industry (Fig.1).

From their first discovery in the 1980’s until today MFCs have gained increasing attention due to their unique properties in improving the mechanical, optical and barrier performance of a given material. Today, their properties are becoming well-known in many areas, but it is in the field of composites where those properties can give their best in combination with bioplastics.

Fig. 2. Cellulose nanofibrils.

MFCs are being produced by fibrillation of cellulose fibres. The most common ways to produce the fibrils is by using high pressure homogenization or grinding. In order to facilitate the fibrillation, various ways to pre-treat the fibres are often carried out. The pre-treatment can be mechanical, chemical, enzymatic or a combination of these. Pre-treatment lowers the energy consumption in the fibrillation step which otherwise can be very high and after substantial chemical pre-treatment it is also possible to fibrillate the fibres by just using sonication. The various pre-treatment and fibrillation methods also influence several parameters of the produced fibrils, such as degree of polymerization, fibril length, surface chemistry, average fibril diameter, rheological properties and fibril diameter size distribution [1].

Thus, it is possible to produce the material in several qualities and to adjust the product so that it is at its optimum for a specific application. At the Paper and Fiber institute today we distinguishe between tailor-made MFC dispersions and MFC is no longer used as a general term.

Nanofibrils constitute the major fraction of properly produced MFC materials [2]. Nanofibrils have diameters in the nano-scale (<100 nm) and lengths in the micron -scale (>1 µm) (Fig. 2). Such nanofibrils are expected to play a key role in improving the mechanical, optical and barrier properties of a given material. Recently, advances have been reported in the production of cellulose nanofibrils on an industrial-scale [3], which opens up new possibilities in the proper utilization of this natural and promising material.

Adequate morphological characterisation of nanofibrils requires microscopy techniques with suitable resolution. Several advanced microscopy techniques exist for micro- and nano-assessments, including the commonly applied atomic force microscopy (AFM), field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and their corresponding different modes of operation. FESEM is a most versatile technique for structural studies. Samples can rapidly be

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Materials assessed at several scales, providing also high-resolution of for example 1 nm. This is a valuable property as the morphology of a given MFC material can be assessed properly and in detail [4].

By:

Nowadays MFCs are used commercially or at research level in different areas of expertize: Packaging, paper, emulsions, membranes, as a thickener, as well as in filters and in medical applications - to list just a few of them. Among all of them, the production of composite materials is the area where they could be the right partner for bioplastics.

Paper and Fiber research Institute

Nanocomposites based on nanocellulosic materials such as microfibrillated cellulose or bacterial cellulose have been prepared with petroleum-derived non-biodegradable polymers such as polyethylene (PE) or polypropylene (PP) and also with biodegradable polymers such as PLA, polyvinyl alcohol (PVOH), starch, polycaprolactone (PCL) and polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB). Chemical modification of cellulose has been explored as a route for improving filler dispersion in hydrophobic polymers. Due to compatibility problems of nanocellulosic materials and hydrophobic matrices, it is clear that nanocomposites based on hydrophilic matrix polymers will be easier to produce and commercialize.

The improvement of compatibility with apolar materials, on the other hand, requireschemical modification of nanocelluloses. Because of the hydrophilic nature of the material it is easy to understand why MFC and Bioplastics are perfect partners to develop new and totally renewable composite materials. www.pfi.no

Marco Iotti, Gary Chinga Carrasco, Kristin Syverud

Trondheim, Norway

[1] Iotti, M; Gregersen, Ø; Møe, S; Lenes, M. (2011): Rheological Studies of Microfibrillar Cellulose Water Dispersions. Journal of Polymers and the Environment, 19(1), 137145. Open access.

[2] Chinga-Carrasco, G. (2011): “Cellulose fibres, nanofibrils and microfibrils: The morphological sequence of MFC components from a plant physiology and fibre technology point of view”. Nanoscale Research Letters 2011, 6:417. Open access.

[3] Syverud, K. (2011): “Industrial-scale production of nanofibres from wood”. http://www.pfi.no/PFI_Templates/ NewsPage____450.aspx [4] Chinga-Carrasco, G., Yu, Y, Diserud, O. (2011): “Quantitative electron microscopy of cellulose nanofibril structures from Eucalyptus and Pinus radiata pulp fibres.

Microscopy and microanalysis. In press.

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Applications

A Cleaner Hospital, harmafilter is an integral concept for patient care, waste management and wastewater purification for hospitals, nursing homes and other care institutions. Pharmafilter has important benefits for patients and nursing staff.

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It improves the hygiene and efficiency of aseptic hospital processes by introducing single-use disposables from bio-degradable plastics instead of re-usables, such as cutlery, tableware, bedpans and urinals. These easy-to-use products reduce contacts with contaminated waste.

The Pharmafilter concept

Bedpan Olla

The waste from a hospital department will be disposed of in a shredder, the Tonto®. This Tonto is conveniently located at the nursing department sanitization station and replaces the conventional bedpan washer. The Tonto is connected to the existing sewer system. Together with the effluent from toilets, sinks and showers, the shredded waste is transported, through the existing hospital piping infrastructure, to a purification plant on the hospital site.

Solid waste is separated from wastewater in the plant. The solid waste is reduced by anaerobic digestion, producing biogas. This gas is re-used for powering the plant. The wastewater is purified and all harmful substances are eliminated,.

Hygiene and safety Two principles reduce contact with contaminated materials: 1. The introduction of single-use products simplifies protocols, offering hospitals a major advantage in introducing hygienic practices. These products don’t have to be washed and sterilized. The need for washing hands are avoided at many stages, because cross-contaminaton risks are eliminated. It has the additional advantage that clean products are handled and stored separate from contaminated products.

2. The waste is disposed of in the fastest manner close to the source and is safely transported to a processing plant. Traditionally, waste is sorted, gathered and stored temporarily in specifiec containers and carts. This waste leaves the hospital via corridors and elevators, a process that can lead to problems with hygiene, cause cross-contamination and overloading of the hospital elevator and hallway infrastructure.

By Eduardo van den Berg Managing Director Pharmafilter Amsterdam, The Netherlands and Jan Ravenstijn Bioplastics Consultant

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Bioplastics As a closed-loop system, Pharmafilter is an ideal environment for bioplastic applications. 100% of the resulting waste is processed through an anaerobic digester with a high energy return and minimal residual waste. Dozens of highvolume single use bioplastic products will be developed in close cooperation with hospitals’ staff and end users.

So far, the bio-based polymers PHA and TPS (thermoplastic starch) have been demonstrated to be good anaerobically digestible products. PLA is more of a challenge, since it requires specific digester conditions for complete

Applications

a Cleaner Environment anaerobic digestion. Other bio-based polymers, like PBS, still have to be tested.

However, for most bio-based plastic articles compounds of two or more of the abovementioned bio-based polymers will be used. Good anaerobic digestibility is required for each of those compounds.

The Pharmafilter disposables are designed with the latest generation of certified, 100% biodegradable plastics. These bioplastics are made from renewable resources like waste from corn, potato chips, or paper manufacturing. These bioplastics have much lower CO2 emissions during their life cycle. The quality of Pharmafilter’s biodegradable products is equal to that of the conventional plastic and the design surpasses traditional metal products both functionally and estetically.

BedPan Olla Consultation was sought with patients and nursing staff on the design of the Olla. Important criteria in design were hygiene and ergonomics. Robust material is used in manufacturing of the Olla which offers stability, but unlike the traditional bedpan it feels comfortable and warm to the skin. After patient use the Olla can be closed airtight and with the extended handle the nursing staff can deposit the Olla bedpan easily into the Tonto. In this case metal is replaced by a PHA based compound.

Shredder Tonto

PRIME MATERIAL

European Trade Fair and Forum for Composites, Technology and Applications

27 - 29 SEPTEMBER 2011 | STUTTGART | GERMANY Lightweight efficiency The potential for improving efficiency through the use of new materials determines the capabilities of major European industries.

COMPOSITES EUROPE, as the most intensive industrial trade fair, depicts the topics of raw materials, semi-finished goods and process engineering in a user-friendly manner.

>> >> >> ORGANISER

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The combination of innovation and production.

The integration of know-how and materials.

The platform for experts in world markets.

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Applications Urinal Botta The design approach of the Botta urinal was undertaken in the same way as the Olla. The Botta urinal opening in the neck is designed to be free of leaks and drips.

The bag in which the urine is collected only has to be changed once a day. The bag is designed to block unpleasant odours when in use. The urine in the Botta can be easily and hygienically accessed for removing samples. Both, the injection moulded part and the film are based on PHA compounds.

Other products will be developed in cooperation with the nursery and facility management staff of hospitals, like wash bowls, plates, cutlery, baskets for bread, all kinds of containers and many more possible applications.

Benefits An investment in the Pharmafilter system delivers many benefits: Working more efficiently and effectively in cleaner and safer circumstances; less cost associated with transport of solid waste; reduced waste charges; significant reduction of waste streams into public management and control and reduction of health risks. Pharmafilter provides a platform for further innovation in management of hospital waste streams, produces energy from biogas, produces clean biomass suitable for re-use in CHP or agriculture/horticulture; re-use of water as process water and provides the hospital with a system that eliminates contamination of the environment from medicines and pathogens.

Once the system is installed in the hospital, all kinds of departments with their specific waste streams can be connected to the infrastructure easily.

Urinal Botta

Energy and CO2 Pharmafilter reduces CO2 emissions. Some contributory factors include less dish washing, less use of elevators, less movements within the hospital, less road transportation and less incineration of waste. Organic materials, including bioplastic products are digested for more than 90% of their mass and converted into biogas. The biogas is used to heat the digester to 60°C and deliver power to the water purification plant. Digestion eliminates viruses and bacteria. The digestion process significantly reduces waste disposal and requires fewer trucks to transport the waste. All remaining waste can be recycled or turned into energy.

Clean water Pharmafilter significantly reduces pharmaceutical substances in the surface waters. Contamination of water by medicines is a subject of serious concern and receives more and more public attention.

Independent laboratory research has proven that Pharmafilter cleans water of medicines, germs, cytostatics, contrast liquids and endocrine substances. The purified water can be re-used as process water.

Partners Pharmafilter BV is working together with principal stakeholders. Together with the important and crucial support of the Government of the Netherlands and the European Union we can realize our goal: ‘A cleaner hospital, a cleaner environment.’

Our Partners: The hospital ‘Reinier De Graaf Gasthuis’ in Delft, the District Water Control Board ‘Het Hoogheemraadschap van Delfland’ and the Foundation for Applied Water Research ‘STOWA’ have approved the 2nd phase of the pilot with Pharmafilter. A full scale demonstration commenced in the summer of 2010 at the hospital Reinier De Graaf Gasthuis in Delft, Netherlands.

www.pharmafilter.nl

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The first commercial contract has been signed by the hospital ‘Zorgsaam’ in Terneuzen, the Netherlands.

Testing

Measure Biodegradability of Plastics More Accurately Background

By Yoshi Ohno Engineering Specialist Saida FDS Inc. Shizuoka-Ken, JAPAN

In this century, people are starting to try to establish an environmentallyfriendly society to balance human society and the global environment.

Packaging materials, especially disposable packages, are becoming one of the major reasons behind a negative impact on the global environment.

Shogo Uematsu former professor University of Shizuoka

Chemical engineers are trying to develop plastic materials which can be biodegraded under various conditions such as compost, soil, aqueous or anaerobic digestion under activated sludge condition.

However, the plastics should not simply ‘disintegrate’ into small and fine fragments (oxo-degradation) but should be ‘completely biodegradable’ to carbon dioxide and water under aerobic conditions, and to methane and carbon dioxide under controlled and captured anaerobic condition [1]

‘Biodegradability’ as an International Standard To avoid misuse or misunderstanding of the term ‘Biodegradability’, unified test procedures according to international standards have been established..

For example, when applying the test procedure in ISO14855-2:2007 [2], PLA is proven as a biodegradable plastic that is biodegraded by more than 90% after 45 days at 58°C under composting conditions (Fig.1). In this way PLA became one of the most recognized biodegradable plastics in the world.

ISO14855-2 and MODA apparatus In this ‘biodegradable’ testing field, ISO14855-1:2005 [3] (ASTM5338-11 [4], EN14046:2003 [5]) was one of the well understood procedures, namely the aerobic biodegradable test under compost condition, but the procedure had difficulty in reproducing over 70% biodegradation of cellulose in Japan.

To make the reason clear and to identify a solution, a national project started about 10 years ago to develop apparatus and a test procedure under the leadership of JBPA (Japan Bioplastic Association) and with the cooperation of AIST (National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology) plus several universities.

Fig1.Effect of repetitive experiments on aerobic biodegradation of PLA by MODA (ISO 14855-2) Addition of urea

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Because European matured composts have only a small volatile content, it can obtain sufficient microbial activity for biodegradation testing with relatively little water On the other hand, Asian matured composts, including Japanese, have a much higher volatile content and thus, microbial activation by water is over a relatively short time and soon the microbial activation is significantly reduced.

Re-addition of PLA

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As a result of various tests carried out, it was seen that microbial activity under matured compost conditions depends on the water content of the compost. It was discovered that it was very difficult to maintain an appropriate water content level for a long period.

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100

120

Adding sea sand or vermiculite to mature compost dilutes the volatile material content and keeps the water holding capacity at an appropriate level.

Testing

Test results became almost the same as the test results seen in European countries.

In addition, by designing the apparatus called MODA (Microbial Oxidative Degradation Analyzer) we could succeeded in reducing the amount of compost to 1/10 of the quantity of test material specified in ISO14855-1 by introducing a precise ‘Gravimetric Procedure’ to measure the amount of CO2 generated.

Based on the original MODA apparatus, Saida FDS developed the MODA-6 apparatus for which the company introduced an environmental chamber holding six reaction units in it keep temperature conditions constant and maintain the same appropriate water content.

Fig2. MODA-6 apparatus

This MODA apparatus was originally designed to carry out testing under compost conditions, but is also considered applicable to soil condition, Saida have started tests using the MODA apparatus for biodegradability testing under soil conditions, that is standardized as ISO17556.

To make test result more reliable and accurate Biodegradability testing usually needs to take place over a period longer than two months but if test results are at not at a satisfactory level, all the efforts spent for the time became to be useless.

In addition to ISO standards and apparatus, SAIDA came to understand the importance of preparation and adjustment of the compost, because biodegradation is done by microbial life forms. Depending on how well preparation and adjustment of compost are done has a substantial impact on the results of testing.

Insufficiently matured compost easily generates ammonia because it has a high volatile content. On the contrary, over-matured compost in which most of microbials are dormant has a low level of activation and sometimes causes the situation that the reference material cellulose cannot reach at 70% of biodegradation even though it takes 45 days for testing.

In dry conditions of composting the water content is too low, and causes same result as over-matured compost. And if the water contents in compost is too high, it becomes an anaerobic fermentation and the test falls into the area of invalid result.

As explained above, a preincubation process for compost is very important to obtain appropriate test results, and is well understood. This preincubation process may differ from compost to compost in each country. To identify the best preincubation process, trying various alternatives using cellolose as a reference material helps a lot.

Recently Saida established a laboratory and started biodegradation research and testing by having the support of Dr.Uematsu, former professor of University of Shizuoka. In addition to aerobic testing, Saida developed an apparatus called MODA-B to carry out testing under anaerobic conditions (standardization is under way as ISO/DIS13975).

www.saidagroup.jp

[1] Narayan, R: Misleading Claims and Misuse of Standards continue, ‘bioplastics MAGAZINE, issue 02/2010, page 38.

[2] ISO14855-2:2007 Determination of the ultimate aerobic biodegradability of plastic materials under controlled composting conditions -- Method by analysis of evolved carbon dioxide -- Part 2: Gravimetric measurement of carbon dioxide evolved in a laboratory-scale test [3] ISO14855-1:2005 Determination of the ultimate aerobic biodegradability of plastic materials under controlled composting conditions -- Method by analysis of evolved carbon dioxide -- Part 1: General method [4] ASTM5338-11 Test Method for Determining Aerobic Biodegradation of Plastic Materials Under Controlled Composting Conditions. Incorporating Thermophilic Temperatures [5] EN14046:2003 Packaging. Evaluation of the ultimate aerobic biodegradability and disintegration of packaging materials under controlled composting conditions.

Method by analysis of released carbon dioxide

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Applications News

Green Corrosion Inhibitor Film

Biodegradable Key Fob and Trolley Token To help make even the weekly shopping as eco-friendly as possible, Publisearch srl has created a line of key fobs with built-in trolley tokens, all 100% biodegradable.

Publisearch srl is the leading Italian provider of promotional items made from innovative materials. They have an internal business unit called Promogreen which is dedicated to the design and manufacture of items made from a very special bioplastic called APINAT®. This unique bioplastic is also produced by an Italian company, API Spa, who are world leaders in the production of thermoplastic compounds.

Apinat enables manufacturers and designers to create products with the same technical qualities and appearance as traditional plastics but which also play their part in safeguarding the environment. Apinat is the trade name of an innovative family of recyclable bioplastics which are biodegradable in an aerobic conditions in line with EN 13432, EN 14995 and ASTM D6400 standards.

The material has the same characteristics of traditional thermoplastic elastomers and does not degrade in water or in air.

The fun egg-shaped key fobs are available in a range of lively, non-toxic colours and the trolley token held inside is the same shape and size as a 1 Euro coin. MT

Eco-Corr® is a biobased and biodegradable film utilizing Cortec’s patented VpCI® technology. “It is the first 100 % biodegradable VCI (Volatile Corrosion Inhibitor) film in the world, initiating a new era for 21st century packaging!” says a press release by Cortec. This highly efficient product provides much better tensile strength, tear resistance and ultimate elongation than low density polyethylene (LDPE) films. It is certified to meet EN 13432 (Europe) and ASTM D6400 (USA), as well as heat and water stable and does not disintegrate or break apart while in use.

Eco-Corr provides contact, barrier and Vapor phase Corrosion Inhibitor (VpCI) protection for up to two years.

It provides multimetal corrosion inhibitor protection and is improved replacement for non-degradable and nitrite - based VCI films. Once exposed to soil or compost conditions, this product will disintegrate rapidly and biodegrade completely to CO2, water and biomass within weeks, without contaminating the soil. It is nitrite and amine free.

Metal parts packaged in Eco-Corr receive continuous protection against salt, excessive humidity, condensation, moisture, aggressive industrial atmosphere and dissimilar metal corrosion. The Vapor phase Corrosion Inhibitors vaporize and then condense on all metal surfaces in the enclosed package. VpCI reaches every area of a package, protecting exposed parts as well as hard to reach interior surfaces against micro-corrosion.

This green alternative offers complete protection during storage as well as domestic and overseas shipments.

Once put to use, Eco-Corr will remain effective with regard to mechanical strength until the film is placed in contact with material containing microorganisms, such as certain types of waste, soil, and compost. Eco-Corr meets NACE TM0208-2008 and German TL-8135-002 standards for corrosion protection. MT www.cortecvci.com

www.apinatbio.com www.publisearch.it

High tech equipment packaged in EcoCorr for export shipments.

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Applications News

Award Winning Carpet

Bio-Based Ovenable Pan Liners DSM’s Arnitel® Eco, a high performance thermoplastic copolyester (TPC) up to 50% derived from renewable resources (rapeseed oil), is creating higher value with lower environmental impact in the M&Q Packaging Corporation PanSaver ECO® hightemperature ovenable pan liners.

PanSaver pan liners are used in food preparation, cooking and holding, to prevent food from ‘baking-on’ and ‘burning-on’ to the pot or pan surface. PanSaver can also be used for cold storage.

According to Michael Schmal, President at M&Q Packaging Corporation, PanSaver ECO is a true ECO+ bio-based alternative to conventional panliners: “Our current range of conventional pan liners already has a number of key benefits, the new PanSaver ECO panliners are extremely durable and environmentally friendly, able to withstand temperatures up to 204°C (400F). These liners not only help to improve food quality and yield, they also prevent food from baking or burning to the pot or pan, thus saving cooking and clean-up time, and leaving no food residue or waste.”

For the production of PanSaver ECO, M&Q Packaging Corporation selected Arnitel Eco, a partly bio-based, high performance thermoplastic copolyester (TPC) from DSM. Arnitel Eco is the latest addition to the Arnitel family. Arnitel copolyester elastomers combine the strength and processing characteristics of engineering plastics with the performance of thermoset elastomers.

DuPont Sorona®, a renewably sourced environmentally sustainable polymer (PTT Polytrimethylenterephthalate), is now available for the commercial segment of the floor covering market. This innovative product named SmartStrand® Contract was recently launched by Mohawk at the NeoCon’11 (North America’s largest design exposition and conference for commercial interiors, June 13-15, Chicago) and won a Gold Award in the Carpet Fiber Category of the Best of NeoCon product competition. A game changer for the commercial carpet industry, SmartStrand Contract offers superior performance, durability and style, permanent stain protection, and color flexibility.

DuPont Sorona is the brand name for triexta, a new fiber class designated by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) as having characteristics that clearly distinguish it from other fibers.

First introduced for residential use in 2005, this next generation triexta fiber has been specially engineered for the unique needs of commercial spaces. Sorona contains 37% renewably sourced ingredients by weight. DuPont and Mohawk have demonstrated the recyclability of carpets made with triexta fibers. Recycled materials can either be turned back into new carpet products or utilized in other products. MT www.sorona.dupont.com www.mohawkflooring.com

First introduced in 2010, Arnitel Eco is designed to last a long lifetime under extreme conditions, making it highly suited for food related applications, as well as for use in automotive interior and exterior, applications in sports and leisure, furniture, consumer electronics and alternative energy.

Paul Habets, Global Segment Manager for DSM Engineering Plastics, says: “There is a clear customer need for bio-based engineering plastics which combine performance with a reduced carbon footprint. Life Cycle Assessment calculations of Arnitel Eco show a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, cradle-to-gate, of up to 50% versus oil based thermoplastic copolyester elastomers.”

Mr. Habets concludes: “In addition to its lower carbon footprint, Arnitel Eco adds value thanks to its unique performance.” MT www.dsm.com.

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Applications News

Ketchup in Biobased PET H.J. Heinz Company, headquartered in Pittsburg; Pennsylvania, USA, one of the world’s leading marketers and producers of ketchup and much more recently announced a strategic partnership (an industry-first) with the Coca-Cola Company that enables Heinz to produce its ketchup bottles using Coca-Cola’s breakthrough PlantBottle™ packaging. The PET plastic bottles are made partially from plants (30% by wt. monoethyleneglykol made using sugarcane ethanol from Brazil).

Toyota launched the ‘Prius _‘ with interior components made of Sorona EP in Japan in May 2011.

PTT for Automotive Air Outlet Toyota’s new hybrid vehicle, ‘Prius _’, features automotive interior parts made of DuPont™ Sorona® EP polymer, a high-performance, partly renewably sourced thermoplastic resin (PTT Polytrimethylenterephthalate), contributing to the advanced interior design while also reducing the environmental footprint.

Developed in close collaboration with DuPont Kabushiki Kaisha, Toyota Motor Corporation, Kojima Press Industry Co., Ltd. and Howa Plastics Co., Ltd., the parts are used on the instrument-panel airconditioning system outlet.

Sorona EP was selected for this precisely engineered, functional component for its heat resistance and durability required to control the intensity and direction of the air blowing out of the outlet.

The PTT polymer contains between 20 and 37% by wt. renewably sourced material. The biobased monomer component is DuPont Tate & Lyle Susterra™ 1,3 propanediol (bio-PDO) as a key intermediate, derived from plant sugar (corn). The new material exhibits performance and molding characteristics similar to petroleum-based, highperformance PBT (polybutylene terephthalate).

Sorona EP thermoplastic polymer production reduces both carbon dioxide emissions and the use of petrochemicals used to produce the PBT that is typically used for conventional auto interior parts. The material also offers lower warpage, improved surface appearance and good dimensional stability, making it very attractive in a range of uses for automotive parts and components, electrical and electronics systems as well as industrial and consumer products. MT www.dupont.com

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PlantBottle packaging looks, feels and functions just like traditional PET plastic, and remains fully recyclable. “This partnership is a great example of how businesses are working together to advance smart technologies that make a difference to our consumers and the planet we all share,” said Muhtar Kent, Chairman and CEO of The Coca-Cola Company.

Heinz’s adoption of the PlantBottle technology will be the biggest change to its iconic ketchup bottles since they first introduced plastic in 1983.

“The partnership of Coca-Cola and Heinz is a model of collaboration in the food and beverage industry that will make a sustainable difference for the planet,” said Heinz Chairman, President and CEO William R. Johnson. “Heinz Ketchup is going to convert to PlantBottle globally, beginning (...) this summer.”

Heinz will launch PlantBottle in all 20 oz ketchup bottles in June. Packaging will be identified by a special logo and onpack messages. Switching to PlantBottle is another important step in Heinz’s global sustainability initiative to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, solid waste, water consumption and energy usage at least 20% by 2015.

Heinz will introduce 120 million partly biobased PET bottle packages in 2011 and The Coca-Cola Company will use more than 5 billion during the same time. Together, the companies will significantly reduce potential carbon emissions while adding more renewable materials to the recycling stream.

In time, plastic Heinz Ketchup bottles globally will be made from PlantBottle packaging and by 2020, Coca-Cola’s goal is to transition all of its plastic packaging to PlantBottle packaging. MT www.heinz.com

Materials

Maxi-Use Agro-Food Processing Waste for Truly Sustainable Bioplastics

By Elodie Bugnicourt Oonagh Mc Nerney InnovaciĂł i Recerca Industrial i Sostenible (IRIS) Castelldefels, Spain Andrea Lazzeri Center for Materials Engineering University of Pisa Pisa, Italy

Fig 2: Maxi-use of foodstuff wastes from the olive oil industry to produce PHA bioplactics for packaging (Picture courtesy IRIS)

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B

ioplastics are largely derived from feedstock such as crops and vegetable oils. If such pure feedstock competes with food sources, it reduces to some extent the true sustainability of the resulting bioplastics. Polylactic acid (PLA), for example, is the most widely used bioplastic and, in spite of progress in both research and industrial ďŹ elds, it is still typically made by the polymerisation of lactic acid produced by microbial fermentation of sugars from corn, wheat, beet, etc., which for the most part are not derived from waste. Moreover, in terms of competing with many standard plastics, the properties of PLA are not sufďŹ cient for certain applications.

There is undoubtedly a gap in the market for bioplastics that possess better barrier, thermo-mechanical properties and/or processability and that are obtained through a holistic sustainable approach with feedstock that do not compete with our food supplies. To this end, the bioplastics industry needs to tap into new raw material sources from agro-food residues that are in abundant supply, are cost-effective, and indeed to date pose waste management and environmental challenges.

Recent research has been concentrating on an integrated environmental approach to bioplastic production known as Maxiuse, whereby each stage, from sourcing to disposal, is considered in a complementary way to establish cost effective, sustainable solutions. The methodology is characterised by reuse along every stage of the process, whereby a useful application for each of the compounds is investigated with a view to maximising resources to the full, thereby bringing positive impacts in terms of sustainability

and profitability along the value chain. Wastes from agro-food processing can be used as raw material inputs for plastics in the packaging field, among other applications. The ability to recycle or compost the material at the end-of-life helps to redress the problem of growing and persistent volumes of land and marine waste, as well as reducing dependence on conventional fossil fuel-based resources.

This Maxi-use approach has been the basis for the ideation of a project called WHEYLAYER [1]. that commenced in November 2008 and whereby whey (fig 1), a by-product from the cheese industry, is valorised into a value-added bioplastic for food packaging. Indeed, coatings obtained from whey proteins can be applied onto standard carrier films to obtain multilayer films with excellent barrier properties. The resulting oxygen barrier properties are several orders of magnitude greater than that of polyethylene (PE). Whey-based coatings have reached oxygen transmission rates (OTR, Q100) as low as ranges of 1 cm³/m² d bar and water vapour transmission rates (WVTR, Q100) at ranges of 2 g/m² d (Q100 refers to the barrier properties normalised to a layer of 100 μm thickness), thus making them good candidates to substitute synthetic barrier films such as ethyl vinyl alcohol copolymer (EVOH) [2].

Another key success factor is the degradability for whey-based coatings using selected enzymes and

Fig 1: Whey (Picture courtesy IRIS)

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Materials [1] WHEYLAYER “Whey proteincoated plastic films to replace expensive polymers and increase recyclability” project funded by European commission 7th framework programme under the Grant agreement no.: 218340-2. www. wheylayer.eu [2] “WHEYLAYER: the barrier coating of the future”, E. Bugnicourt, M. Schmid, O. Mc Nerney, F. Wild, Coating International, October 2010 [3] Cinelli, P. and A. Lazzeri. Le proteine nel settore degli imballaggi Wheylayer.

Bio-Imballaggio derivato dal siero del latte in Biopolpack. 2010. Parma, Italy [4] Oli-PHA “A novel and efficient method for the production of polyhydroxyalkanoate polymer-based packaging from olive oil wastewater” proposal no.: 280604-2 successfully evaluated by European commission 7th framework NMP programme and awaiting negotiation

within timeframes and at temperatures that are compatible with plastic recycling operations [3]. This results in the possibility of separating and independently recycling the other plastic layers in multilayer films, which are typically not recyclable, or even in the possibility of obtaining fully compostable materials if a biodegradable carrier film such as a PLA is used. The new WHEYLAYER bioplastic, which is presently being tested for food contact applications and its process is being scaled up to reach industrial production speeds, is getting closer to commercialisation and was recently presented at interpack 2011.

More recently, an even more integrated approach was taken whereby the valorisation of all residuals from a given feedstock lead to polymers, biogas, fillers and other extracted natural compounds, and even clean water, all through environmentally friendly processes (figure 2). Biorefining is an attractive alternative to conventional fossil resource refineries, whereby microorganisms of different types can be used to convert biomass into energy or raw materials. The Oli-PHA project [4], which is still in its planning stages, aims to use photosynthetic microorganisms such as microalgae to produce polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) using wastewater generated during the olive oil milling process as a culture media. Indeed, over 250 different bacteria have been reported to accumulate PHA as carbon and energy storage materials. Among biodegradable bio-sourced plastics, PHA is one of the most promising since it maintains thermo-mechanical and barrier properties in the range of conventional plastics and is a good candidate to replace such conventional plastics as polyethylene terephthalate (PET). However, a major limitation to the wide uptake of PHA continues to be its high cost, mainly due to the substrates required for bacterial fermentation batch reactors.

For PHA production to be economically viable, the production input costs need to be reduced; this is a key objective of the Oli-PHA project. By using a widely available feedstock based on residues, not only will this lower the cost of PHA production, it will also provide the agro-food industry with a solution for the sustainable management of highly polluting wastes. The work on yield improvement and valorisation of all compounds will also contribute to even greater cost effectiveness.

All in all, Maxi-use represents a promising way forward for maximising the potential of bioplastics and their uptake in a wide range of applications. www.iris.cat

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Materials

by Xiuzhi Susan Sun University Distinguished Professor Kansas State University

Advanced Research in Bionanocomposites

T

he demand for biobased materials is driven by concerns for the environment and the need for sustainable development. Carbon backbones from plant-derived molecules have considerable potential as basic inputs for many materials currently produced from petroleum-based feedstocks with their associated environmental problems.

The tremendous potential of plant-biobased materials has inspired scientists globally searching high performance and economic viable bobased materials.

Bionanocomposites is a new ‘word’ that needs to be added to the dictionary, which is defied as the substance containing both biopolymer and nano materials (see graph). Biopolymer has to be the polymer derived from plant based feedstock, such as sugar-, lipid-, and or protein-based molecules, either through fermentation or chemical reaction. Nano materials can be naturally occurred or synthesized, and or can be metal nano crystal or biobased nanomaterials with all type of shapes (i.e., particle, wire, and sheet). The motivation of developing bionanocomposites is to improve biopolymer functional performances including one or more of those properties, such as mechanical strength, resilience, flexibility, lighter weight, color, fire-proof, durability, thermal stability, and electrical properties, etc.

Two main approaches to develop bionanocomposites: thermal melt compounding method that a small amount of nano materials are dispersed in the biopolymer matrix during thermal processing (i.e., extrusion and molding); another way

is to graft nano materials onto biopolymer chains through in situ biopolymer synthesis.

In the last decade, numerous studies have been conducted on biopolymers (i.e., polylactic acid (PLA)) with various nanoparticles, including clays, carbon based nanofillers, SiO2, metal oxides, polysaccharide nanoparticles, etc., and PLA nanocomposites with improved mechanical properties, heat distortion temperature, glass transition temperature (Tg), thermal stability, and gas barrier properties have been developed.

PLA has attracted extensive attention from both academia and industry because of its biodegradability, renewability, and properties comparable to many petroleum-derived polymers.

An increasing amount of work is being published on PLA. PLA nanocomposites have been a hot research topic in the last decade due to their capability of enhancing the thermal, mechanical, and processing characteristics of pristine PLA. Research is still needed to further understand the complex structure-property relationships. Homogeneous dispersion of nanoparticles and strong interfacial interaction between PLA and nanoparticles are the two key issues in producing nanocomposites with desired properties. In addition, the lack of cost-effective methods to control the dispersion of nanoparticles in host PLA and interfacial bonding remains the greatest stumbling block to large-scale production and commercialization of PLA nanocomposites. www.ksu.edu/cbpd

In situ polymerization Nanomaterials

Biomonomer

Bionanocomposites

Thermal melt compounding

Nanomaterials

Biomonomer

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End-of-Life

The Role of Standards for Biodegradable Plastics by Francesco Degli Innocenti Novamont S.p.A. Novara, Italy Board member European Bioplastics

S

tandardisation plays a crucial role for bioplastics. Biodegradability, bio-based content, carbon-footprint etc. cannot be noted directly by consumers. However, the commercial success of these products rests precisely on claims of this kind. In order to guarantee market transparency, normative instruments are needed to link declarations, which are used as advertising messages, and the actual characteristics and benefits of the products. Standards are necessary to consumers, companies competing on the market, as well as public authorities. Standardisation is not science. In some debates these two sectors become dangerously confused. Science aims to find, describe, and correlate phenomena, independent of the time scale and their actual importance to daily life. Standardisation seeks to instil order and find technical solutions to specific practical problems with a social, political and scientific consensus. The question of biodegradability is complex and can give rise to significant debates. Key point is time scale. At academic level even traditional ‘non-biodegradable’ plastics can be shown to biodegrade, over a very long period of time. However, such biodegradation rates are clearly unsuited to the needs of society. Biodegradable materials are an attempt to find solutions to a problem of our society: waste. Waste is produced at a very high rate and therefore the disposal rate must be comparable, in order to avoid accumulation. Incineration is widely adopted precisely because it is a fast process. There would be no interest in a hypothetical ‘slow combustion’ incinerator because waste does not wait, and quickly builds up. The same principle applies to biodegradation, which must be fast in order to be useful.

Harmonised Standard EN 13432 The origin and regulatory framework

All photos: Novamont

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Only packaging materials that meet the so-called ‘essential requirements’ specified under the European Directive on Packaging and Packaging Waste (94/62/ EC) can be placed on the market in Europe. The verification of conformity to such requirements is entrusted to the application of the harmonised European standards prepared by the European Committee for Standardisation (CEN), following the principles of the so-called ‘new approach’ [1]. European lawmakers specified their intentions regarding organic recycling (“the aerobic (composting) or anaerobic (biomethanization) treatment, under controlled conditions and using micro-organisms, of the biodegradable parts of packaging waste, which produces stabilized organic residues and methane. Landfill shall not be considered a form of organic recycling.”) albeit in a somewhat convoluted manner, in Annex II to the Directive, when they provide the definitions of essential requirements. CEN was appointed to draw up “the standard intended to give presumption of conformity with essential requirements for packaging recoverable in the form of composting or biodegradation” in line with ‘Annex II § 3, (c) Packaging recoverable in the form of composting and (d) Biodegradable packaging’ of the Directive. The outcome was standard EN 13432 ‘Requirements for packaging recoverable through composting and biodegradation - Test scheme and evaluation criteria for the final acceptance of packaging’. It is interesting to remark that composting, biodegradation and organic recycling are used synonymously when applied to packaging.

End-of-Life

Requirements

Use

‘Biodegradable-compostable’ packaging must have the following characteristics:

Standard EN 13432 has been fully applied in Europe also in the certification sector. It recently became of great importance in Italy with the entry into force of the ban on the sale of non-biodegradable carrier bags on 1 January 2011.

Indeed, the law establishes the ban on bags that are not biodegradable according to criteria established by Community laws and technical rules approved at a Community level.

The term ‘biodegradable’ has led to a number of debates owing to the clear commercial implications arising out of the interpretation of this term. It is true that from an academic perspective ‘biodegradability’ is a different concept from ‘compostability’ and ‘organic recycling’ (biodegradability is necessary but not sufficient in itself for compostability).

However, the legal reference in Europe for packaging (and carrier bags are packaging) must be the Directive that in fact considers biodegradability as the necessary characteristic for the biological recovery of packaging (organic recycling), as noted above.

Biodegradability, namely microbial conversion into CO2.

Test method: ISO 14855. Minimum level: 90%. Duration: less than 6 months. This high CO2 conversion level must not be taken as an indication that organic recycling is a sort of ‘cold incineration’ which therefore does not contribute to the formation of compost. Under real conditions the process would also produce substantially more biomass (compost). Another question: why 90% rather than 100%?

Does this leave a residue of the remaining 10%? The answer is that experimental factors and the formation of biomass make it hard to reach 100% accurately; this is why the limit of acceptability was established at 90% rather than 100%.

Disintegratability, namely fragmentation and invisibility in the final compost. Test method: EN 14045/ ISO 16929.

Samples of test materials are composted together with organic waste for 3 months. The mass of test material residue larger than 2 mm must be less than 10% of the initial mass.

Levels of heavy metals below pre-defined maximum limits and absence of negative effects on composting process and compost quality. Test method: a modified OECD 208 and other analytical tests.

Each of these points is necessary for compostability, but individually they are not sufficient.

Limits ‘Home composting’ namely the treatment of grass cuttings and material from the pruning of plants, is out of the scope. Home composting takes place at low temperatures and may not always operate under optimal conditions. The characteristics defined by Standard EN 13432 do not ensure that packaging added to a home composter would compost satisfactorily and in line with the user’s expectations.

It is therefore through the application of harmonised European standard EN 13432, in light of the definitions of the Packaging Directive, that we can differentiate between biodegradable packaging (which can therefore be recovered by means of organic recycling) and non-biodegradable packaging.

It should be noted that harmonised standards (such as EN 13432) are voluntary. However, companies that place packaging on the market which uses harmonised standards already enjoy presumed conformity. If the manufacturer chooses not to follow a harmonised standard, he has the obligation to prove that his products are in conformity with essential requirements by the use of other means of his own choice (other technical specifications). Alternatives to the EN 13432 are described in the next section, even if, as noted, they do not automatically grant the presumption of conformity.

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End-of-Life Other Standards ISO 17088 - Specifications for Compostable Plastics ISO has drawn up a standard which specifies the procedures and requirements for identifying and marking plastics and plastic products suitable for recovery by aerobic composting. In a similar way to EN 13432, it deals with four aspects: a) biodegradation; b) disintegration during composting; c) negative effects on composting; d) negative effects on the resulting compost quality, including the presence of metals and other compounds subject to restrictions or dangers. It is important to note that the standard makes explicit reference to the European Packaging Directive in the event of application in Europe: “The labelling will, in addition, have to conform to all international, regional, national or local regulations (e.g. European Directive 94/62/EC)”.

ASTM D6400 - Standard Specification for Compostable Plastics ASTM D 6400 produced by ASTM International was the first standard to determine whether plastics can be composted satisfactorily and biodegrade at a speed comparable to known compostable materials. ASTM D6400 is similar to EN 13432 but: (1) the limit of biodegradation which is otherwise 90% is reduced to 60% for homopolymers and copolymers with random distribution of monomers (2) test duration, which is set at 180 days, is extended to 365 days if the test is conducted with radioactive material in order to measure the evolution of radioactive CO2.

EN 14995 Plastic materials - Assessment of compostability - Test and specification system It is complementary to EN 13432. Indeed, EN 13432 specifies the characteristics of packaging that can be recycled through organic recovery and therefore excludes compostable plastic materials not used as packaging (e.g. compostable cutlery, compostable bags for waste collection). EN 14995 filled this gap. From a technical perspective EN 14995 is equivalent to EN 13432.

Conclusuons The first plastics to be sold in Italy under the term ‘biodegradable’, at the end of the 1980s, were made from polyethylene to which small amounts of biodegradable substances (ca. 5% starch) or ‘pro-oxidants’ had been added. These products were most widespread during the period in which a 100 lira tax was levied on carrier bags made from non-biodegradable plastic (minimum biodegradation: 90%). To avoid the tax, many plastic bag producers switched to ‘biodegradable’ plastics. The lack of standardised definitions and measuring methods gave rise to a situation of anarchy. The market for these biodegradable plastic bags immediately dried up when, having clarified the real nature of the materials on sale, the tax was extended to all plastic bags, thereby bringing an end to an unsuccessful project. In this case the government had anticipated a future period of technical and scientific progress and standardisation. Nowadays the situation is different. We now have a clear legal framework, standard test methods and criteria for the unambiguous definition of biodegradability and compostability.

The complete, and above all enduring, commercial development of new applications, such as biodegradable plastics, depends on guaranteed levels of quality and transparency. Standardisation activities are therefore of fundamental importance in the field of technological innovation.

This is the short version of a much more comprehensive article, which can be downloaded from www.bioplasticsmagazine.com/201104

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www.novamont.com [1] http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/policies/single-market-goods/files/blue-guide/ guidepublic_en.pdf

Polylactic Acid Uhde Inventa-Fischer has expanded its product portfolio to include the innovative stateof-the-art PLAneo ÂŽ process. The feedstock for our PLA process is lactic acid, which can be produced from local agricultural products containing starch or sugar.

The application range of PLA is similar to that of polymers based on fossil resources as its physical properties can be tailored to meet packaging, textile and other requirements.

Think. Invest. Earn.

Uhde Inventa-Fischer GmbH Holzhauser Strasse 157â&#x20AC;&#x201C;159 13509 Berlin Germany Tel. +49 30 43 567 5 Fax +49 30 43 567 699 Uhde Inventa-Fischer AG Via Innovativa 31 7013 Domat/Ems Switzerland Tel. +41 81 632 63 11 Fax +41 81 632 74 03 NBSLFUJOH!VIEF JOWFOUB Ă? TDIFS DPN XXX VIEF JOWFOUB Ă? TDIFS DPN

Uhde Inventa-Fischer

End-of-Life UW-Platteville portable 4-stage digester

More Responsible

By Debra Darby Director of Marketing Communications Mirel Bioplastics by Telles Lowell, Massachusetts, USA

T

oday there is a cultural change that encourages consumers to minimize the use of plastics made from non-renewable resources like fossil fuels and to demand packaging that does not persist in the environment. Mirel bioplastics can help to reduce the amount of packaging waste sent to landfills and support alternative disposal sys¬tems including composting and anaerobic digestion.

Managing the consumer end of the compost feedstock stream has its challenges because of the potential wide range of products going into the composition, but also because of how the local collection and processing infrastructure is set up to manage the mix of post-consumer materials.

Working Toward Zero Waste and Energy Development Telles, a joint venture of Metabolix, Inc. and Archer Daniels Midland Company, is engaged in anaerobic digestion projects to evaluate the end-of-life management of Mirel (PHA) in packaging, food containment and agriculture uses, and to study how Mirel bioplastics mixed with these other materials aids in the conversion process of waste into biogas/energy.

Earlier in 2010, the State of Wisconsin Office of Energy Independence (OEI) and UL Environment launched a pilot project to demonstrate the feasibility of manures, bioplastics and food waste in anaerobic digestion technology and to study the bio-energy contributions of bioplastics. The consortium involved a collaboration of stakeholders: government and agencies, bioplastics manufacturers, retailers and consumer groups with subtly differing interests. The project was designed to be modular and expandable across the state’s university system.

Mirel has been shown to be anaerobically biodegradable. Last year Organic Waste Systems (OWS), Belgium, an independent laboratory, conducted a lab analysis to test Mirel materials according to the ASTM D5511 standard test method for determining anaerobic biodegradation of plastic materials under high-solids anaerobic digestion conditions. These test results at thermophilic temperature showed that Mirel bioplastics reached 100% biodegradation relative to cellulose control at the end of a 15day test and generated more than 700 m³ of biogas per ton of material. Mirel materials produced five to six times more biogas than typical biowaste on weight basis, including food waste and municipal organic waste. Typically out of one ton of biowaste, about 120 m3 of biogas can be produced. Tests at mesophilic temperature were continued to 42 days and showed that Mirel materials reached 78-99% absolute biodegradation.

No Mirel was found in the extraction test of the digestate, which indicated the rest

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bioplastics MAGAZINE [04/11] Vol. 6

End-of-Life

End-of-Life Options

100% 90%

Biodegradation %

80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10%

of the Mirel materials had been converted to cell biomass. These findings suggest that even under mesophilic conditions Mirel materials are biodegradable.

0% 0

With Mirel there are a multitude of more responsible end-of-life options. Mirel is 100% biodegraded in a 15 day test (according to ASTM D5511 standard test method for anaerobic biodegradation), meets ASTM D7081 (standard for biodegradation in the marine environment), and is Vinçotte certified OK Compost Home and OK Compostable.

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

XS-7/3 Ther M2100 Avg XS-7/3 Ther F5003 Avg

XS-7/3 Ther M4100 Avg

Mirel: Evolution of Biodegradation Percentage at ASTM D5511, 52±2°C

110% 100% 90%

Biodegradation %

The project was funded by the State of Wisconsin OEI and UL Environment. Early test results are indicating success of Mirel’s anaerobic biodegradability to generate biogas.

Professor Zauche will be presenting the results from this pilot study at the BioCycle Conference in October 2011 in Madison, Wisconsin.

2

XS-7/3 Ther Cellulose Avg XS-7/3 Ther P1003 Avg

This test concluded that Mirel can be used to generate renewable energy through anaerobic digestion. Telles provided the OWS test data to the Wisconsin project to validate against their testing the inherent anaerobic biodegradability of Mirel.

Over the last year, the University of Wisconsin – Platteville (UWP) research team led by Professor Tim Zauche and Dave Hitchins has studied the anaerobic digestion of bioplastics both at bench top scale and in a 750 Liter (200 gal) pilot scale portable digester unit. Their study evaluated mixed waste streams of dairy manure along with a variety of bioplastics and measured biogas productivity.

1

-10%

80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%

0

7

14

21

28

35

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-10% XS-7/5 Cellulosw Avg XS-7/5 M2100 Avg

XS-7/5 M4100 Avg XS-7/5 P1003 Avg

XS-7/5 F5003 Avg

Mirel: Evolution of Biodegradation Percentage at modified ASTM D5511, 37±2°C

www.mirelplastic.com

bioplastics MAGAZINE [04/11] Vol. 6

41

Personality

ta Isao Inoma

bM: Dear Inomata-san, when were you born?

II: I was born in a little town 150 km north from Tokyo, Japan, in November 1944.

bM: Where do you live today and how long have you lived there?

II: I have lived in Tokyo since 1991.

bM: What is your educational background?

II: I received a master’s degree in Industrial Chemistry from Tokyo University. Japan in 1969

bM: What is your professional function today?

II: I have been the Adviser of Japan Bioplastics since 2006.

bM: How did you ‘come to’ bioplastics?

II: I started the business development work of PLA film and sheet in Mitsubishi Plastics Ltd, in 1999, and did a variety of PLA product development projects. From that time I was also involved in the activities of JBPA. In 2006 I joined the Japan Bioplastics Association as an adviser and since then I have been working in Bioplastics.

bM: What do you consider more important: ‘biobased’ or ‘biodegradable’?

II: Both are important, but especially in Japan ‘biobased’ is more important to create the industrial infrastructure of the business which is the most important issue for us at present.

The big concern of the market regarding the renewable aspect and the low carbon footprint to prevent climate change will contribute much.

bM: What has been your biggest achievement (in terms of bioplastics) so far?

II: I am the main founder of the product certification system for biobased plastics products in Japan, known as the ‘BiomassPla Certification System’ established in 2006

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bioplastics MAGAZINE [04/11] Vol. 6

by JBPA, and since then I have managed and improved the system to apply to many product categories which contribute to the market development of the bioplastics and their awareness by consumers.

bM: What are your biggest challenges for the future?

II: The short term challenge is how to create economy of scale for bioplastics. I want to make a major effort to establish the most suitable system for that with the support from not only government but industry.

bM: What is your family status?

II: I am happily married to my wife Yuko and have two daughters and one son. Our two daughters are living just near my house and with our three grandchildren they frequently come to see us, which is delightful for my wife and me. I also have a little dog called Harry.

bM: What is your favorite movie?

II: I constantly go to see movies with my wife, who decides what we shall watch. A recent favorite movie was ‘Letters to Juliet’ with Amanda Seyfield and Vanessa Redgrave.

bM: What is your favorite book?

II: Recently I have been reading light detective novels about the Edo Era. My favorite novelist is Yasuhide Saeki.

bM: What is your favorite (or your next) vacation location?

II: My favorite location is Europe because of my 5 years stay in Germany with my family. My next vacation, I hope, is to visit Santiago de Compostela.

bM: What do you eat for breakfast on a Sunday?

II: Usually traditional Japanese style, rice, fish, miso soup and seaweed, afterwards I take fresh juice and coffee.

bM: What is your ‘slogan’?

II: Never give up and look forward.

bM: Thank you very much.

An introduction to Ecomann bioresin: s EN13432/ASTM6400 compliant s Safe for food contact s Home compostable

s Fully biobased s Heat resistant to over 100Ë&#x161; C s Shelf-stable

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s Injection Moulding s Blow Moulding s Monomers

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CO2

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DISTRIBUTOR: EUROPE A&O Filmpac Ltd 7 Osier Way, Olney, Bucks MK46 5FP TEL s Fax: 01234 713221 www.bioresins.eu

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Opinion

Picture [M]: bioplastics MAGAZINE

Is All ‘Non-Bio‘ Plastic Bad? Bioplastics are just plastics with special features

Plastic is based on natural resources Many journals and magazines, even newspapers, are full of words starting with ‘bio’, such as bio-fuel, bio-plastics, bio-cosmetics and so on. This leads to the question: Is all ‘bio‘ a universal solution for all of the problems surrounding climate change, famine in the world, and ‘using food as a weapon’? Or why are we are all horrified when we hear the words ‘plastics made from fossils raw materials’, ‘crude oil, natural gas or coal’. And must we all be delighted with bioplastics made from (cultivated, man-made) biomass, as suggested by one Italian manufacturer in a huge advertising campaign showing a horrified looking lady asking “Still using plastic?”

The engineers must choose the optimum material

By Igor Čatić retired Professor of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Naval Architecture of the University of Zagreb, Croatia

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Why do I demand that my students attend lectures? Spoken words can’t be fully replaced by written text and I have an example for this: In the first lecture on ‘Materials’, which I visited as a freshman back in 1954, I learned one thing for life: “The engineers must choose the optimum material for a given purpose (not necessarily the best or most expensive)”. Today, based on my experience I would like to add: “The optimum choice means taking into account technical, economic and social goals, even spiritual ones”. But this choice should not be influenced by marketing, particularly by some kind of eco-marketing with questionable goals. In my opinion agricultural (cultivated by man) products are not natural ones. I distinguish between ‘nature’ and ‘culture’. Examples are mushrooms pick-up in forests (‘nature’) or cultivated in caves on wadding (‘culture’).

Polymers and non-polymers First we need to define some terms. ‘General Technology’ is a common name for natural technology and man-made (artificial) technology. Only the products of natural technology are natural products. All those made by man or with the help of man are cultivated (artificial) products.

Opinion Having this in mind, I would like to suggest and discuss a new systematisation of materials. We all learned in school for centuries that there are two main groups of materials, i.e. metals and non-metals. Recently, some colleagues and I proposed a new systematisation: polymers and non-polymers [1]. This idea for this new differentiation of materials comes from the basic definition of polymers. The name polymers is an umbrella term for natural and synthetic substances and materials with the basic component being the system of macromolecules, i.e. macromolecular compounds with repeating units (‘polymer‘ from the Greek: poly = many, meros = particle) [2-4]. Based on this definition it is possible to differentiate four basic groups of macromolecular compounds (level L2, see Figure 1). Polymers and nonpolymers can be organic or inorganic. In the following, we will only look at Column C of Fig 1 ‘Natural Organic Polymers’ and read the table from bottom to top. First I would like to mention that the natural organic polymers are the results of natural technology: basic polymers (L2) such as proteins; biopolymeric organisms (microorganisms, L3), phytopolymers (e.g. wood, L4) and animal polymers (e.g. natural pig, L4). On L5 we find non-living organic products such as crude oil or natural gas, and living organic natural products. Then we come to artificial (man-made) technology.

Simplified, on level L6, plastics and rubbers (e.g. PE, PVC, PS, UP, PUR = fossil plastics) can be the results of organic synthetic polymers from non-living (fossil) sources or

chemically modified biopolymers (bioplastics) from living natural or cultivated sources (e.g. PLA, PHA or even bio-PE).

Bioplastics are also man-made organic polymers Bioplastics are a form of plastics derived from renewable biomass sources, such as vegetable oil, starch or microbiota, rather than fossil fuel based plastics which are derived from petroleum. Some, but not all, bioplastics are designed to degrade (see glossary on page 52) If we have a closer look at this definition above, we see that bioplastics are also man-made materials. So what is the difference from fossil based plastics? It is the input into the process. In bioplastics the input is man-made (cultivated) renewable biomass, and not really ‘natural’ products.

Some wrong terms According to the descriptions in column C of Fig 1, the term wood-polymer composite is wrong*, because wood as a plant consists of organic polymers (cellulose and lignin). So this composite should be called, for instance, wood-polypropylene composite. Because we also have today hybrid materials such as protein with organic or even inorganic polymers and we should write the names of both components (L7).

We use in our processes ever more and more microorganisms.

These microorganisms also consist of organic polymers (L3).

bioplastics MAGAZINE [04/11] Vol. 6

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The biggest controversy in my opinion is the discussion about crude oil or natural gas (L5). A horrifying image is created about crude oil, but per definition crude oil as well as natural gas or coal are pure products of nature and are organic polymers. Of course these products were formed millions of years ago, and we cannot form them today, we can only find and acquire them.

Conclusion Based on some ideas from the Dutch philosopher H. van Riessen (1911) [5] we can summarise: “More than one material can fulfil the purpose of the product. At the same time the customer is not interested in the material or the technology used to make the product. He is only interested in the performance and a fair quality/price ratio”. For example, green polyethylene is just polyethylene with a biomass input into the process, to create interest for customers, or even to achieve the necessary properties for the product.

So, bioplastics are just one group within so many plastics groups and types, with special features. Modern customers need useful products, but indeed, they are becoming more and more aware of the influence of products on the environment and nature.

But in my opinion it is wrong to build up a bad name for other plastics, following bad eco-marketing - “Still using plastic?”.

Who would pay the resulting damage for plastics in total?

References: [1] Čatić, I. at all.: Draft of the basic systematization of inorganic and organic macromolecular compounds, ANTEC 2011, Society of Plastics Engineers, Boston, May, 2011, p. 2012-2017.

[2] Van Krevelen, D. W.: Properties of Polymers (3rd ed.), Elsevier, Amsterdam, 1997.

[3] scifun.chem.wisc.edu/CHEMWEEK/POLYMERS/Polymers.html.

[4] en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polymer.

[5] Eekels, J.: Some Historical Remarks on the Philosophy of Making and Design, ICED 95, Prague, August 22-24, 1995, 36-43. * The main basis of new systematisation is that polymers can be inorganic or organic. All plastics are polymers, but not all polymers are plastics

Fig.1: Suggested new systematisation P

organic product of synthesis (e.g. polyethylene fibres and thermoplastics matrix)

inorganic-organic polymers (e.g. polymer-zeolite hybrid)

organic product of synthesis and cultivated products (e.g. thermoset matrix and jute)

organic xxx + organic basic polymer (xxx and proteins)

organic product of synthesis and inorganic polymers (e.g. thermoset matrix and glass fibres) organic product of synthesis and metals (e.g. metallic reinforcement agent and plastics matrix)

P P

organic-inorganic polymers [e.g. poly(organosiloxanes)] organic polymer – organic non-polymer (e.g. poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) and lipide) hybrid product (e.g. made by injection moulding)

Composite materials and composite products Hybrids materials and products Composed materials and composed products

P

Metals steels, Al-alloys, etc.

Thermoplastics polysilazanes Elastomers: e.g. polysiloxanes

P

Inorganic non Inorganic synthetic polymeric substances polymers (non-living) and materials

Thermosets Thermoplastics PF, UP, PUR, ect. PE, PVC, PS, PA, ect.

Organic synthetic polymers (from non-living)

Chemically modified biopolymers from natural and cultivated products (from living)

Fossil Plastic P

Inorganic substances and materials

T T P

Controlled reactions inorganic

P P P

P

P

T P

Natural: Natural: native metals: clay gold, mercury mica (glimmer) metal ores zeolites Other natural Natural geopolymers inorganic (Natural inorganic macromolecular polymers) compounds (non-polymers) A B Natural inorganic macromolecular compounds (Non-living natural products - minerals) Geological processes of non-living

T T 46

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L7

Elastomers vulcanized rubber thermoplastics rubber E. g. oils

Bioplastic L6

Organic substances and materials Controlled organic synthesis Controlled Biosynthesis Artificial technology Non-living organic Living organic natural natural product products (e.g. natural gas) Phytopolymers Animal polymers (e.g. wood) (e.g. bones, skins) Biopolymeric organisms (microorganisms and macroorganisms) Natural: proteins nucleic acids polysaccharides Natural organic polymers

C Natural organic macromolecular compounds (Living natural products – living organisms) Biosynthesis (Synthesis of Living) Macromolecular compounds (substance) Matter Natural technology General technology

L5

L4 L3 Natural

Other natural organic macromolecular compounds (e.g. lipids)

L2

D L1

L0

Levels

P R E S E N T S

THE SIXTH ANNUAL GLOBAL AWARD FOR DEVELOPERS, MANUFACTURERS AND USERS OF BIO-BASED PLASTICS.

Call for proposals Enter your own product, service or development, or nominate your favourite example from another organisation

Please let us know: does or development is and ce rvi se t, uc od pr e th an award 1. What velopment should win de or ce rvi se t, uc od 2. Why you think this pr on does ) company or organisati ed os op pr e th (or ur yo 3. What ge) and may also 500 words (approx 1 pa ochures and/or ed ce ex t no ld ou sh Your entry keting br graphs, samples, mar be The 5 nominees must be supported with photo ). ck ba ot be sent nn (ca ion tat en m cu do technical 30 second videoclip prepared to provide a ded from try form can be downloa More details and an en ine.de/award www.bioplasticsmagaz

The Bioplastics Award will be presented during the 6th European Bioplastics Conference November 22/23, 2011, Berlin, Germany

supported by

Basics

The of Blow molding of Bioplastics

B

low molding applications abound for polymeric materials and represent significant opportunities for biopolymers. The blow molding process selected (reheat stretch, injection stretch, single stage or extrusion) depends on a variety of container factors. These include: desired units, performance, size and material properties. It is important to understand the blow molding process from a material perspective, especially as new biopolymers are introduced to help determine their suitability.

Reheat stretch blow molding (RHSB) systems were first developed for polyester bottle production, such as PET. Test tube-shaped preforms are injection molded, then transferred to the blow molder and fed through an in-feed wheel which loads the preforms onto spindles that carry them through the heating system.

Next, preforms enter the oven where they are heated using infrared (IR) lamps. These are designed so that the maximum wavelength transmission is outside the maximum absorbance for PET. This is important because if too much energy is absorbed on the preform surface, the heat will not penetrate through to the inner wall and it will be too cold to produce a container.

Reheat additives may be used to help the material absorb IR energy thus making it suitable for reheat stretch blow molding or broaden the processing window of a temperaturesensitive material.

When exiting the blow molding oven, the preforms will be above their glass transition temperature or at the low end of

Reheat stretch blow molding machine (Photo: KHS Corpoplast)

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bioplastics MAGAZINE [04/11] Vol. 6

their melting temperature range. The ideal preform reheat temperature depends upon the material choice – polyesters like PET and PLA are typically blow molded 15-25ºC above their glass transition temperature (Tg) while crystalline polyolefins, PP and HDPE, are blow molded closer to their melt temperature.

Heated to its ideal temperature, the preform is then placed into the blow mold where it rests upon the support ledge near the neck finish. This support ledge distinguishes RHSB bottles from other blow molded containers as it is not necessary for either single-stage blow molding or extrusion blow molding.

Finally, the blow mold closes and the internal action begins.

First, the preform is stretched axially with a stretch rod. This distributes the weight properly, keeps the preform centered within the mold by guiding the preform to the bottom, and pins the gate during the high-blow pressure phase.

As soon as the stretching starts, low-pressure air is introduced causing it to quickly take the shape of a balloon.

The higher pressure air (up to 40 bar) is then turned on after the pre-blow stage. This completes the bottle expansion against the mold which allows the plastic to freeze in place before removing the bottle. The bottle is then removed from the mold by a transfer arm which transports it to an out-feed wheel where it is placed on the line.

There are many variables present during the blow molding operation that allow it to be tailored to a specific bottle design (round, square or oval), bottle performance (top

Basics Examples of various materials, preforms and containers. From right to left PLA (Polylactic acid), PP(Polypropylene) and PET (Polyethylene Terephthalate) (Photo: PTI)

By Lori Yoder Director, Material Applications Plastic Technologies, Inc. Holland, Ohio, USA

load requirements, hot filled or pressurized), and material choice. Blow molding rates of up to 2000 bottles per hour per mold are achievable although the actual rate depends upon the equipment and resin choice, as well as preform and bottle design.

Several biopolymers have been successfully reheat stretch blow molded including PLA, PHA and PEF. Each has unique material properties that must be understood to tailor the preform/bottle designs and blow molding conditions in order to produce a suitable container.

As a polyester, PLA exhibits strain hardening during the orientation process. However, PLA’s temperature sensitivity can result in a narrow processing window which is frequently offset by incorporating a reheat additive into the preform during injection molding. With a natural stretch ratio slightly lower than PET, PLA may be used in existing PET tools successfully depending upon the preform/ container design.

Another unique feature of PLA is its ability to flow into mold details giving very crisp definition to container artwork.

PHA has also been successfully reheat stretch blow molded into single-serve containers. The material properties can be tailored to achieve different crystallization rates and mechanical properties as the material exhibits more rubber-like behavior when compared to PLA or PET. Another new biopolymer, polyethylene furanoate (PEF), has proven itself capable of producing acceptable containers through reheat stretch blow molding. Containers were successfully blown using traditional PET preform and bottle

tooling with PEF by establishing the process parameters that matched the material’s stretching properties.

To compete with existing petrochemical-derived materials in large volume reheat stretch blow molding applications, future biopolymers must reheat efficiently, stretch reproducibly within a short timeframe, and produce a resulting container with satisfactory performance.

Injection stretch blow molding is quite similar to reheat stretch blow molding once the preform arrives in the blow mold. However, in injection stretch blow molding both the preform and bottle are produced in a single machine instead of separately. Thus, the machine speeds are dependent upon the injection molding cycle times and production rates per cavity are significantly lower than in reheat stretch blow molding.

That being said, injection stretch blow molding has a strong foothold in container production, offering an alternative molding system for custom containers, jars and larger volume packages for bulk foods. Because the preform is not handled, the resulting bottle quality is more pristine than bottles produced through reheat stretch blow molding.

In addition, the required space is significantly reduced from two-stage blow molding systems.

Injection stretch blow molding (ISM) systems are equipped with a plasticizing screw, preform conditioning, a blow molding station and container ejector. The preforms are first injection molded and the material is cooled until it can be ejected from the mold. The preform’s remaining latent heat

Principe of Reheat stretch blow molding (picture: KHS Corpoplast) bioplastics MAGAZINE [04/11] Vol. 6

49

Principle of extrusion bow molding [1]

is retained and utilized to orient the final bottle, thus thicker sections stay hotter and stretch further while thinner, cooler sections will stretch less.

In many injection stretch systems, the preform is transferred from the injection mold into a conditioning station that can be used to heat or cool sections of the preform to adjust the final container’s material distribution. Depending upon the system, this conditioning station may include IR reheating lamps or touch-off cores to cool sections. Finally, the preform enters the blow mold and a process similar to reheat stretch blow molding is employed to produce a container.

Experience with biopolymers in injection stretch blow molding applications is more limited than RHSB systems.

Injection stretch blow molding PLA containers takes advantage of the material’s heat capacity and does not require reheat additives to produce a high quality container.

In addition, the stretch ratios for single-stage containers tend to be lower than RHSB containers. Other biopolymers that are capable of producing packages on two-stage equipment would be expected also to be suitable for single-stage blow molding.

Extrusion blow molding (EBM) is a process in which polymer is melted and then extruded through an annular die head into an open tube called a parison. The parison is then pinched off as the chilled mold closes around the plastic and then blown into a final container shape. Unlike most RHSB and ISM applications, in EBM, the threaded area forms during blow molding. After blowing, the mold opens and the container is ejected. Frequently, excess plastic in the neck and base requires trimming outside the mold.

Shiseido URARA extrusion blow molded Ingeo shampoo bottle (photo courtesy of NatureWorks LLC)

Extrusion blow molding is commonly used for polyolefin or amorphous materials and requires sufficient melt strength to form the parison without collapse. Both continuous and intermittent EBM systems exist, with the type of system depending upon the equipment supplier and desired throughput rates as well as on melt strength. Lower viscosities (melt strength) may require an accumulator.

Ingeo™ PLA extrusion blow molded containers were introduced in 2010 with a modified PLA blend. The modification provided improved melt strength to the polymer to allow for the parison formation. Bio-based PE and PP are drop-ins for their petrochemical counterparts for extrusion blow molding applications. In addition to these biopolymers, PHA also targets replacement of PE and PP in extrusion blow molding applications. First extrusion blow molded PHA bottles (PHB/PHV copolymer) for shampoo were introduced in Germany and the USA in the mid 1990s. However, they disappeared from the shelves and are now waiting for their renaissance. www. plastictechnologies.com [1] Thielen, M. et.al., Blasformen, Carl Hanser Verlag

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bioplastics MAGAZINE [04/11] Vol. 6

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Basics

Glossary In bioplastics MAGAZINE again and again the same expressions appear that some of our readers might (not yet) be familiar with. This glossary shall help with these terms and shall help avoid repeated explanations such as ‘PLA (Polylactide)‘ in various articles.

Readers who would like to suggest better or other explanations to be added to the list, please contact the editor. [*: bM ... refers to more comprehensive article previously published in bioplastics MAGAZINE)

Bioplastics (as defined by European Bioplastics e.V.) is a term used to define two different kinds of plastics:

Blend | Mixture of plastics, polymer alloy of at least two microscopically dispersed and molecularly distributed base polymers.

a. Plastics based on renewable resources (the focus is the origin of the raw material used)

Carbon neutral | Carbon neutral describes a process that has a negligible impact on total atmospheric CO2 levels. For example, carbon neutrality means that any CO2 released when a plant decomposes or is burnt is offset by an equal amount of CO2 absorbed by the plant through photosynthesis when it is growing.

b. Æ Biodegradable and compostable plastics according to EN13432 or similar standards (the focus is the compostability of the final product; biodegradable and compostable plastics can be based on renewable (biobased) and/or non-renewable (fossil) resources).

Bioplastics may be - based on renewable resources and biodegradable; - based on renewable resources but not be biodegradable; and - based on fossil resources and biodegradable.

Amylopectin | Polymeric branched starch molecule with very high molecular weight (biopolymer, monomer is Æ Glucose). [bM 05/2009 p42]

Amyloseacetat | Linear polymeric glucosechains are called Æ amylose. If this compound is treated with ethan acid one product is amylacetat. The hydroxyl group is connected with the organic acid fragment.

Amylose | Polymeric non-branched starch molecule with high molecular weight (biopolymer, monomer is Æ Glucose). [bM 05/2009 p42] Biodegradable Plastics | Biodegradable Plastics are plastics that are completely assimilated by the Æ microorganisms present a defined environment as food for their energy.

The carbon of the plastic must completely be converted into CO2 during the microbial process. For an official definition, please refer to the standards e.g. ISO or in Europe: EN 14995 Plastics- Evaluation of compostability - Test scheme and specifications. [bM 02/2006 p34, bM 01/2007 p38]]

52

bioplastics MAGAZINE [04/11] Vol. 6

Cellophane | Clear film on the basis of Æ cellulose.

Cellulose | Polymeric molecule with very high molecular weight (biopolymer, monomer is Æ Glucose), industrial production from wood or cotton, to manufacture paper, plastics and fibres.

Compost | A soil conditioning material of decomposing organic matter which provides nutrients and enhances soil structure. [bM 06/2008, 02/2009]

Compostable Plastics | Plastics that are biodegradable under ‘composting’ conditions: specified humidity, temperature, Æ microorganisms and timefame. Several national and international standards exist for clearer definitions, for example EN 14995 Plastics Evaluation of compostability - Test scheme and specifications. [bM 02/2006, bM 01/2007] Composting | A solid waste management technique that uses natural process to convert organic materials to CO2, water and humus through the action of Æ microorganisms. [bM 03/2007] Copolymer | Plastic composed of different monomers.

Cradle-to-Gate | Describes the system boundaries of an environmental ÆLife Cycle Assessment (LCA) which covers all activities from the ‘cradle’ (i.e., the extraction of raw materials, agricultural activities and forestry) up to the factory gate

Cradle-to-Cradle | (sometimes abbreviated as C2C): Is an expression which communicates the concept of a closed-cycle economy, in which waste is used as raw material (‘waste equals food’). Cradle-to-Cradle is not a term that is typically used in ÆLCA studies.

Cradle-to-Grave | Describes the system boundaries of a full ÆLife Cycle Assessment from manufacture (‘cradle’) to use phase and disposal phase (‘grave’).

Fermentation | Biochemical reactions controlled by Æ microorganisms or enyzmes (e.g. the transformation of sugar into lactic acid).

Gelatine | Translucent brittle solid substance, colorless or slightly yellow, nearly tasteless and odorless, extracted from the collagen inside animals‘ connective tissue.

Glucose | Monosaccharide (or simple sugar).

G. is the most important carbohydrate (sugar) in biology. G. is formed by photosynthesis or hydrolyse of many carbohydrates e. g. starch.

Humus | In agriculture, ‘humus’ is often used simply to mean mature Æ compost, or natural compost extracted from a forest or other spontaneous source for use to amend soil.

Hydrophilic | Property: ‘water-friendly’, soluble in water or other polar solvents (e.g. used in conjunction with a plastic which is not waterresistant and weatherproof or that absorbs water such as Polyamide (PA).

Hydrophobic | Property: ‘water-resistant’, not soluble in water (e.g. a plastic which is waterresistant and weatherproof, or that does not absorb any water such as Polethylene (PE) or Polypropylene (PP).

LCA | Life Cycle Assessment (sometimes also referred to as life cycle analysis, ecobalance, and Æcradle-to-grave analysis) is the investigation and valuation of the environmental impacts of a given product or service caused. [bM 01/2009]

Microorganism | Living organisms of microscopic size, such as bacteria, funghi or yeast.

PCL | Polycaprolactone, a synthetic (fossil based), biodegradable bioplastic, e.g. used as a blend component.

PHA | Polyhydroxyalkanoates are linear polyesters produced in nature by bacterial fermentation of sugar or lipids. The most common type of PHA is Æ PHB. PHB | Polyhydroxyl buteric acid (better poly3-hydroxybutyrate), is a polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA), a polymer belonging to the polyesters class. PHB is produced by micro-organisms apparently in response to conditions of physiological stress. The polymer is primarily a product of carbon assimilation (from glucose

Basics or starch) and is employed by micro-organisms as a form of energy storage molecule to be metabolized when other common energy sources are not available. PHB has properties similar to those of PP, however it is stiffer and more brittle.

PLA | Polylactide or Polylactic Acid (PLA) is a biodegradable, thermoplastic, aliphatic polyester from lactic acid. Lactic acid is made from dextrose by fermentation. Bacterial fermentation is used to produce lactic acid from corn starch, cane sugar or other sources.

However, lactic acid cannot be directly polymerized to a useful product, because each polymerization reaction generates one molecule of water, the presence of which degrades the forming polymer chain to the point that only very low molecular weights are observed.

Instead, lactic acid is oligomerized and then catalytically dimerized to make the cyclic lactide monomer. Although dimerization also generates water, it can be separated prior to polymerization. PLA of high molecular weight is produced from the lactide monomer by ring-opening polymerization using a catalyst.

This mechanism does not generate additional water, and hence, a wide range of molecular weights are accessible. [bM 01/2009] Saccharins or carbohydrates | Saccharins or carbohydrates are name for the sugar-family.

Saccharins are monomer or polymer sugar units. For example, there are known mono-, di- and polysaccharose. Æ glucose is a monosaccarin. They are important for the diet and produced biology in plants.

Sorbitol | Sugar alcohol, obtained by reduction of glucose changing the aldehyde group to an additional hydroxyl group. S. is used as a plasticiser for bioplastics based on starch.

Starch propionate and starch butyrate | Starch propionate and starch butyrate can be synthesised by treating the Æ starch with propane or butanic acid. The product structure is still based on Æ starch. Every based Æ glucose fragment is connected with a propionate or butyrate ester group. The product is more hydrophobic than Æ starch.

Sustainable | An attempt to provide the best outcomes for the human and natural environments both now and into the indefinite future.

One of the most often cited definitions of sustainability is the one created by the Brundtland Commission, led by the former Norwegian Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland.

The Brundtland Commission defined sustainable development as development that ‘meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.’ Sustainability relates to the continuity of economic, social, institutional and environmental aspects of human society, as well as the non-human environment).

Starch-ester | One characteristic of every starch-chain is a free hydroxyl group. When every hydroxyl group is connect with ethan acid one product is starch-ester with different chemical properties.

Thermoplastics | Plastics which soften or melt when heated and solidify when cooled (solid at room temperature).

Yard Waste | Grass clippings, leaves, trimmings, garden residue.

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Starch | Natural polymer (carbohydrate) consisting of Æ amylose and Æ amylopectin, gained from maize, potatoes, wheat, tapioca etc. When glucose is connected to polymerchains in definite way the result (product) is called starch. Each molecule is based on 300 -12000-glucose units. Depending on the connection, there are two types Æ amylose and Æ amylopectin known. [bM 05/2009] Starch (-derivate) | Starch (-derivates) are based on the chemical structure of Æ starch.

The chemical structure can be changed by introducing new functional groups without changing the Æ starch polymer. The product has different chemical qualities. Mostly the hydrophilic character is not the same.

Sustainability | (as defined by European Bioplastics e.V.) has three dimensions: economic, social and environmental. This has been known as “the triple bottom line of sustainability”. This means that sustainable development involves the simultaneous pursuit of economic prosperity, environmental protection and social equity. In other words, businesses have to expand their responsibility to include these environmental and social dimensions. Sustainability is about making products useful to markets and, at the same time, having societal benefits and lower environmental impact than the alternatives currently available. It also implies a commitment to continuous improvement that should result in a further reduction of the environmental footprint of today’s products, processes and raw materials used.

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bioplastics MAGAZINE [04/11] Vol. 6

53

Event Calendar

Event Calendar Sept 14-16, 2011 International Biorefining Conference & Trade Show Houston, Texas

Oct. 17-19, 2011 GPEC 2011 (SPE’s Global Plastics Environmental Conference) The Atlanta Peachtree Westin Hotel, Atlanta, GA, USA

www.biorefiningconference.com

www.4spe.org

Sept 27, 2011 Bioplastik: Verpackung der Zukunft?

Empa, St. Gallen, Saal C 3.11

Nov. 11-19, 2011 Brau Beviale Raw Materials - Technologies - Logistics - Marketing Messe Nuremberg, Germany

www.empa.ch

www.brau-beviale.de

Sept. 25-29, 2011 8th European Congress of Chemical Engineering and 1st European Congress of Applied Biotechnology (together with ProcessNet Annual Meeting 2011 and DECHEMA’s Biotechnology Annual Meeting) Berlin, Germany www.dechema.de

Sep. 26-27,2011 5th International Symposium on Wood Fibre Polymer Composites Biarritz, France

You can meet us!

Please contact us in advance by e-mail.

www.fcba.fr/wpc2011

Sep. 26-28, 2011 6th annual Biopolymers Symposium 2011 Learn how to reach 200+ bioplastics leaders Denver, Colorado www.biopolymersummit.com

Sep. 27-29, 2011 COMPOSITES EUROPE Stuttgart Fairgrounds, Stuttgart, Germany www.composites-europe.com

Nov. 22-23, 2011 6th European Bioplastics Conference Maritim proArte Hotel, Berlin, Germany www.european-bioplastics.org

Dec. 13-14, 2011 4. WPC Kongress Maritim Hotel Köln, Germany www.wpc-kongress.de

Feb. 20-22, 2012 Innovation Takes Root 2012 Omni ChampionsGate Resort in Orlando, Florida, USA. www.innovationtakesroot.com

March 14-15, 2012 5th International Congress on Bio-based Plastics and Composites Cologne, Germany www.biowerkstoff-kongress.de

April 1-5, 2012 NPE 2012 Orlando, USA www.npe.org

The most comprehensive U.S. bioplastics conference covering technologies & trends, developments in semi-durable, durable and consumer product applications, new guidelines and end of life strategies Where the industry’s key players gather!

September 26-28, 2011 Brown Palace Hotel and Spa Denver, CO

“Excellent representation from a variety of stakeholders: suppliers, brand owners, certification bodies, industry associations, government and non government organizations” Carol Casarino, DuPont “Good topics for getting an overall understanding of the Biopolymers industry and making contacts” Jeff Corbett, Mantrose-Haeuser

follow the conference 54

bioplastics MAGAZINE [04/11] Vol. 6

@biopolymers

Register now at www.biopolymersummit.com

Editorial Planner 2011 April 18-21, 2012 Chinaplas 2012 Shanghai, China www.chinaplasonline.com

May 14-15, 2012 2nd PLA World Congress presented by bioplastics MAGAZINE Holiday Inn City Center, Munich Germany www.pla-world-congress.com

June 19-20, 2012 Biobased materials WPC, Natural Fibre and other innovative Composites Congress Fellbach, near Stuttgart, Germany

Month

Sep/Oct (05)

Nov/Dec (06)

Publ.-Date

04.10.2011

05.12.2011

Edit/Advert/ Deadline

09.09.2011

11.11.2011

Editorial Focus (1)

Fibers Textiles Nonwovens

Editorial Focus (2)

Films Flexibles Bags Consumer Paper Coating Electronics

Basics

Algae

Film-Blowing

subject to changes

www.nfc-congress.com

Oct. 2-4, 2012 BioPlastics â&#x20AC;&#x201C; The Re-Invention of Plastics Caesars Palace Hotel, Las Vegas, USA www.InnoPlastSolutions.com

www.pla-world-congress.com

2nd PLA WORLD C O N G R E S S 14 + 15 MAY 2012 * MUNICH * GERMANY

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55

Suppliers Guide 1.Raw Materials 10

20

30

40

Showa Denko Europe GmbH Konrad-Zuse-Platz 4 81829 Munich, Germany Tel.: +49 89 93996226 www.showa-denko.com support@sde.de

FKuR Kunststoff GmbH Siemensring 79 D - 47 877 Willich Tel. +49 2154 9251-0 Tel.: +49 2154 9251-51 sales@fkur.com www.fkur.com

DuPont de Nemours International S.A. 2 chemin du Pavillon 1218 - Le Grand Saconnex Switzerland Tel.: +41 22 171 51 11 Fax: +41 22 580 22 45 plastics@dupont.com www.renewable.dupont.com www.plastics.dupont.com

Kingfa Sci. & Tech. Co., Ltd. Gaotang Industrial Zone, Tianhe, Guangzhou, P.R.China.

Tel: +86 (0)20 87215915 Fax: +86 (0)20 87037111 info@ecopond.com.cn www.ecopond.com.cn FLEX-262/162 Biodegradable Blown Film Resin!

Jean-Pierre Le Flanchec 3 rue Scheffer 75116 Paris cedex, France Tel: +33 (0)1 53 65 23 00 Fax: +33 (0)1 53 65 81 99 biosphere@biosphere.eu www.biosphere.eu

Sukano AG Chaltenbodenstrasse 23 CH-8834 Schindellegi Tel. +41 44 787 57 77 Fax +41 44 787 57 78 www.sukano.com 3. Semi finished products 3.1 films

50

60

70

80

90

100

110

120

Zhejiang Hangzhou Xinfu Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd Tel.: +86 13809644115 www.xinfupharm.com johnleung@xinfupharm.com 1.1 bio based monomers

Grace Biotech Corporation Tel: +886-3-598-6496 No. 91, Guangfu N. Rd., Hsinchu Industrial Park,Hukou Township, Hsinchu County 30351, Taiwan sales@grace-bio.com.tw www.grace-bio.com.tw

Huhtamaki Forchheim Sonja Haug Zweibrückenstraße 15-25 91301 Forchheim Tel. +49-9191 81203 Fax +49-9191 811203 www.huhtamaki-films.com

1.5 PHA

Division of A&O FilmPAC Ltd 7 Osier Way, Warrington Road ® Natur-Tec - Northern Technologies GB-Olney/Bucks.

4201 Woodland Road MK46 5FP Circle Pines, MN 55014 USA Tel.: +44 1234 714 477 Tel. +1 763.225.6600 Fax: +44 1234 713 221 Fax +1 763.225.6645 sales@aandofilmpac.com info@natur-tec.com www.bioresins.eu www.natur-tec.com

www.earthfirstpla.com www.sidaplax.com www.plasticsuppliers.com Sidaplax UK : +44 (1) 604 76 66 99 Sidaplax Belgium: +32 9 210 80 10 Plastic Suppliers: +1 866 378 4178

130

140

150

160

170

PURAC division Arkelsedijk 46, P.O. Box 21 4200 AA Gorinchem The Netherlands Tel.: +31 (0)183 695 695 Fax: +31 (0)183 695 604 www.purac.com PLA@purac.com

Transmare Compounding B.V. Ringweg 7, 6045 JL Roermond, The Netherlands Tel. +31 475 345 900 Fax +31 475 345 910 info@transmare.nl www.compounding.nl

Telles, Metabolix – ADM joint venture 650 Suffolk Street, Suite 100 Lowell, MA 01854 USA Tel. +1-97 85 13 18 00 Fax +1-97 85 13 18 86 www.mirelplastics.com

1.3 PLA

3.1.1 cellulose based films

1.2 compounds 180

190

200

210

API S.p.A. Via Dante Alighieri, 27 36065 Mussolente (VI), Italy Telephone +39 0424 579711 www.apiplastic.com www.apinatbio.com

1.4 starch-based bioplastics

Tianan Biologic No. 68 Dagang 6th Rd, Beilun, Ningbo, China, 315800 Tel. +86-57 48 68 62 50 2 Fax +86-57 48 68 77 98 0 enquiry@tianan-enmat.com www.tianan-enmat.com

Limagrain Céréales Ingrédients ZAC „Les Portes de Riom“ - BP 173 63204 Riom Cedex - France Tel. +33 (0)4 73 67 17 00 Fax +33 (0)4 73 67 17 10 www.biolice.com

The HallStar Company 120 S. Riverside Plaza, Ste. 1620 Chicago, IL 60606, USA +1 312 385 4494 dmarshall@hallstar.com www.hallstar.com/hallgreen

Shenzhen Brightchina Ind. Co;Ltd www.brightcn.net www.esun.en.alibaba.com bright@brightcn.net Tel: +86-755-2603 1978

INNOVIA FILMS LTD Wigton Cumbria CA7 9BG England Contact: Andy Sweetman 2. Additives/Secondary raw materials Tel. +44 16973 41549 Fax +44 16973 41452 andy.sweetman@innoviafilms.com www.innoviafilms.com

220

230

240

250

Cereplast Inc. Tel: +1 310-676-5000 / Fax: -5003 pravera@cereplast.com www.cereplast.com European distributor A.Schulman : Tel +49 (2273) 561 236 christophe_cario@de.aschulman.com

PSM Bioplastic NA Chicago, USA www.psmna.com +1-630-393-0012

260

270

56

bioplastics MAGAZINE [04/11] Vol. 6

Taghleef Industries SpA, Italy Via E. Fermi, 46 33058 San Giorgio di Nogaro (UD) Contact Frank Ernst Tel. +49 2402 7096989 Mobile +49 160 4756573 frank.ernst@ti-films.com www.ti-films.com

Rhein Chemie Rheinau GmbH Duesseldorfer Strasse 23-27 68219 Mannheim, Germany Phone: +49 (0)621-8907-233 Fax: +49 (0)621-8907-8233 bioadimide.eu@rheinchemie.com www.bioadimide.com

4. Bioplastics products

alesco GmbH & Co. KG Schönthaler Str. 55-59 D-52379 Langerwehe Sales Germany: +49 2423 402 110 Sales Belgium: +32 9 2260 165 Sales Netherlands: +31 20 5037 710 info@alesco.net | www.alesco.net

Suppliers Guide 8. Ancillary equipment 9. Services Postbus 26 7480 AA Haaksbergen The Netherlands Tel.: +31 616 121 843 info@bio4pack.com www.bio4pack.com

Simply contact: Tel.: +49 2161 6884467 suppguide@bioplasticsmagazine.com

President Packaging Ind., Corp.

PLA Paper Hot Cup manufacture In Taiwan, www.ppi.com.tw Tel.: +886-6-570-4066 ext.5531 Fax: +886-6-570-4077 sales@ppi.com.tw 6. Equipment

Osterfelder Str. 3 46047 Oberhausen Tel.: +49 (0)2861 8598 1227 Fax: +49 (0)2861 8598 1424 thomas.wodke@umsicht.fhg.de www.umsicht.fraunhofer.de

Stay permanently listed in the Suppliers Guide with your company logo and contact information.

For only 6,– EUR per mm, per issue you can be present among top suppliers in the field of bioplastics.

For Example:

6.1 Machinery & Molds

Eco Cortec® 31 300 Beli Manastir Bele Bartoka 29 Croatia, MB: 1891782 Tel. +385 31 705 011 Fax +385 31 705 012 info@ecocortec.hr www.ecocortec.hr

Minima Technology Co., Ltd. Esmy Huang, Marketing Manager No.33. Yichang E. Rd., Taipin City, Taichung County 411, Taiwan (R.O.C.) Tel. +886(4)2277 6888 Fax +883(4)2277 6989 Mobil +886(0)982-829988 esmy@minima-tech.com Skype esmy325 www.minima-tech.com

NOVAMONT S.p.A. Via Fauser , 8 28100 Novara - ITALIA Fax +39.0321.699.601 Tel. +39.0321.699.611 www.novamont.com

WEI MON INDUSTRY CO., LTD. 2F, No.57, Singjhong Rd., Neihu District, Taipei City 114, Taiwan, R.O.C. Tel. + 886 - 2 - 27953131 Fax + 886 - 2 - 27919966 sales@weimon.com.tw www.plandpaper.com

FAS Converting Machinery AB O Zinkgatan 1/ Box 1503 27100 Ystad, Sweden Tel.: +46 411 69260 www.fasconverting.com

nova-Institut GmbH Chemiepark Knapsack Industriestrasse 300 50354 Huerth, Germany Tel.: +49(0)2233-48-14 40 Fax: +49(0)2233-48-14 5

Polymedia Publisher GmbH Dammer Str. 112 41066 Mönchengladbach Germany Tel. +49 2161 664864 Fax +49 2161 631045 info@bioplasticsmagazine.com www.bioplasticsmagazine.com

10

39 mm

Cortec® Corporation 4119 White Bear Parkway St. Paul, MN 55110 Tel. +1 800.426.7832 Fax 651-429-1122 info@cortecvci.com www.cortecvci.com

20

30

39

Molds, Change Parts and Turnkey Solutions for the PET/Bioplastic Container Industry 284 Pinebush Road Cambridge Ontario Canada N1T 1Z6 Tel. +1 519 624 9720 Fax +1 519 624 9721 info@hallink.com www.hallink.com

Roll-o-Matic A/S Petersmindevej 23 5000 Odense C, Denmark Tel. + 45 66 11 16 18 Fax + 45 66 14 32 78 rom@roll-o-matic.com www.roll-o-matic.com

Bioplastics Consulting Tel. +49 2161 664864 info@polymediaconsult.com 10. Institutions 10.1 Associations

Sample Charge: 39mm x 6,00 € = 234,00 € per entry/per issue

Sample Charge for one year: 6 issues x 234,00 EUR = 1,404.00 € The entry in our Suppliers Guide is bookable for one year (6 issues) and extends automatically if it’s not canceled three month before expiry.

BPI - The Biodegradable Products Institute 331 West 57th Street, Suite 415 New York, NY 10019, USA Tel. +1-888-274-5646 info@bpiworld.org

www.facebook.com www.issuu.com www.twitter.com www.youtube.com

MANN+HUMMEL ProTec GmbH Stubenwald-Allee 9 64625 Bensheim, Deutschland Tel. +49 6251 77061 0 Fax +49 6251 77061 510 info@mh-protec.com www.mh-protec.com

European Bioplastics e.V. Marienstr. 19/20 10117 Berlin, Germany Tel. +49 30 284 82 350 Fax +49 30 284 84 359 info@european-bioplastics.org www.european-bioplastics.org 10.2 Universities

6.2 Laboratory Equipment

MODA : Biodegradability Analyzer Saida FDS Incorporated 3-6-6 Sakae-cho, Yaizu, Shizuoka, Japan Tel : +81-90-6803-4041 info@saidagroup.jp www.saidagroup.jp

Michigan State University Department of Chemical Engineering & Materials Science Professor Ramani Narayan East Lansing MI 48824, USA Tel. +1 517 719 7163 narayan@msu.edu

7. Plant engineering

Uhde Inventa-Fischer GmbH Holzhauser Str. 157 - 159 13509 Berlin, Germany Tel. +49 (0)30 43567 5 Fax +49 (0)30 43567 699 sales.de@thyssenkrupp.com www.uhde-inventa-fischer.com

University of Applied Sciences Faculty II, Department of Bioprocess Engineering Heisterbergallee 12 30453 Hannover, Germany Tel. +49 (0)511-9296-2212 Fax +49 (0)511-9296-2210 hans-josef.endres@fh-hannover.de www.fakultaet2.fh-hannover.de

bioplastics MAGAZINE [04/11] Vol. 6

57

Companies in this issue Company

Editorial

Aalto-Korkeakoulusäätiö

12

A&O Filmpac

56

Company

Editorial

Mitsubishi Plastic

42

Mohawk

29

Abensi Energía

12

narocon

9

Agco

12

NatureWorks

8, 9

AIMPLAS

12

Alesco

Natur-Tec 56

Netcomposites

56

NGR

Advert

56 12

API

28

Asfibe

12

Avantium

6

nova-Institut

9

55, 57

BAFA

12

Novamont

9, 36

56, 60

BASF SE

5, 9

Organic Waste Systems

40

Nike

21 14

Bio4Pack

57

Paper and Fiber Research Institute

20

Bioresins.eu

56

Pepsi

14

Biosphere

56

Pharmafilter

22

BPI

57

Piel

12

Braskem

25

Plastic Suppliers

Brau Beviale

33

Plastic Technologies (PTI)

56

Plasticker

53

President Packaging

57

Cereplast Chemowerk

12

Coca-Cola

11, 14, 30

Composites Europe (Reed)

56 48

PSM 23

Publisearch

57

7, 56 28

Cortec

28

Purac

56

Danone

9, 11, 14

RheinChemie

56

DSM

29

Roll-o-Matic

57

DuPont

29, 30

56

Saida

Eco Cortec

57

Saida UMS

26

Ecomann

43

Shenkar College

5

Shenzhen Esun Industrial

5

57

Showa Denko

56

Sidaplax

56

Ekotex

12

European Bioplastics

11

European Plastic Converters Association

12

FAS Converting FKuR

5

Formax UK

12

Fraunhofer UMSICHT Frost & Sullivan

57

57

SK Chemicals

18

2, 56

Solvay

6

57 6

56

Taghleef Industries

56

Tate&Lyle

30

56

Technical University of Denmark

12

Hallink

57

Telles

40

Hallstar

56

The Co-Operative Group

9

Heinz

11, 14, 30

Tianan Biologic

Howa Plastics

30

Tosaf

Innovació i Recerca Industrial i Sostenible

56 32

56

30

Transfurans Chemicals

12

Innovia Films

9 12

Uhde Inventa Fischer

Instytut Wlokien Naturalnych i Roslin Zielarskich

12

Unitika

Interseroh

9

Transmare

56 39, 57 9

University of Appl.Sc.&A. Hanover 56

University of Kansas

57 35

JBPA

42

University of Massachussetts, Lowell

5

Kafrit

5

University of Wisconsin-Platteville

41

KHS

48

University of Zagreb

44

Kingfa Sci. & Tech.

Kojima Press Industry

56 30

Limagrain Céréales Ingrédients M&Q Packaging Corporation

56 29

Mann + Hummel Metabolix

57 40

Michigan State University

57

Minima Technology

56

bioplastics MAGAZINE [04/11] Vol. 6

57, 59

5

Toyota Technical Center

Institut für Verbundwerkstoffe

Intertech Pira

31, 56

56

Sukano

Grace Bio

Huhtamaki

58

Advert

Univesity of Pisa

32

Virent

14

Vtt Technical Research Centre

12

WalMart

14

Wei Mon

7, 57

Wuhan Huali (PSM)

46, 56

Zeijang Hangzhou Xinfu Pharmaceutical

56

A real sign of sustainable development.

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Living Chemistry for Quality of Life. www.novamont.com

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