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Plastics news The latest from the industry
NeWS
New developments in the Plastics industry
Veolia and Unilever to collaborate on sustainable packaging
Veolia and Unilever have signed a collaboration agreement to work together on emerging technologies that will help create a circular economy on plastics across various regions of the world, starting in India and Indonesia.
The companies have acknowledged that the issue of plastic waste is a shared responsibility that requires bold action across the value chain to develop and scale up collection and reprocessing infrastructure, which is critical in the transition towards a circular economy. The work will focus on material collection, which will help channel recycled content back into the value chain. Veolia will work with Unilever to implement used packaging collection solutions, add recycling capacity and develop new processes and business models through this partnership in various countries.
Laurent Auguste, senior executive vice-president of Veolia for Development, Innovation and Markets, commented: “With this global partnership, Veolia and Unilever join forces in various geographies around the globe and, from the collection to the recycling, take a leadership role to redefine a responsible and sustainable future for packaging.” Visit: www.veolia.com
PepsiCo signs deal for 100% recycled plastic packaging
Drinks giant PepsiCo has signed a new partnership with US sustainable plastic firm Loop Industries to roll out product packaging made with 100 per cent recycled plastic by early 2020.
The ‘multi-year’ supply agreement, announced late last week, will see Loop supply PepsiCo with production capacity at its factory in the US, which produces PET plastic using 100 per cent recycled materials.
Loop’s technology recycles low value plastics, including ocean plastics, back into virgin grade polymer, used to produce plastic bottles and other food-grade packaging.
“Loop’s technology enables PepsiCo to be a leading force in ensuring plastic packaging need never become waste,” said Mehmood Khan, vicechairman and chief scientific officer at PepsiCo. “This partnership represents a step-change that will empower PepsiCo in our drive towards creating a circular economy for plastics.”
As well as boosting PepsiCo’s use of recycled plastics, the deal will also include a marketing and communications push to raise consumer awareness of recycling and the circular economy. Visit: www.pepsico.com
vtt and Carbodeon enable faster 3d printing with nanodiamonds
VTT and Carbodeon Ltd Oy have developed a plastic material suitable for consumer and industrial use, enabling faster 3D printing and improving the mechanical durability of the printouts. The uDiamond® filament, patented by Carbodeon and now available on the market, improves the usability of 3D technology and broadens the applications of 3D printing.
The excellent performance of the new 3D filament is based on the nanodiamond particles it contains and their ability to shape the structure and properties of the material. The material’s spherical nanodiamonds work like a lubricant and do not increase the clogging of the printer nozzle.
Nanodiamonds, for example, improve the thermal conductivity of the plastic material, which helps increase 3D printing speed. In Carbodeon’s tests, the printing speed could be increased up to 500 mm/s. In addition, the mechanical properties of the material were improved. Nanodiamond-reinforced PLA plastic is also easy to print with consumergrade printers.
“Using our chemical pilot devices, we at VTT produced the nanodispersed material required for the melt processing, and thus supported the creation of a new product,” says Jarmo Ropponen, Research Team Leader at VTT’s chemical pilots. Visit: www.vtt.fi
Novamont boosts compostable bioplastic production in Rome
Novamont, an Italian bioplastics firm which produces fully compostable products, has opened a revamped mater-Biopolymer plant south of Rome, boosting production capacity from 120,000 tonnes per year to 150,000.
The new facility will increase Novamont’s production of oRIGo–BI®, biopolyesters with a high level of renewables, and components of mATeR-BI® compostable bioplastics, used to manufacture various applications as an alternative to traditional plastics, including coffee cups and pods, carrier bags, cutlery, straws and food packaging. The overall investment amounts to €70 million, rising to €100 million within the next three years.
The company also recently secured a deal with the uK’s Co-op retailer to supply bio-based and compostable carrier bags for shoppers at its stores. The increased production of the Patrica site will help the company meet the demand from contracts for compostable plastic bags to retailers throughout europe. Visit: www.novamont.com
INDUSTRYNEWS
WFO showcases first shelter with recycled plastic from the river Po
Plastic waste that has been collected and then recycled can become a useful tool for dealing with emergency situations. This was the result of an experimental project presented at the Ecomondo fair in Rimini by Waste Free Oceans and Corepla, who, together with Protomax, have created a humanitarian shelter prototype with plastic collected along the river Po in Italy.
Corepla – the Italian non-profit-making consortium for the collection, recycling and recovery of the waste from plastic packaging materials – partnered with the Waste Free Oceans foundation to provide the material that was used for the first shelter.
The plastic waste, collected using experimental polyethylene barriers in the river Po, was recycled by Corepla and sent to the Storm Board plant of the English group Protomax Plastics, a company specialising in the production of recycled plastic panels that are mainly used in the construction sector, in order to produce the boards which served for building the shelter.
The aim of the project is to find a practical answer to the issue of marine litter and educate society on the recycling solutions available. Visit: www.wastefreeoceans.org
KHS and startup share developing unique PET bottle
Berlin startup share is the first beverage producer in Germany to sell its water in PET bottles made from 100% recyclate. With its expertise from the Bottles & Shapes™ consultancy program the KHS group is working with the company to design and develop the bottle in a very short time frame.
The plans are ambitious: according to startup share, in 2019 it wants to fill water into about a million bottles a month made entirely from recycled PET and thus save over 200 metric tons of plastic waste a year. For several weeks now the product has been on sale at Germany’s supermarket chain REWE and drug store dm and has received considerable media attention.
Besides the above-mentioned retailers share’s other partners are bottler Mineralbrunnen Allgäuer Alpenwasser and preform manufacturer Plastipack. KHS Corpoplast was also instrumental in the implementation of the project. Visit: www.khs.com
wrap signposts way towards sustainable use of plastics
Key actions businesses should take to help curb plastic packaging pollution have been laid out by WRAP in its UK Plastics Pact Roadmap to 2025.
The actions relate to a series of milestones aligned with the targets of The UK Plastics Pact, the world’s first programme to tackle the issue of plastic waste through collaboration across the entire supply chain; with the UK acting as a testbed for a planned network of country-specific, global Plastics Pacts.
The UK Plastics Pact Roadmap to 2025 provides a framework for all businesses, including members, to deliver the ambitious targets. It has been designed by WRAP as a living document that will evolve over time, reflecting changes in policy and innovations.
WRAP says achieving the milestones will bring huge benefits for the UK, but will require tough decisions and significant investment.
Marcus Gover, chief executive of WRAP says: “These targets cannot be delivered by business action alone. It needs policy intervention as well as consumers to play a part. Factors like Extended Producer Responsibility are going to have a profound influence on momentum, and effecting change in areas such as collections, recycling and reprocessing.” Visit: www.wrap.org.uk
INEOS to acquire Ashland Composites business
INeoS enterprises has agreed to acquire the entire composites business from Ashland Global Holdings Inc. for $1.1 billion. The businesses included in the transaction have combined sales of more than $1.1 billion per year. They employ 1300 people across 20 sites in europe, North and South America, Asia and middle east. The deal is expected to complete in the first half of 2019.
Ashley Reed, Ceo INeoS enterprises said, “Ashland’s composite resins have been the materials of choice for the world’s boat builders for 30 years, and for good reason. unlike wood they don’t rot, unlike metal they don’t corrode and unlike concrete they don’t crack.”
Ashland’s Composites Business produces unsaturated polyester resins, vinyl ester resins and gel coats. In addition to its wide range of gelcoats, the business also provides corrosionresistant fiberglass reinforced plastic (FRP), which provides exceptional durability, superior heat resistance, low maintenance and high performance for challenging environments. Visit: www.ineos.com
