Bio-Polym Blog

A new polyamide based on castor oil

EcoPaXX™ from DSM Engineering Plastics is a bio-based, high performance engineering plastic. The new material, which is based on polyamide (PA) 4.10, has been developed by DSM in recent years, and is now set to be commercialized.

Polyamide 4.10 is a “long-chain polyamide”. It pairs typical long-chain polyamide properties, such as low moisture [...]

Bioplastics are flourishing – A market study!

Shopping bags, fast-food utensils, and garbage sacks that decompose into compost after use: bioplastics are not only environmentally-friendly, but they can also be economically advantageous. “Despite the financial crisis, manufacturers of biodegradable plastics were able to demonstrate moderate growth in this past year,” explains Oliver Kutsch, president of Ceresana Research.

Potential or Over-enthusiasm?

A new study from [...]

New generation of Biopolymers made from Furanics

NatureWorks and Avantium, two leaders in the field of sustainable materials, announced a development partnership formed to more fully understand the properties and commercial potential of a new generation of polymers made from renewable resources.

The partnership is based on Avantium’s work in deriving monomers and polymers from non food biomass and on NatureWorks success in [...]

Bioplástico pode ser a nova fonte de riqueza do agronegócio

Os bioplásticos, feitos a partir de mandioca, cana-de-açúcar, milho e batata, podem substituir os plásticos à base de petróleo nos próximos 20 anos. A produção desses materiais também deve fortalecer a atividade de agricultores do País com a criação de mais um nicho de mercado.

“Da mesma forma que hoje temos usinas de biodiesel, [...]

An innovative PLA with high melting point

After the separation from the JV with Cargill, Teijin announced an entirely new type heat-resistant bioplastic. “BIOFRONT” has been developed by New Business Development Group, Teijin Limited in cooperation with Musashino Chemical Laboratory, Ltd. .

Bioplastics have attracted much attention for their environmentally-friendly nature, the product of plants such as corn or potatoes instead of petroleum. [...]

NatureWorks increases PLA production to 140 metric tons par year

NatureWorks LLC, maker of Ingeo™ biopolymers, wholly owned by Cargill and located in Blair (Nebraska-USA), has successfully installed and commissioned additional equipment allowing the facility to increase production from 70 metric tons to 140 metric tons (~ 300 million pounds), its full Ingeo design capacity. Bringing this full design capacity on-line is NatureWorks’ second [...]

Some new bio-based polyamides

Evonik Industries AG (Germany) has added a group of bio-based polyamides to its VESTAMID® family. The polymers, sold under the VESTAMID® Terra brand name, are based on monomers produced partly or entirely from fatty acids. The most important source is currently castor oil, obtained from the seed of the castor oil plant, which is not [...]

PLA: Cargill-Teijin JV stopped – NatureWorks fully owned by Cargill

Cargill will assume full ownership of NatureWorks LLC, as a part of Teijin Limited’s general portfolio restructuring in response to the global economic downturn. NatureWorks, which was previously a 50-50 JV between Cargill and Teijin, is now an independent company wholly owned by Cargill. The Company which manufactures Ingeo™ biobased plastics and resins derived from [...]

New renewably-sourced Thermoplastic Polyurethanes

Merquinsa announced the launch of a new family of Pearlthane® ECO TPU grades made with DuPont™ Cerenol® renewably-sourced polyol in a strategic collaboration between the two companies. It will complement Merquinsa’s existing Pearlthane® ECO polyester and polyether ranges based on renewable sources designed for a wide range of footwear, sport & leisure, electronics and automotive [...]

Biopolietileno a partir da cana-de-açúcar

A Norma ASTM D6866-06 é utilizada para determinar o conteúdo de carbono de fonte renovável em uma amostra de produtos sólidos, líquidos ou gasosos. Essa metodologia permite diferenciar carbonos de fonte fóssil e renovável. Através desse método, constatou-se que o polietileno produzido é 100% de fontes renováveis.

A cadeia na qual o polietileno verde é produzido [...]

To expand development on 100% renewably sourced polypropylene

Brazil’s leading petrochemical maker Braskem has announced plans to invest R$ 8,25 million over the next three years to expand research work on green propylene for the production of polypropylene (PP) based on 100% renewable raw material. Braskem produced the first green polypropylene of the world in 2008, certified as from 100% renewable origin. With [...]

Définition des Bioplastiques

Bioplastiques : Matières plastiques biodégradables et/ou bio-sourcées.

Ceci comprend donc : - les matières biodégradables et bio-sourcées comme les PHA, PLA, polysaccharides … - les matières majoritairement bio-sourcées (et non biodégradables) comme certains TPU, PUR, PA … issus d’huiles végétales, de diols obtenus par fermentation …, voire les PE et PP “verts” car obtenus par exemple à partir [...]

What is biotech? – Videos presentation

take a look at this easy-to-understand overview that explains biotech in simple terms!

Biotechnology in the Laboratory

Source

– Related posts / Billets à lire, en complément : The future of White Biotechnology in China Germany: Home to Top Biotech Research? List of companies producing biodegradable and/or bio-based plastics

Warning against oxo-degradable additives

Oxo-degradable – suggests degradation in the presence of oxygen. Polyolefins (PP, PE …) will fragment in the presence of oxygen and sunlight (UV) when the stabilizers added to the material to prevent such abiotic degradation have lost their efficacy. Some additives such as heavy metals and other materials, will accelerate this fragmentation. However, such fragmentation [...]

What are bio-based materials? – Video presentation

Learn how materials, such as bioplastics, are being developed from renewable resources!

Source

– Related posts / Billets à lire, en complément : Bioplastics: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) Highly Functional Bioplastics – Video presentation ‘Green Plastics’ Search in Database

Corn-based bioplastics – Video presentation

This Video discusses the uses of corn-based bioplastics.

Source

– Related posts / Billets à lire, en complément : Plastics from Potatoes – Video demonstration Soy Plastics (2/2) ‘Green Plastics’ Search in Database

Building blocks for bioplastics, pure butanediol from natural sugars

Genomatica, a sustainable chemicals company, announced that the company’s engineering team has achieved an important milestone toward the production of commercial grade 1,4-butanediol (BDO) from renewable feedstocks. The company can process BDO produced from sugar to greater than 99 percent purity using a cost-effective recovery process. The new process begins with producing BDO in fermentation [...]

Biodegradable label less eco-friendly than it promises – A point of view!

In an attempt to reduce pollution and the amount of waste going into limited landfill space, South Africa has started to buy into a newly developed form of plastic that rapidly degrades, known as oxo-biodegradable plastic. However, these plastics have come under fire by environmentalists because, contrary to how they are marketed, they are not [...]

List of companies producing biodegradable and/or bio-based plastics

An exhaustive list of companies producing biodegradable and/or bio-based plastics:

Anqing Hexing Chemical Co. Ltd. Archer Daniels Midland Company Arkema BASF SE Biograde BioMatera Biomer BIO-ON srl BIOP Biopolymer Technologies AG Biotec Braskem S.A. Cara Plastics Inc Cargill Incorporated Cereplast Inc Cerestech Inc China Henan Piaoan Group Co. Ltd Crystalsev Comercio e Representatcao Ltda DaniMer Scientific LLC Durect Corporation E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company (Dupont) EBM Biodegradable Materials EMS-Chemie Holding AG Fasal Wood KEG FINASUCRE s.a. FKuR [...]

To use more sustainable materials in automotive industry

Ford’s holistic and sky’s-the-limit approach to using more sustainable materials means that researchers are hard at work developing new implementations of other renewable materials to help reduce resource burdens, waste and emissions as well as help reduce the weight of vehicles and improve their fuel economy. Applications on the horizon include:

Corn-based, compostable and natural-fiber filled [...]

Bioplasticos com penas de aves

Um grupo de cinco cientistas da Escola Superior de Tecnologias de Viseu (ESTV) está a desenvolver um projecto inovador que promete dar uso às 20 mil toneladas de penas produzidas anualmente pela indústria avícola portuguesa, transformando-as em bioplásticos. Através do recurso a tecnologias convencionais da indústria dos plásticos, o objectivo é criar «uma alternativa nobre para [...]

Renewably sourced engineering polymers from DuPont

DuPont Engineering Polymers announced the full commercialization of several families of high-performance renewably sourced engineering polymers, including DuPont™ Hytrel® RS thermoplastic elastomers, DuPont™ Sorona® EP thermoplastic resins and DuPont™ Zytel® RS long chain nylons, making DuPont the company with the broadest range of renewably sourced engineering resins. Customer demand for bio-based polymers continues to be [...]

De l’usage du préfixe « bio » dans les plastiques – Un point de vue !

Qu’est-ce qu’un bioplastique ? Un plastique issu de ressources végétales comme le maïs ? Un plastique biodégradable ? Un plastique compostable ? Les trois à la fois ? Depuis plusieurs mois, les experts du Comité européen de normalisation (CEN) planchent sur le sujet. La question est loin d’être simple. Et les enjeux sont importants. D’un côté, les producteurs de [...]

Microscopic Manufacturers Produce BioPlastics

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“Organic waste from agriculture, industries and households forms a very large resource that is currently discarded or at best transformed into biogas. From a sustainability point of view it is desired to convert these organic resources in chemicals,” says Mark van Loosdrecht of Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands, who has been working on [...]

Quelques définitions officielles

Très récemment, un ensemble de définitions est paru dans le Journal officiel de la République Francaise (JORF) n°0087 du 12 avril 2009 intitulé “Vocabulaire de l’environnement (liste de termes, expressions et définitions adoptés)”

biodégradabilité, n.f. Domaine : Environnement. Définition : Qualité d’une substance biodégradable. Note : La biodégradabilité s’apprécie en prenant en compte à la fois [...]