K‘2010 Review Green ABS Green ABS from IRPC Public Company Limited from Bangkok, Thailand is an innovation of ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene) resin as a result of discovery and research to replace synthetic rubber (butadiene) with natural rubber in the ABS manufacturing process. Keeping in mind that today only the butadiene component (~16%) can be made from renewable resources, this approach by IRPC is a good step into the right direction. IRPC is a pioneer who started to produce ABS with natural rubber. The technique has been developed and tested by IRPC Research and Development division. Currently only 25% of the butadiene component can be made from natural rubber from the rubber tree (ficus elastica) representing a total of 4% renewable content in the ABS. However, as Sumeth Wetabgyamart, Division Manager of IPRC told bioplastics MAGAZINE at K’2010, the engineers are working on a green ABS with 100% biobased butadiene. Currently IPRC offer three grades of green ABS, NRG320, NRG820 and NRP 120 with 4% natural rubber (NR). The grades NRG340, NRG840 and NRP140 with 8% NR are under development. www.iprc.co.th Olfactive Neutrality The French company BIOSPHERE showed their BIOPLAST generation of bioplastic resins. Products made with Bioplast resins are 100% biodegradable and compostable according the EN 13432. The German branch Biotec GmbH achieves a production capacity of 30,000 tons of Bioplast. These resins are manufactured using renewable resources (potato starch, poly lactic acid, etc). The stake purchased by the French SPHERE group in the Feculerie Haussimont starch plant (Champagne Ardenne) gives Biosphere the wherewithal to produce materials of the highest quality. After processing by plastics manufacturers, the potato starch at the base of some of the grades of Bioplast resins assures the olfactive neutrality that is essential for food packaging applications (film, trays, jars. ..). Bioplast resins are the first ever plasticizerfree bioplastics, making it possible to obtain more homogeneous products and avoid problems of sediment and water vapour emission during conversion. Bioplast materials are converted like traditional plastic. Plastics converters have no structural investment to make, they simply adapt conversion parameters to Bioplast. Last but not least, Bioplast products can be coloured with biodegradable masterbatches, be printed with water-based inks, and marked with the ‘OK COMPOST’ and DIN Certco ‘Compostable’ label after registration. www.biosphere.eu A World of Solutions Rhodia Engineering Plastics reinforced its pledge to champion sustainable development with the launch at K’2010 of more ground-breaking innovations in materials, processing technology and advanced services. Featured under the banner ‘A World of Solutions’, its pioneering advances, reflect Rhodia’s commitment to sustainability through preservation of non-renewable resources and reducing the environmental impact of its product portfolio. Listed for the third consecutive year in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI World) as one of the topperforming chemical companies worldwide in the area of social and environmental responsibility, Rhodia considers sustainable development as a source of innovation and a key part of its growth strategy. In the months leading up to K’2010, Rhodia presented several important innovations in line with this, including bio-sourced polyamide Technyl ® eXten, 4earth recycling solutions, ‘Fuel’In by Technyl ® ’ for fuel contact applications, and Technyl ® Super Impact for metal replacement. www.rhodia.com 14 bioplastics MAGAZINE [06/10] Vol. 6
K‘2010 Review Compostable Biopolymer for Film Applications Kafrit Industries Ltd, form Negev, Israel presented (among other products) its Ecomp new product line of compostable biopolymer solutions. Ecomp 120 for film applications fulfills the accepted standards EN13432, ASTM D6400-04 and the Japanese green PLA Standard for compostable and biodegradable polymers. Thus it has the OK Compost environmental logo for films between 15- 106 µm. The compound, a result of two years of research, is a combination of PLA and modified polyester with the addition of antioxidants and process additives. The unique combination results in a compound that processes easily on conventional film extrusion equipment with only minor changes to process parameters, namely reduced temperature and controlled screw speed. Films of 15µm up to 120µm may be produced and show good weldability, excellent mechanical properties and good printability. www.kafrit.co.il Liquid Wood and Cellulose www.albis.com ALBIS from Hamburg, Germany not only presented the Arboform, Arbofill and Arboblend products of German supplier Tecnaro but also their own product CELLIDOR ® . This organic thermoplastic cellulose ester is produced by Albis and consists of approximately 45 % cellulose, a renewable natural material. This means that, unlike traditional plastics, it is only partially dependent on finite fossil fuel resources. On the one hand Cellidor has a conservation effect in the production phase, whilst on the other its cellulose content makes it climateneutral once recycled. Not least, because of its outstanding property profile, Cellidor can already look back on over 100 years of market success: it combines the classic strengths of a thermoplastic with the advantages of a bio-plastic. These include the characteristics of a pleasant and warm surface, the self-polishing effect as well as the almost unlimited range of possible colours. In addition to opaque colours that have a high brilliance and depth, translucent and highly transparent colours are also easy to manufacture. Cellidor is available in form of cellulose propionate (CP) wich can be formulated in heat stabilized grades or customized e.g. with marble or metallic effect. The other variant is a cellulose acetate butyrate available also formulations resistant to UV light and waterproof for outdoor use. Bio-PET In early October Nagoya City, Japan based Toyota Tsusho Corporation announced that they were planning to establish the first global bio-PET integrated supply chain including, procurement of bio-ethanol, production of bio-mono ethylene glycol, tolling business of PET, and marketing of bio-PET. At K’2010 Toyota Tsusho announced that it is sourcing its sugarcane-based ethanol to produce ethylene for the use of monoethylene glycol from Brazilian oil and energy company Petrobras. The company is expected to supply 43,000 m³/a of ethanol for 10 years, which is estimated to be worth 0 million. In her blog at www/icis.com/blogs Doris de Guzman mentioned that she was able to get information from New Jersey, USA-based Petron Scientech, who is supplying the bio-ethylene and bio-MEG processing technology for Toyota Tsusho‘s bio-PET business in Taiwan. Toyota Tsusho‘s bio-MEG plant will be built by US-based Chemtex, which has the exclusive rights to build the plants using Petron‘s technologies. Petron said they have similar projects going on in China for a Chinese domestic company. www.toyota-tsusho.com bioplastics MAGAZINE [06/10] Vol. 6 15
