Review PLA sheet
Review PLA sheet material with better impact properties UK-based VitasheetGroup has developed a new range of biodegradable PLA based materials which offer greater impact resistance and improved processability — properties which are often challenging with PLA. ViForm Bio 9100 and ViPrint Bio 9100 offer the traditional benefits of PLA products — compostability, renewable resources origins, but have been modified so they will have a much better impact strength‚ improving overall durability of the material and affording excellent performance in die-cutting and folding. Biodegradable materials such as PLA are currently used in a number of applications ranging from food packaging to blisters, but until now have had little interest for producers of horticulture labels or cosmetic boxes due to issues with brittleness and folding ability. “What has traditionally limited the use of bio-degradable materials in certain applications has now become a thing of the past,“ says Stephane Jacquet, VitasheetGroup Business Manager for the Packaging and Graphic Arts sectors. ViForm Bio 9100 and ViPrint Bio 9100 are available in white and transparent and gauges ranging from 300 micron to 650 micron. www.vitasheetgroup.com DuPont expands portfolio of renewably sourced polymers With Sorona ® EP thermoplastic resins, Hytrel ® RS thermoplastic elastomers, Biomax ® RS packaging resins and Selar ® VP breathable films DuPont presented in Düsseldorf a number of new plastics based on renewable resources. A key ingredient in Sorona EP is Bio-PDO which is made by DuPont and Tate & Lyle. Bio-PDO will be used in the two glass-reinforced grades of Sorona EP that will initially be available. Hytrel RS incorporates Cerenol renewably sourced polyol made with Bio-PDO. Initial grades of Hytrel RS will have a renewable content range of 25-50%. Biomax RS 1001 is a renewably sourced polytrimethyl terephthalate (PTT) offering aimed at rigid packaging applications such as injection molded containers, caps and consumer items such as media cases where it would replace polypropylene. Initial applications are targeted for cosmetics, food and consumer goods packaging. Biomax RS 1001 incorporates has a renewable content of 35% with Bio-PDO as the key ingredient. Selar VP is a renewably sourced breathable film, designed for use in applications where foods need to respire, such as fresh fish and produce. It is up to 40% renewably sourced with the incorporation of a vegetable based fatty acid. www.dupont.com The “green” challenge For high-potential applications – ranging from refrigerator insulation to imitation forest floors Bayer MaterialScience from Leverkusen, Germany has now developed polyols (as component for polyurethanes) based up to 70% by weight on renewable raw materials to help cut down emissions. Polyurethane all-foam mattresses are currently very much in vogue and their market share has been rising for years. However, consumers would be unwilling to accept compromises in performance or above all durability. Following extensive development work, experts from Bayer MaterialScience were able to raise the properties of the „green“ foams up to the same high level as standard products. At K 2007, Bayer MaterialScience also presented a molded-foam part typically used in car seats. The polyol used for this was also based largely on renewable raw materials. Another exhibit on display was a high-end refrigerator. The proportion of renewable raw materials it uses is double that of conventional polyurethane insulating foam systems. Walking or running on a soft surface provides a more comfortable underfoot sensation. An artificial forest floor that Bayer MaterialScience has produced by combining a viscoelastic flexible polyurethane foam with textile overlays and a soft pile offers this feeling for your own bathroom. An extremely high volume of a polyol based on modified vegetable oils is used in the formulation without producing any adverse effect on technical properties such as tensile strength and durability. www.bayer.com Photo: Bayer 12 bioplastics MAGAZINE [07/04] Vol. 2
Timberland shoesoles with renewable content in the polyol component Dow Footwear Solutions announced during K‘2007 that it will supply its VORALAST Soling System with renewable content to The Timberland Company for the Miōn ® Spring 2008 line of outdoor footwear. Dow Footwear Solutions is a business unit recently launched by The Dow Chemical Company and is a leading provider of innovative solutions to the footwear industry worldwide. „We are very excited about our development partnership with Timberland that has used our VORALAST R series system with renewable polyol content to deliver both a durable, water resistant polyurethane sole and an advance in sustainability,” said Antonio Batistini, Research & Development Director for Dow Footwear Solutions. www.dowfootwear.com PLA bottle blowing machinery Stretch blow moulding machines for the production of PLA bottles are part of the scope of supply of Sistec srl. from Pordenone, Italy. Their models SSB- 02/03 are the ideal solution, versatile and easy to use, as a spokesman said. Sistec presented themselves on the stand of MAG Plastic SA in Hall 13, right next to SIG Corpoplast from Hamburg, Germany. SIG‘s BLOMAX machine series were the first to produce the PLA bottles of Biota (USA) and Belu (UK). In addition, sister company SIG Plasmax offers barrier coating systems to apply an inner layer of SiOx (glass) to both, PLA and PET bottles for enhanced barrier properties against water vapour, CO 2 and Oxygen. www.sistec-pn.it, www.sig.biz 10mm twinscrew compounder An ideal solution for compounding minimal amounts of test compositions, for example of sensitive materials or with nano materials, is the 10 mm twinscrew compounder of Rondol from Stone, UK. Non Invasive mixing allows rapid batch mixing at a selected degree of specific energy allowing totally enclosed high shear or low shear mixing. The twinscrew compounding technique meets the essential requirements of • High torque dispersive mixing with optimised screw profiles • The capability of adding measured quantities of nano materials to melt stream • The facility to process small quantities • A small equipment ‘footprint’ to allow bench top/clean room installation www.rondol.com Eco-Smart TM hot runner system for PLA D-M-E, a Milacron company introduced Eco-Smart hot runner systems, which are ideaI for processing “green“ plastic resins - proven successful with PLA. Eco-Smart Hot Runner Systems provide an ecological molding advantage. D-M-E is qualifying additional polymers as they become available. Key Advantages of Eco-Smart Hot Runner Systems: • Uninterrupted material flow path for reduced shear • Corrosion-resistant components • Front-removable heaters and thermocouples for easy system maintenance • Thermal isolation component design for improved performance • Superior thermal control from machine nozzle to moulded part surface Masterbatches for PLA Masterbatched for PLA were shown by VANETTI MASTERBATCHES from Marnate, Italy. The masterbatches for PLA granulate are particularly recommended for film extrusion. Continuous research in this field, in cooperation with University Politecnico Milano, Italy, will allow the range of masterbatches to be expanded in compliance with the standards requested in the various fields of application. Certification according to EN 13432 is expected for the end of this year. www.vanettimaster.com www.dme.net bioplastics MAGAZINE [07/04] Vol. 2 13
