Show-Review Chinaplas
Show-Review Chinaplas 2012 CHINAPLAS 2012 again made great strides forward, evidenced by the double-digit growth in terms of both the physical size of the show scale and the number of exhibitors. Compared with Guangzhou last year, CHINAPLAS 2012 increased in size by 17% to cover 210,000 m². The numbers of exhibitors increased by 13%. More than 2,700 exhibitors from 35 countries and regions displayed machinery and the latest chemicals and raw materials. The keen international participation underlines the industry‘s optimistic view of the Chinese market, as well as the strong international status of CHINAPLAS itself. In a special Bioplastics Zone about 37 companies were listed in the show catalogue to present their products and services in terms of biobased and/or biodegradable plastics. However, a closer look on site revealed that about 20% of these companies did not really have products from the bioplastics field (including a number of companies offering oxo-degradable products). And of course bioplastics MAGAZINE had a well-visited booth. Almost precisely the 1000 copies of bioplastics MAGAZINE that were printed extra for this show were gone after four very busy days in Shanghai. In addition to the Chinaplas Preview that we published in the last issue, we now add some more small reports about selected companies from the Bioplastics Zone. (Photo: Ida Lau, Shenzhen Esun) Hanfeng: Suzhou Hanfeng New Material Co. Ltd. from Kunshan devote themselves to research, manufacturing and supplying of various biodegradable resins, mainly based on starch. According to the ASTMD 6866 standard, their products show a biobased content of more than 60%. The materials derived from natural resources are 100% compostable (EN 13432 certified). By using corn as their main raw material, they guarantee the raw material is 100% organic with no contaminants. The materials can be used for food applications. With a temperature range of -20°C to 120°C they are even microwavable. www.biohanfeng.com SK Chemicals: SK Chemicals, headquartered in Gyeonggi, South Korea (not located in the bioplastics zone, but in Hall N2) displayed three PLA based innovations. EcoPlaN for packaging films and sheets with flexibility offers a young’s modulus of 2650 N/mm² compared to 3920 N/mm² for conventional PLA. The film is less noisy (79dB versus 82 dB for conventional PLA). The second product line is EcoPlaN for fibre and textile applications with a softer touch and better performance. For durable applications SK Chemicals offer an EcoPlaN line suitable to replace ABS, PP. PC/ABS and others. These resins offer enhanced heat deflection temperatures, impact properties and a reduced crystallization half life. www.skchemicals.com Techno Polymer: Techno Polymer (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., the Chinese branch of Techno Polymer of Japan, showcased their BIOLLOY ® plant-derived materials. This PLA/ABS blend is available in different grades and can be used for a variety of injection moulding applications such as cosmetic cases or even musical instruments. www.techpo.co.jp 10 bioplastics MAGAZINE [03/12] Vol. 7
Show-Review 150 140 130 120 110 100 90 80 70 60 PC HDT B (0.45MPa) [°C] E-Commute ® Planext ® Biofront ® PLA 50 0 20 40 60 80 100 Biomass content [%] Teijin: Another company outside the bioplastics zone was Teijin Chemicals Ltd (exhibiting in hall N1), presenting a number of new products. Biofront ® is a stereo-complex PLA blend with a biobased content of 50% up to 93%, and a heat deflection temperature (HDT-B @ 0.45 MPa) of up to 95°C, offering high gloss, high surface hardness, good chemical resistance (e.g. against sweat or cosmetics) and good electrical resistance. Plantext is offered as ‘plant based polycarbonate’, a new amorphous polymer with a biomass content of 25- 80%. The main component is isosorbide, a compound synthesized from starch obtained from corn or other plants. Its melting point is higher than that of polylactic acid. It also is highly resistant to hydrolysis and impact. As an amorphous plastic with randomly aligned molecular chains, it boasts a light-transmittance factor of 91%, making it suitable for lenses, disks and films. Offering melt viscosities similar to that of petroleum-based PC resins, it is suitable for injection, extrusion and blow molding. The material with the highest heat resistance is E-Commute, a PC/PLA alloy with 10-25% renewable content. Without glass reinforcement, HDT-B (at 0.45 MPa !) values of 105°C are achievable, and with glass even as high as 135°C. The graph shows all 3 materials compared to pure PLA and pure PC. www.teijin.co.jp Fuwin: Shandong Fuwin New Material Co., Ltd from Shandong presented themselves as a supplier of PBS, a fully biodegradable synthetic aliphatic polyester. PBS can be used for a range of applications such as film, lamination, extrusion, monofilament, fibre, injection moulding, foamed sheet and blow moulding. Besides PBS, Fuwin offer BDO (butanediol), GBL (butyrolactone) and THF (tetrahydrofuran). Fuwin also strives to develop and market biobased products. www.china-newmaterials.com.hk Toray: Toray Industries Inc. headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, introduced PLA powder. They have been developing new polymer particles by applying polymer chemistry, organic chemistry and nanotechnology which are core technologies at Toray. The result is a new technology for manufacturing micro-particulate PLA. www.toray.co.jp/english/plastics Dan Sawyer (NatureWorks) The 4th International Seminar on Bioplastics Applications: Parallel to Chinaplas the organisers (Adsale Exhibition Services), in cooperation with the Shenzhen Plastics & Rubber Association, the Shanghai Society of Plastics Industry and the Innovative Union Research Institute on Low-Carbon Bio-Materials, invited visitors to the ‘The 4th International Seminar on Bioplastics Applications’. Over a 2-day programme speakers from the Chinese Government, as well as from international brands, shared their knowledge and expertise with the delegates. The list of speakers included names such as Isao Inomata (Japan BioPlastics Association), Dan Sawyer (NatureWorks) or Zhang Xiang Nan (Shenzhen Esun). Further presentations were offered from BASF, AIB-Vinçotte, LK Group, Kingfa, RheinChemie, Arkema, Fuji-Xerox, Wuhan Huali, DuPont and Purac. The seminar was well received, with over 160 delegates each day and very good feedback from these delegates. Adsale is definitely planning the 5th event of this kind for next year (in Guangzhou). bioplastics MAGAZINE [03/12] Vol. 7 11
