Sustainable and biodegradable polymers with lignin thyssenkrupp to build second bioplastics plant in China thyssenkrupp’s plant engineering business recently won another order to build a bioplastics plant based on the patented PLAneo technology. It will be built in South China and will produce 30,000 tonnes of polylactide (PLA) annually. The new plant will produce PLA among other things for the manufacture of eco-friendly packaging, fibers, textiles and engineering plastics, and is scheduled to go into operation in fall 2021. thyssenkrupp will design the plant and supply the key components. Together with Stora Enso (headqaurtered in Helsinki, Finland), Rencom (Knivsta, Sweden) is working on the further valorisation of lignin where Lineo by Stora Enso is combined with biocomponents to create renewable and functional biogranulates that can replace plastic in different applications. Stora Enso and RenCom are taking big steps towards replacing fossil-based materials together. Through this collaboration, Stora Enso and RenCom have agreed on the supply of thousand tonnes scale of Lineo by Stora Enso (lignin) to RenCom’s newly built demo plant unit near Stockholm, Sweden, where RenCom produces more sustainable and biodegradable polymers. Stora Enso’s award-winning Lineo will be used by RenCom as a raw material to produce RENOL ® . This sustainable material will be introduced as a competitor to normal plastic bags, infill materials in football pitches and replacement of packaging plastics, as well as advanced materials for the automotive industry in early 2021. Lignin is one of the main components of wood, it gives strength to trees binding the cells together. Lignin is also the biggest by-product on earth, with great energy value, which means that lignin has mainly been incinerated for energy in pulp and paper production, overlooking the value of this raw material for too long. Stora Enso has been among the pioneers to extract lignin and study possible other end-uses for this bio-based raw material. RenCom can upcycle lignin to produce high quality granulates for the plastic industry. “We at RenCom are proud to announce the collaboration with Stora Enso, a pioneer in the lignin industry, with the largest production of kraft lignin in the world. It is an important step in our development and expansion, securing raw materials for the start of production in thousands of tonnes to produce our patent-protected material - Renol. This collaboration also contributes to the creation of a strong Nordic supply chain” says Christopher Carrick, founder and CEO of RenCom. Together with Stora Enso, RenCom continues to optimise the use of Lineo to discover further advantages in the bio-material market when replacing many fossil-based polymers. MT www.lignin.se Polylactide is a biodegradable plastic which, thanks to its physical and mechanical properties, can replace many conventional materials such as PET, polypropylene and polystyrene. The feedstock for the PLAneo process is lactic acid, which is obtained from renewable raw materials such as sugar, starch or cellulose. The technology converts lactic acid into PLA in a particularly efficient way that conserves resources. In its development, thyssenkrupp was able to draw on decades of know-how gained in the construction of more than 400 plastics plants worldwide. “With PLAneo our customers can dispense with fossil resources and significantly reduce CO 2 emissions – at production costs that are competitive with those of conventional plastics,” says Udo Mühlbauer, product manager at thyssenkrupp. “The technology is also suitable for large-scale plants with capacities of up to 100,000 tonnes per year. In addition we have reduced energy consumption in the process through the use of an energy recovery system, further reducing costs and making production even more sustainable.” thyssenkrupp built the first commercial plant based on PLAneo technology for China’s biggest food and beverage company COFCO. It went into operation in Changchun at the end of 2018.MT www.thyssenkrupp-industrial-solutions.com 8 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/20] Vol. 15
