Issue 06/2018

Bioplastics from waste streams
By:
Vlaďka Matušková
Project Manager
NAFIGATE Corporation, a.s.
Prague, Czech Republic
Waste Cooking
Oil as a Source
for PHA
Low quality waste cooking oil (WCO) has traditionally
been regarded as a low-value waste product, unfit for
further use. Not by Czech company NAFIGATE Corporation,
however, whose Hydal Biotechnology uses 100 % waste in
the form of waste cooking oil to produce fully biodegradable
PHA biopolymer. The company uses oil also as a source of
energy, making biopolymer significantly more affordable
than bioplastics manufactured from the so-called firstgeneration
feedstock, such as corn or sugar cane. Hence,
the technology is Zero Waste with 50 % less energy
consumption than conventional polyethylene (PE).
Nafigate Corporation’s innovative and patented Hydal
biotechnology has won global acclaim, earning, for example,
the 2015 Frost and Sullivan Technology Innovation Award,
Seal of Excellence, as well as being named one of the Top 10
products in China. It is a technology for upcycling: it takes
a waste product and transforms this into a completely
different product – a biopolymer. The company’s strategy
is based on a production system that is aimed at closing
the loop, in line with the key principle of the concept of the
Circular Economy, which is to retain the value of a material
as long as possible within the cycle.
Moreover, the environmental aspects of this breakthrough
technology have been analysed with the help of Life Cycle
Assessment (LCA), the only tool to objectively assess the
impacts of Hydal PHA manufacturing on the environment.
Due to the Zero Waste production system and use of waste
material, the LCA demonstrated a significant positive effect
of the production of PHB polymers from Waste Cooking
Oil using Hydal’s environmental biotechnology. Compared
to polymers made from first generation feedstock and
conventional polyethylene, Hydal PHA production does
not result in the depletion of natural resources, has a
smaller CO 2
footprint and is not associated with ecotoxicity,
freshwater toxicity, acidification, eutrophication and other
negative environmental impacts.
The final biopolymer can be used in various fields,
including for bioplastics production. Another key area is
the cosmetics industry, for which Hydal PHA provides ideal
properties. Hydal PHA is offered in the form of a whole
range of P3HB particles with a nano surface area of up to
8 m 2 /g. According to the certified analysis, the purity of the
final biopolymer – P3HB or PHBV – is higher than 99 %,
with a high molecular weight. Recently, the company in
cooperation with Nafigate Cosmetics launched a new
product - Coconut shower peeling milk, in which microbeads
have been replaced with Hydal P3HB. As a new cosmetics
eco-design concept, it is being market under the name
“Dedicated to You and Nature” to reflect its biodegradable
and biocompatible properties.
PHA can be also used in the medical sector, since P3HB
particles of varying sizes are able to act as transport
systems for active substances. P3HB is additionally
approved for medical purposes by the FDA. Hydal PHA
enables the production of microfibres with a nano surface
area of 30-40 m 2 /g.
Agriculture is another area, in which Hydal PHA may find
application. Hydal PHA-based enhanced efficiency fertiliser
represents controlled-release fertilizers, which gradually
supply the nutrients to the soil. This controlled-release
technology results in some 50 % less fertiliser being
needed compared to conventional methods (fertilizers
are coated with PHA). Furthermore, waste biomass from
the production process offers another source for fertiliser
manufacturing, while last but not least, phosphorus from
the production process can be recycled.
www.nafigate.com
20 bioplastics MAGAZINE [06/18] Vol. 13