bioplasticsMAGAZINE_1205

ioplastics magazine Vol. 7 ISSN 1862-5258
Basics
Plastics from CO 2
| 44
September / October
05 | 2012
Highlights
Fibers / Textiles | 16
Polyurethanes / Elastomers | 34
Cover-Story
Textile bio-based materials design challenge | 16
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Editorial
dear
readers
Are plastics made from CO 2
to be considered as bioplastics? Not
necessarily, I would say. If these plastics are in fact biodegradable
they would fall under our definition of bioplastics (see our revised
and extended ‘Glossary 3.0’ on page 50ff). And if such plastics are
made from CO 2
that comes, via combustion or other chemical processes,
from fossil based raw materials, we should at least avoid
calling call them biobased. Nevertheless, I believe that the use of
such CO 2
to make plastics (or other useful products) and so prevent,
or at least delay, the CO 2
from entering the atmosphere, is a good
approach in the sense of our overall objectives. It will certainly require
further evaluation and even standardisation until CO 2
based
plastics can/will be defined as a new (bio-) plastic class or category.
Plastics produced from CO 2
, definitely one of the major topics in
this issue of bioplastics MAGAZINE, is accompanied by further highlights.
In several articles we report about biobased polyurethanes
and elastomers and we present some articles about fibres and textile
applications.
In this issue we also present the five finalists for the 7 th Bioplastics
Award. The number of entries was not as large as in previous
years, however I doubt that the innovative power of this industry is
flagging. So we kindly ask all of you to keep your eyes open and report
interesting innovations that have a significant market relevance
whenever you see them. The 8 th Bioplastics Award is definitely coming.
The 7 th ‘Bioplastics Oskar’ will be presented on November 6 th in
Berlin at the European Bioplastics Conference.
Follow us on twitter!
www.twitter.com/bioplasticsmag
Until then, we hope you enjoy reading bioplastics MAGAZINE
Sincerely yours
Michael Thielen
Be our friend on Facebook!
www.facebook.com/bioplasticsmagazine
bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7 3

Content
Editorial ...................................3
News .................................05 - 10
Application News .......................20 - 22
Material News .........................30 - 35
Suppliers Guide ........................54 - 56
Event Calendar .............................57
Companies in this issue .....................58
05|2012
September/October
Events
12 Will bioplastics benefit from Olympic boost?
Bioplastics Award
14 Bioplastics Award Shortlist
Fibres & Textiles
16 Textile bio-based materials design challenge
18 Bioplastics – to be walked all over
Materials
24 PBS production
26 From meat waste to bioplastics
Polyurethanes / Elastomers
36 A new compostable TPE
38 PPC polyol from CO 2
40 Polyurethanes from orange peel and CO 2
42 Renewable building blocks for polyurethanes
Basics
43 No ‘greenwashing‘ with bioplastics
44 Plastics made from CO 2
48 Sustainable Plastic from CO 2
Waste
Imprint
Publisher / Editorial
Dr. Michael Thielen (MT)
Samuel Brangenberg (SB)
Layout/Production
Julia Hunold, Mark Speckenbach
Head Office
Polymedia Publisher GmbH
Dammer Str. 112
41066 Mönchengladbach, Germany
phone: +49 (0)2161 6884469
fax: +49 (0)2161 6884468
info@bioplasticsmagazine.com
www.bioplasticsmagazine.com
Media Adviser
Elke Hoffmann, Caroline Motyka
phone: +49(0)2161-6884467
fax: +49(0)2161 6884468
eh@bioplasticsmagazine.com
Print
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47807 Krefeld, Germany
Print run: 4,200 copies
bioplastics magazine
ISSN 1862-5258
bioplastics magazine is published
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bioplastics MAGAZINE (Eu) is printed on
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bioplastics MAGAZINE is read
in 91 countries.
Not to be reproduced in any form
without permission from the publisher.
The fact that product names may not be
identified in our editorial as trade marks is
not an indication that such names are not
registered trade marks.
bioplastics MAGAZINE tries to use British
spelling. However, in articles based on
information from the USA, American
spelling may also be used.
Editorial contributions are always welcome.
Please contact the editorial office via
mt@bioplasticsmagazine.com.
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Cover
Photo: iStockphoto.com/mumininan
4 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7
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News
Metabolix to cooperate
with Antibióticos
Metabolix, Inc. (Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA),
announced end of July that it has signed a letter of intent
(LOI) with Antibióticos S.A. for production of Mirel
biopolymer resin (PHA) at its manufacturing facility in
Leon, Spain.
Under the terms of the LOI, Metabolix will begin work
immediately with Antibióticos to conduct a series of
validation production runs to demonstrate fermentation
and recovery of Mirel biopolymer resin on full productionscale
equipment at Antibióticos. The companies plan to
enter into a definitive contract manufacturing agreement
for Mirel biopolymers based upon the validation
production runs as well as completion of economic and
engineering feasibility studies. Metabolix will own the
Mirel biopolymer resin produced during the validation
production runs.
“The agreement with Antibióticos represents a
significant step forward in establishing a new supply
chain for Mirel biopolymers to serve our customers
worldwide and to continue product development in
high value-added applications,” said Richard P. Eno,
president and chief executive officer of Metabolix. “In
addition, Antibióticos is located in the European Union
near many of our targeted customers. We are impressed
with the track record, technical expertise and facilities at
Antibioticos, and believe their equipment is well-suited
to the manufacturing process used to produce Mirel
biopolymers at commercial scale.”
“This agreement brings together our experience
and technical capacity with Metabolix’s technology and
processes in a way that supports the values and vision
of both companies,” said Daniele Pucci Di Benisichi,
president of Antibióticos. “The first step of our work
with Metabolix will be to validate their technology in our
facility. Then, we’ll look ahead to creating a contract
manufacturing agreement. Antibióticos follows a very
demanding and selective approach for new projects and
partners, and we’re particularly pleased to be working
with Metabolix to deepen our work in sustainable
technologies and diversify our business portfolio.”
Mirel biopolymers are based on polyhydroxyalkanoates
(PHA), biobased, uniquely biodegradable, and suitable
for a wide range of product applications. Metabolix
has previously demonstrated production of Mirel
biopolymer resin at industrial scale. Metabolix
is currently supplying Mirel biopolymer resin to
customers from existing inventory of approximately
2,300 tonnes (5 million pounds). MT
www.metabolix.com
www.antibioticos-sa.com
Bio-based acrylic acid
Presently, acrylic acid is produced by the oxidation
of propylene derived from the refining of crude oil.
BASF (Ludwigshafen, Germany), Cargill (Minneapolis,
Minnesota, USA) and Novozymes (Copenhagen, Denmark)
signed an agreement in mid-August to develop bio-based
technologies to produce acrylic acid from renewable
feedstocks.
“The cooperation combines BASF’s global market
strength and innovation power with the excellent knowhow
and competencies of Novozymes and Cargill who
are global leaders in their respective industry segments.
Together we are uniquely positioned to more sustainably
meet market and society needs”, said Michael Heinz,
Member of the Board of Executive Directors of BASF SE.
New milestone towards commercialization
Novozymes and Cargill have collaborated on renewable
acrylic acid technology since 2008. Both companies have
worked to develop microorganisms that can efficiently
convert renewable feedstock into 3-hydroxypropionic
acid (3-HP), which is one possible chemical precursor
to acrylic acid. BASF has now joined the collaboration to
develop the process for conversion of 3-HP into acrylic
acid. BASF is the world´s largest producer of acrylic
acid and has substantial capabilities in its production
and downstream processing. The company plans
initially to use the bio-based acrylic acid to manufacture
superabsorbent polymers.
The three companies bring complementary knowledge
to the project. Novozymes, the world-leader in industrial
enzymes, has years of experience with developing
technologies for bio-based production of chemicals used
in plastics, ingredients, etc.. Cargill brings its global
expertise in sourcing renewable feedstocks and largescale
fermentation to this collaborative project.
Acrylic acid is a high-volume chemical that feeds into
a broad range of products. One of the main applications
is in the manufacture of superabsorbent polymers that
can soak up large amounts of liquid and are used mainly
in baby diapers and other hygiene products. Acrylic acid
is also used in adhesive raw materials and coatings. The
annual global market volume of acrylic acid is around
4.5 million tons with a value of $11 billion 1 at the end of
2011. The market has been growing at a rate of 4 percent
per year. MT
www.basf.com.
www.cargill.com
www.novozymes.com.
1
Based on ICIS pricing
bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7 5

News
Photo: Lausitzring/BASF
Waste from
the race
www.lausitzring.de
www.kuvbb.de
www.ecovio.de
Photo: EuroSpeedway Verwaltungs GmbH / Tino Hanf
BASF’s biodegradable plastic Ecovio ® FS Paper took center
stage in a pilot project involving disposable and biodegradable
tableware during the ADAC Masters Weekend motorsport event
(August 24 to 26) at the German race track Lausitzring. During
the weekend, the Polster Catering company (Lichtenstein,
Germany) only used cardboard trays and paper plates that were
compostable. Cups will follow suit next season.
The disposable tableware, manufactured by Hosti
(Pfedelbach, Germany), is made of paper that is coated with
a thin layer of Ecovio FS Paper, a blend of partially biobased
PBAT Ecoflex® FS and PLA. This creates disposable tableware
made from more than 90% organic raw materials, the plastic
coating consisting of more than 50% renewable raw materials,
but 100% compostable. The tableware with this special
plastic coating does not soak through and does not have to be
incinerated – as is usually the case – after being used. Instead,
it can be processed along with the organic waste in order to
yield valuable compost. This high-quality soil is subsequently
used again at the Lausitzring in order to upgrade the soil that
has been stressed by the open-cast mining in that area. The
Lausitzring is the first large-scale event location in Europe
to introduce such a closed loop system, wich is part of the
‘Green Lausitzring’. This project is supporting and testing
environmentally friendly technologies.
Using – collecting – composting
The caterers collected the disposable tableware (charged
with a € 1.00 deposit per item), together with the food residues,
in likewise compostable trash bags and transported them to
a nearby composting plant. The operators of the composting
plant have set aside a dedicated area for composting the organic
waste from the Lausitzring, where the degradation behavior can
be precisely monitored and controlled. Consequently, this pilot
project serves not only to underscore an active commitment
to saving resources in the realm of motorsports but also to
study the degradation behavior of large quantities of trays and
plates that have been coated with Ecovio FS Paper. This study is
being conducted by the Department of Waste Management and
Material Flow of the University of Rostock in Germany.
Pilot project: compostable and disposable
tableware at large-scale events
Numerous pilot projects have already enabled BASF to
demonstrate that organic waste bags made of Ecovio FS degrade
within a short period of time in industrial composting plants.
Ecovio is a plastic that meets the strict statutory stipulations
of European standard EN 13432 for the biodegradability
and compostability of packaging. The pilot experiment at
the Lausitzring is the first of its kind to test how disposable
tableware with an Ecovio FS Paper coating can be composted in
large quantities. Together with its cooperation partners, BASF
intends to expand this closed-loop concept for biodegradable
disposable tableware along the entire value-added chain, so
that it can be deployed at large-scale events in stadiums or at
trade fairs, or else in (fast-food) restaurants, office complexes,
hospitals or leisure & sports centers. MT
6 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7

News
Bioplastics from
Starbucks waste
Starbucks Corporation, coffee giant headquartedered in Seattle,
Washington, USA is trying to improve ways to handle their waste
streams. One important step is the cooperation with biorefinery
scientists to transform food waste from their stores into succinic
acid, a key ingredient for making plastics and other useful
products. This food waste could for example be the huge amount of
stale bakery goods worldwide not only from Starbucks that might
otherwise be wasted.
A research team led by Carol S. K. Lin, Ph.D reported about a project
launched in cooperation with Starbucks that is concerned with
sustainability and seeking a use for this kind of food waste, at the 244 th
National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society
(19-23 August 2012, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.).
The idea took shape during a meeting last summer between
representatives of the nonprofit organization called The Climate
Group and Lin at her laboratory at the City University of Hong
Kong. The Climate Group asked her about applying her special
transformative technology to the wastes of one of its members —
Starbucks Hong Kong. To help jump-start the research, Starbucks
Hong Kong donated a portion of the proceeds from each purchase
of its ‘Care for Our Planet Cookies’ gift set.
“We are developing a new kind of food biorefinery, and this
concept could become very important in the future, as the world
strives for greater sustainability,” Lin explained. “Using corn and
other food crops for bio-based fuels and other products may not be
sustainable in the long-run. Using waste food as the raw material
in a biorefinery certainly would be an attractive alternative.”
(Photos below: Starbucks)
Lin described the food biorefinery process, which involves
blending the baked goods with a mixture of fungi that excrete
enzymes to break down carbohydrates in the food into simple
sugars. The blend then goes into a fermenter, a vat where bacteria
convert the sugars into succinic acid that can be used as one
ingredient for the production of a number of bioplastics.
The method isn’t just for Starbucks and of course not limited to
bakery waste — Lin has also successfully transformed food wastes
from her university’s cafeteria and other mixed food wastes into
useful substances with the technology.
Lin said that the process could become commercially viable
on a much larger scale with additional funding from investors.
“In the meantime, our next step is to use funding we have from
the Innovation and Technology Commission from the Government
of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region to scale up the
process,” she said. “Also, other funding has been applied to test
this idea in a pilot-scale plant in Germany.”
The scientists acknowledged support from the Innovation and
Technology Commission (ITS/323/11) in Hong Kong, as well as a
grant from the City University of Hong Kong (Project No. 7200248).
MT
bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7 7

News
Ingeo Biopolymer Stable in Landfills
A peer-reviewed article appearing in the journal of
Polymer Degradation and Stability concludes that Ingeo
PLA is essentially stable in landfills with no statistically
significant quantity of methane released. This conclusion
was reached after a series of tests to ASTM D5526 and
D5511 standards that simulated a century’s worth of
landfill conditions.
“This research is the latest in a series of NatureWorks
initiatives aimed at understanding and documenting the
full sustainability picture of products made from Ingeo,”
said Marc Verbruggen, president and CEO, NatureWorks
(Minnetonka, Minnesota). “We work with a cradle-tocradle
approach to zero waste. What this means in terms
of landfill diversion, for example, is ideally that Ingeo
foodservice ware would be composted (…), and that
(other products made of) Ingeo resins and fibers would
be mechanically or chemically recycled and not landfilled.
However, these systems are still emerging and developing.
The reality today is that a percentage of Ingeo products
end up in landfills. And now we can say with certainty that
the environmental impact of that landfilling, in terms of
greenhouse gas release, is not significant.”
Verbruggen added that several months ago Ingeo was
the first biopolymer to receive tandem certifications for
sustainable agricultural practices in growing feedstock.
“NatureWorks is looking at sustainability from a
360-degree perspective – from sustainable agriculture
to facilitating sustainable end-of-life scenarios for Ingeo
bioplastic and fiber.”
Conditions in landfills can vary considerably by
geography, management practices, and age of waste. As
a result, researchers Jeffery J. Kolstad, Erwin T.H. Vink
and Bruno De Wilde, and Lies Debeer of Belgium-based
Organic Waste Systems performed two different series
of tests spanning a broad spectrum of conditions. The
first was at 21˚ C (69.8˚ F) for 390 days at three moisture
levels. The first series did not show any statistically
significant generation of biogas, so the team decided to
push the stress tests to a higher and more aggressive
level and instituted a series of high solids anaerobic
digestion tests. Today, some landfills are actively
managed to act as ‘bioreactors’ to intentionally promote
microbial degradation of the waste, with collection and
utilization of the by-product gas. To capture this scenario,
the second series of tests were designed to simulate high
solids anaerobic digestion under optimal and significantly
accelerated conditions and were performed at 35˚C
(95˚ F) for 170 days. While there was ‘some’ biogas
released in this aggressive series of tests, the amount
released was not statistically significant according to
the peer reviewed research paper. Both series of tests
were designed to represent an examination of what could
happen under a range of significantly accelerated anaerobic
landfill conditions and were roughly equivalent to 100 years of
conditions in a biologically active landfill. MT
www.natureworksllc.com
www.ows.be
Info:
Download the complete 10-page study
http://tinyurl.com/PLA-landfill
Biolice project
launched in Brazil
Limagrain Céréales Ingrédients (Ennezat, France)
has just launched its industrial project to build a biolice
bioplastic granules factory in Pato Branco, Brazil. These
granules are made from corn flour and are biodegradable/
compostable, with the project being carried out in
conjunction with the Guerra family, which is already
working with Limagrain in corn seeds in Brazil.
This 2,000 m 2 factory will start operating in a year’s
time, with a production capacity of 8,000 tonnes of biolice.
The total amount invested has not been disclosed.
Damien Bourgarel, VP for the Cereal Ingredients
Division: “It is a great pleasure for me to lay the first
stone of the bioplastic granules factory, which will play
a part in forming a genuine waste composting chain in
Pato Branco, with the Guerra family, which is leading
the way in agri-business in Brazil. This partnership sees
Limagrain providing the fruits of its research conducted
over more than 10 years in biolice granules, which were
first created in France, as well as its technical know-how
and marketing methods. Alongside, the Guerra family will
be providing its knowledge of the Brazilian market and
access to a local production chain”.
He added that “Our aim for biolice is to become globally
involved in biodegradable plastics. Like India and China,
Brazil is a target country for the biolice biodegradable
and compostable raw material”. MT
www.limagrain.com
8 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7

News
Environmental
Communications
Workshop
False or misleading communication
of environmental product properties is a
widespread problem in the marketplace.
An almost fully
biobased tailgate
The German Fourmotors racing team, famous for its biodiesel
driven Bioconcept Car (see for example bM 01/2007, 01/2010 and
01/2012), and now closely cooperating with IfBB (Institute for
Bioplastics and Biocomposites, Hanover University, Germany) have
proudly announced the next step in their joint development. In
early September, the first biobased vehicle tailgate was presented
to representatives of the press on the German racetrack - the
Hockenheim-Ring. The project is co-funded by FNR (the agency for
renewable resources, on behalf of the German Federal Ministry of
Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection (BMELV))
The tailgate, which was already made from natural fibre reinforced
petroleum-based resins, is now being produced from linen (flax
fibres) and an epoxy resin made from renewable resources. “The
amount of biobased components in the resin is currently at 45%, i.e.
together with the natural fibers 75% in the composite, and we are
constantly researching ways to increase this ratio with regard to the
material performance,” says Professor Hans-Josef Endres of IfBB.
For example the flax fibres are woven in a special twill-weave that
allows the textile to be draped into the desired 3D-shapes. Currently
still hand-laminated, as there are only a few parts needed for the
racing car, IfBB is certainly also evaluating series production methods
such as RTM and injection moulding of thermoplastic natural fiber
reinforced biocomposites for the mass production of such parts.
Motorsports have always been a playground and cutting-edge for
innovative developments that finally found their way into automotive
series production. The testing conditions for automotive components
are definitely much tougher than normal traffic conditions. “Ten
rounds on the famous ’Nordschleife‘ at the Nürburgring can be
compared to about 10,000 kilometres in everyday traffic,“ says Tom
von Löwis, head of Fourmotors.
In line with its initiative for good
environmental communication (see p. 43),
European Bioplastics; the association for the
European bioplastics industry; announce its 1 st
Workshop on Environmental Communication
for bioplastics.
The workshop will take place on 5 th
November 2012 at the Maritim proArte Hotel
in Berlin, Germany (one day prior to the
annual European Bioplastics Conference).
Who should attend and what to
expect
Generally the workshop is open to everybody
interested in the topic of environmental
communication for bioplastics. However, the
primary target group of this workshop are
communications and marketing experts,
brand managers and product designers of or
interested in the bioplastics industry.
The half-day workshop, 9.30 am
(registration from 9:00) to 2 pm, will cover
a number of examples after an introduction
regarding environmental communication
rules in general and specific for bioplastics
benchmark. In the second phase of the
workshop, the participants will focus in
smaller groups on assigned environmental
communication cases. The workshop will end
with the presentation and discussion of the
developed solutions.
40 places are available, more details and
registration via the website
www.european-bioplastics.org/ecg.
Thus the biobased tailgate is just one of a multitude of automotive
plastic applications that can be converted into biobased versions.
The team around IfBB and Fourmotors will continue their work.
bioplastics MAGAZINE will report on the project in more detail in issue
01/2013. MT
www.fourmotors.com
www.ifbb-hannover.de
bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7 9

News
NatureWorks
broadens portfolio
Sulzer Chemtech (Winterthur, Switzerland) has shipped
proprietary production equipment to NatureWorks
(Minnetonka, Minnesota, USA) facility in Blair, Nebraska
that will enable NatureWorks to increase production
of Ingeo PLA biopolymer and produce new, highperformance
resins and lactides.
Nameplate production capacity will rise by 10,000 to
150,000 tonnes per annum. Commissioning is expected
in the first quarter of 2013 with capacity increases and
new products becoming available in the second quarter.
Both companies have been working on the project
for more than a year. Each company has contributed to
the project with NatureWorks bringing its operational
experience and intellectual property in lactides processing,
and Sulzer bringing its proprietary equipment and
engineering design expertise in this field. NatureWorks
owns patents to the new process, to which Sulzer has
exclusive sublicensing rights worldwide. Technical and
financial details, however, were not disclosed.
magnetic_148,5x105.ai 175.00 lpi 15.00° 75.00° 0.00° 45.00° 14.03.2009 10:13:31
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Magnetic
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New polymer grades
With the new technology, NatureWorks will be
introducing new high-performance Ingeo PLA grades in
the injection molding and fibers arenas. New injection
molding grades Ingeo 3100HP and 3260HP are designed
for use in medium and high flow nucleated formulations
to provide an excellent balance of mechanical and thermal
properties, while delivering up to 75% time savings over
formulations based on current grades. Heat distortion
temperatures (HDT/B @ 0.46 MPa) are expected to be
15°C higher than what is achievable today.
Fibers and nonwoven products made from the new Ingeo
grades 6260D and 6100D will have reduced shrinkage and
better dimensional stability. These improved features are
expected to enable Ingeo use across a broader range
of fiber and nonwoven applications and provide larger
processing windows in fiber spinning and downstream
conversion processes. NatureWorks also will assess new
market and application opportunities for the technology
in other processes, including thermoforming, film
extrusion, blow molding and profile extrusion.
New lactide
NatureWorks will be the world’s first and only company
to offer commercial quantities of a high-purity, polymergrade
lactide rich in the stereoisomer meso-lactide.
Identified as Ingeo M700 lactide, this unique, new
commercial material will be used as an intermediate for
copolymers, amorphous resins, grafted substrates, resin
additives/modifiers, adhesives, coatings, elastomers,
surfactants, thermosets and solvents.
Several producers have addressed the functionality
requested by the market with what are described
chemically as racemic lactides. “Compared to these,
the high-purity Ingeo M700 will be easier to process
and an overall cost effective alternative to racemic, L-
and D-lactides in a host of industrial applications,” said
Dr. Manuel Natal, global segment leader for lactide
derivatives at NatureWorks. MT
www.natureworksllc.com
www.sulzer.com
10 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7

Polylactic Acid
Uhde Inventa-Fischer has expanded its product portfolio to include the innovative stateof-the-art
PLAneo ® process. The feedstock for our PLA process is lactic acid, which can
be produced from local agricultural products containing starch or sugar.
The application range of PLA is similar to that of polymers based on fossil resources as
its physical properties can be tailored to meet packaging, textile and other requirements.
Think. Invest. Earn.
Uhde Inventa-Fischer GmbH
Holzhauser Strasse 157–159
13509 Berlin
Germany
Tel. +49 30 43 567 5
Fax +49 30 43 567 699
Uhde Inventa-Fischer AG
Via Innovativa 31
7013 Domat/Ems
Switzerland
Tel. +41 81 632 63 11
Fax +41 81 632 74 03
marketing@uhde-inventa-fi scher.com
www.uhde-inventa-fi scher.com
Uhde Inventa-Fischer

Events
Will bioplastics benefit
from Olympic boost?
By
Matthew Aylott
Science Writer for the NNFCC
Heslington, York, UK
Dr John Williams, Head of Materials at bioeconomy consultants
NNFCC and adviser to the London Organising Committee
to the Olympic Games (LOCOG) discusses the role of
sustainable packaging at the Games and asks: “Where do we go
from here?”
LOCOG wanted to devise a system for packaging that would help
the organisers reduce waste to zero. If successful it would be the
very first time an Olympic Games would deliver zero waste.
This was no small task considering more than 3,300 tonnes of
food and food related packaging waste would be created during
the games. Tackling this problem would require an entirely new
approach to packaging and waste management.
NNFCC along with members of the Renewable Packaging Group
and the wider waste and packaging industries worked with LOCOG
to find a solution that was both economically viable and would help
the organisers meet their ambitious environmental targets.
Following these discussions LOCOG decided to use recyclable
packaging and where that wasn’t possible they would use EN 13432
certified compostable packaging. This would allow the majority of
food packaging waste to be recycled or turned into compost.
New approach to packaging
Making the vision a reality would be a challenge but if successful
would have a huge impact on the future of packaging at events.
In February this year London Bio Packaging was appointed
as non-sponsor food packaging suppliers to the London 2012
Olympic Games. The company develops finished products that
provide recyclable or compostable alternatives to less sustainable
packaging materials.
Compostable packaging was used because it helps to tackle one
of the most challenging problems facing event organisers; how
do you cut waste from difficult to recycle packaging streams like
materials which become contaminated with food?
This was particularly problematic for the Olympics, with an
estimated 40% of waste generated during the Games coming from
food or contaminated packaging. Compostable packaging offers a
natural solution to this problem as it can be mixed with organic
waste and the two can be composted together.
12 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7

Events
Many of the compostable materials used at the Olympics
– such as cutlery and cups – were manufactured by Italian
bioplastics specialists Novamont. Their Managing Director
Catia Bastioli said: “We need to take stock and show greater
awareness regarding the issue of the ‘end-of-life’ of so many
everyday products and, therefore, the waste we produce and
dispose of.”
“We believe that bioplastics have a part to play in providing
the solution to some aspects of this matter, thanks to the
fact they can be sent for composting together with organic
waste”, she added.
Novamont’s Mater-Bi ® bioplastic is partly made from
renewable raw materials and is versatile enough to produce a
range of different materials – making it ideal for the Olympics.
This also lead to Olympic commercial partner McDonald’s
appointing Novamont to make their cutlery, straws, cups, lids
and containers.
“Many McDonald’s items were already compliant with
the EN13432 compostability standards but did not have the
certification. We obtained this by working alongside our
suppliers for almost two years, with considerable investment
in research and development,” explained McDonald’s
environment consultant Helen McFarlane.
But making the materials recyclable or compostable is
only half the challenge, making sure it finds its way to the
right destination is just as important.
Disposal
Organisers strategically positioned nearly 4,000 recycling,
composting and residual waste bins in the busiest areas of
footfall across all the Olympic venues. There were green bins
for recyclable packaging, orange bins for compostables and
smaller black bins for any residual waste – which would be
used to generate energy rather than being landfilled.
All packaging materials were clearly labelled according
to their composition to help visitors identify which bin they
should be placed in and, while there was some evidence to
suggest this wasn’t strictly adhered to, waste had generally
ended up in the correct bin.
Paper was separated and recycled locally, while PET plastic
was recycled by Coca Cola at its new £15 million Continuum
Recycling plant in Lincolnshire, UK. Coca Cola aim to convert
all PET disposed of in the Olympic Park into new bottles
within six weeks.
Waste management company Countrystyle handled the
compostable packaging, alongside venue food waste, at its
in-vessel composting facility in Kent, UK. To ensure that
the packaging would break down, samples were sent to the
facility prior to the Games and successfully put through the
composting process.
The time this process takes varies according to the material
in question. According to Novamont Mater-Bi cutlery typically
disintegrates within three months and biodegrades within
six, whereas film can take as little as two to three weeks to
break down.
Legacy
The innovative use of compostable materials, such as
bioplastics, at the Olympics has demonstrated proof of
concept for their use at large scale events but the key will now
be to maintain the momentum and build on the success of
the Games, while recognising where things can be improved
for future events.
NNFCC are now working with other organisations like the
Government’s Waste & Resource Action Programme and the
Renewable Energy Association’s Organics Recycling Group to
share experiences from London 2012 and develop guidelines
which can be applied to other events in the future.
This will help event organisers reduce waste and meet
their environmental targets, like those recommended in
the UK Government’s new hospitality and food services
industry voluntary agreement. The agreement sets two
targets by 2015: to reduce food and packaging waste by 5%
and to recycle, compost or convert into energy via anaerobic
digestion at least 70% of the remaining waste. Should this
model be taken up more widely it would be a major boost to
the bioplastics industry.
www.nnfcc.co.uk
bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7 13

Bioplastics Award
bioplastics MAGAZINE is proud to present the five finalists for the 7 th Bioplastics Award. Five judges from the academic world,
the press and industry associations from America, Europa and Asia have reviewed the proposals so that we can now present
details of the five most promising submissions.
The 7 th Bioplastics Award recognises innovation, success and achievements by manufacturers, processors, brand owners or
users of bioplastic materials. To be eligible for consideration in the awards scheme the proposed company, product, or service
must have been developed or have been on the market during 2011 or 2012.
The following companies/products are shortlisted (without any ranking) and from these five finalists the winner will be
announced during the 7 th European Bioplastics Conference on November 6 th , 2012 in Berlin, Germany.
Full Circle Design: Presentation and
promotion system Clps [’klıps]
The flexible and modular presentation and promotion
system Clps [’klıps] is variable and universally applicable
at the point of sale, for sales campaigns, presentations,
shop designs and fairs.
The extruded profiles are made of grass fibre reinforced
plastic (PP) with a content of natural fibres of about 70%.
They offer better mechanical properties than WPC. After
use Full Circle Design offer to take them back and either
refurbish them or recycle them in close cooperation with
their raw material supplier. This supplier generates his
energy in an own AD plant (biogasification) in kind of a
biorefinery concept.
The textile is a woven PLA fabric, uncoated, optically
brightened, flame-retardant and is being chemically
recycled in cooperation
with Galactic. In future a
knitted PLA fabric (own
development) will be used.
Thin pipes for fastening the
PLA-textile to the frame are
made of a biodegradable
elastomer.
The whole concept is
based on renewable raw
materials and a full takeback
and recycle system.
www.fullcircledesign.de
TAKATA AG: Bioplastic steering wheel and
airbag showcase project
The proposed ‘showcase’
(German word
is ‘Demonstrator’, is a
complete real steering
wheel system) was
developed to present the
possibilities and limits of
using biobased plastics in
such sensitive products
like airbags and steering
wheels. To achieve an
integrated solution the available biopolymers were
benchmarked according the requirements and the most
promising materials were chosen. After this the components
were tested according the specifications of the automotive
industry to verify the material limits in steering wheels and
airbags. Some of the components were already approved
according to these specifications, others are underway. For
certain applications the specifications of the automotive
industry might have to be modified, without sacrificing the
safety of course. But the haptic and optic requirements of
the foam and plastic parts around the steering wheel could
for example be slightly adapted in order to align biobased
material properties to part specification.
Due to this project Takata illustrate their competence
to develop biobased steering wheels and airbags and
support their customers to define the technical limits of
biopolymers.
www.takata.com
14 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7

Bioplastics Award
Green Dot Holdings, new compostable
thermoplastic elastomer
GDH-B1 is a new compostable thermoplastic elastomer,
made from >50% renewable plant based ingredients
(starch). The bioplastic meets ASTM D6400 and EN 13432
standards for compostability. The material has been found
to biodegrade even in a home composting environment in
a matter of months. GDH-B1 has been tested and verified
by NSF International to be free from phthalates, bisphenol
A (BPA), lead and
cadmium, and
meets child product
safety standards in
the U.S., Canada,
Europe, Australia
and New Zealand.
GDH-B1 offers a
range of physical
attributes comparable to petroleum based thermoplastic
elastomers. The material is strong and pliable with an
exquisite soft touch. The characteristics of the bioplastics
provide excellent performance in fabrication and can
be used with existing manufacturing equipment in the
majority of plastic processing applications including,
injection molding, profile extrusion, blow molding, blown
film and lamination.
Green Dot’s soft plastic phone case, The BioCase is
already successful on the market. Fort Collins, Colorado
toymaker, BeginAgain Toys is also introducing Green
Dot´s toxin free compostable elastomeric bioplastic
to parents and children with two products, “Scented
Scoops,” an imaginative ice cream play set and the Green
Ring teether. The toys have received accolades for their
creative design and sustainable materials.
IfBB – Institute for Bioplastics and
Biocomposites: Biobased tailgate of a
racing car
The biobased tailgate of the ‘Bioconcept’-racing car is
the first step to convert as many parts into biobased plastic
parts as possible. The focus lies on the development of
sustainable parts for the automobile industry as well as
the change towards a ready-for-the-future mobility.
The tailgate, which was already made from natural
fibre reinforced petroleum-based resins, is now being
produced from linen (flax fibres) and an epoxy resin made
from renewable resources. The amount of biobased
components in the resin is currently at 45%, and IfBB is
constantly researching ways to increase this ratio with
regard to the material performance. The flax fibres are
woven in a special twill-weave that allows the textile to
be draped into the desired 3D-shapes. Currently still
hand-laminated, as there are only a few parts needed
for the racing car, IfBB is certainly also evaluating series
production methods such as RTM and injection moulding
of thermoplastic natural fiber reinforced biocomposites
for the mass production of such parts.
Other components (existing, under development or
planned) include doors, hood, underbody (diffusor,) frontend
(diffusor), mirror
cover caps, various
technical boxes,
tank cap, covering
of steering column,
lamp housings and
more.
www.ifbb-hannover.de
www.greendotpure.com
Livemold Trading: ‘bioline’ indestructible sandbox toys including a unique end-of-life concept
The latest product line ‘bioline’ by Martin Fuchs GmbH comprises among other items, a series of ‘indestructible’ sandbox
toys. The material is a (>70% biobased) blend from PLA and other components (made by Linotech, Waldenburg, Germany and
Livemold, Breitungen, Germany), which makes the products 100% biodegradable. “Not exactly compostable,” as Martin Vollet,
Technical Manager of Martin Fuchs points out.” But composting is not the targeted end
of life. At least, these toys will never be found by archaeologists.” For the end of life,
this toy manufacturer has a very special solution. They ask consumers to send back
their old toys, rather than dispose them. Fuchs promise to recycle even the oldest
and dirtiest toys. This is possible by applying a special 2-component injection molding
technology. Here the post-consumer scrap is injected as a core material in a 2-layer
structure. The outer layer is beautifully colored virgin material.
The use of plastics based on renewable raw materials in combination with taking
back and further processing of the old toys is exemplary and helps to conserve
resources of our environment. The use of the 2K-technology (monosandwich) plays a
leading role in the processing of biopolymers. The biopolymer is in looks and feeling,
in noise and sound behavior equivalent to normal plastics.
www.spielstabil.de
bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7 15

Fibres & Textiles
Textile bio-based materials
design challenge
A new innovation platform for designers, researchers and users
The Biopro GmbH and the Cluster biopolymers (Federal
State of Baden-Württemberg, Germany) started,
early in 2012, an innovative project called the ‘textile
bio-based materials design challenge’ (tbdc). The challenge
provides all participants with a platform for cooperation and
knowledge exchange for a period of one year. The interaction
between the many players along the value creation chain will
enable the early assessment of the function and capabilities
of bio-based materials for application on the textile market.
The objective of the challenge is to generate as many new
project ideas as possible, which will then be implemented
and driven forward in cooperation with suitable partners. Direct
contact with potential partners will be possible through
two partnering workshops as well as through an online partnering
platform that will be up and running throughout the
entire duration of the challenge.
More than 50 researchers, designers, producers and
users active in the fibre and textile industries came to
participate in the first workshop in July. The delegates used
the interdisciplinary environment to develop project ideas,
exchange information and experience, and to make new
contacts.
Tina Kammer, CEO of InteriorPark, and Dr. Ralf Kindervater,
CEO of Biopro Baden-Württemberg GmbH (both in Stuttgart,
Germany), moderated the ‘material meets design’ workshop
programme. During the first half of the one-day meeting,
speakers either presented concrete project ideas relating
to sustainable textile products or gave talks designed to
encourage ‘out-of-the-box’ thinking and the development of
new project ideas.
During the second half of the meeting, participants used
the tabletop exhibition to network with the speakers, to
obtain more detailed information about project ideas that had
been presented, and to identify potential common ground.
“I was particularly impressed with the enthusiasm for already
existing bio-based materials shown by a number of designers
during the course of the meeting,” commented Kindervater,
pointing out that the projects that were presented have
served as an inspiration for several new product scenarios
that will go on to be further developed jointly.
Since the successful implementation of such projects
always depends on financing, the final workshop session
presented European and German funding programmes.
The next Workshop will take place on November the 8 th in
Denkendorf, near Stuttgart, Germany, and is open to all who
are interested in textile bio-based materials. Please contact
Esther Novosel through the tbdc website
www.bio-pro.de/tbdc
16 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7

BIOADIMIDE TM IN BIOPLASTICS.
EXPANDING THE PERFORMANCE OF BIO-POLYESTER.
NEW PRODUCT LINE AVAILABLE:
BIOADIMIDE ADDITIVES EXPAND
THE PERFOMANCE OF BIO-POLYESTER
BioAdimide additives are specially suited to improve the hydrolysis resistance and the processing stability of bio-based
polyester, specifically polylactide (PLA), and to expand its range of applications. Currently, there are two BioAdimide grades
available. The BioAdimide 100 grade improves the hydrolytic stability up to seven times that of an unstabilized grade, thereby
helping to increase the service life of the polymer. In addition to providing hydrolytic stability, BioAdimide 500 XT acts as a
chain extender that can increase the melt viscosity of an extruded PLA 20 to 30 percent compared to an unstabilized grade,
allowing for consistent and easier processing. The two grades can also be combined, offering both hydrolysis stabilization and
improved processing, for an even broader range of applications.
Focusing on performance for the plastics industries.
Whatever requirements move your world:
We will move them with you. www.rheinchemie.com

Fibres & Textiles
Artificial Turf (Photo Philipp Thielen)
Bioplastics
– to be walked all over
By
Bas Krins
Director R&D
API Institute - Applied Polymer Innovations
Emmen, The Netherlands
The API Institute (Emmen, The Netherlands) is an independent
institute dedicated to research into high-end applications of
polymers. In recent years investigations related to the use of
bioplastics have become an increasing part of the portfolio. Among
other projects API is currently developing products for which the biodegradation
behaviour offers an advantage. This can be an advantage
in the costs of the whole cycle from raw material to waste, or it can
be an advantage in the end-use for the customer.
Temporary carpets
At many trade fairs, exhibitions or other events (such as the
2009 Copenhagen Climate Change Conference) temporary carpets
are used for a very limited period of time – a few days up to a few
weeks maximum – after which they are dumped or incinerated. It
would be a big advantage if the carpet could be made from plastics
based on renewable resources. Such carpets from biobased plastics
could be incinerated with energy recovery, thus delivering a carbon
neutral source of renewable energy. Or, if made from biodegradable /
compostable bioplastics, they could be composted afterwards
instead.
This however means that the multifilaments for the carpet have
to be produced from appropriate biobased and/or biodegradable
plastics. Also the fabric has to be redesigned, and last but not least
the secondary backing that sticks the fibre loops to the fabric has to
comply with the intended end-of-life scenario.
18 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7

Fibres & Textiles
The API Institute is involved in a project that is developing
such temporary exhibition carpets from PLA based
bioplastics, thus exhibiting both advantages, - renewable
resources and the biodegradability/compostability. Here
one of the advantages – apart from green credentials – is
the reduction of the costs after use. Both, incineration with
energy recovery and composting are cheaper than dumping
the carpet in a landfill. Nevertheless, the price of the carpet
is an issue and a fundamental condition of the project is
that the final carpet should have a price that is not much
higher than using traditional carpets. Unfortunately green
credentials alone are general not a sufficient encouragement
for users to choose the environmentally friendly solution as
the market for the organisation of exhibitions is very price
competitive.
Artificial turf
A somewhat comparable project is the development of
a completely compostable artificial grass. At the moment
the standard materials used are PE for the monofilaments
(blades of grass), PP is used for the fabric and latex is used
for the secondary backing in order to glue the monofilaments
to the fabric. This system is very difficult to recycle, and in
practice most of the artificial fields are burned after a period
of use that can last up to 10 years. Recycling of the mats is
sometimes carried out but it is an expensive procedure. Each
soccer field produces up to 20 tonnes of plastic waste. In The
Netherlands or Germany, for example, the number of soccer
fields for amateurs using artificial grass instead of real grass
is growing rapidly. In these countries with a high population
density the fields are used quite intensively, and for that
reason artificial grass is preferred. But this also means
that the waste produced after the lifetime of the field is an
increasing problem. The API Institute is developing, together
with some industrial partners, a field that can be incinerated
carbon-neutrally or that can be completely composted. In
this case, there is probably no cost advantage for the investor
of the artificial grass field. However the issue is that in The
Netherlands most amateur fields for soccer are funded by
local authorities and due to legislation these local authorities
are forced to select a sustainable alternative if possible,
although this alternative might be more expensive. For that
reason there is a real market for these compostable artificial
grass fields. The requirements for the grass mat are a real
challenge. Their lifetime has to be about 10 years, and this
means that the requirements regarding resilience behaviour
are tough. Also the requirements regarding the degradation
behaviour are difficult to meet: no biodegradation during
10 years outdoors, but subsequently a fast biodegradation
under composting conditions. And the field has to fulfil the
requirements from FIFA regarding ball rolling, ball bouncing,
sliding behaviour, and so on. Since the technical issues have
now been solved, the PLA based artificial turf developed by
API is expected to perform the FIFA test shortly and API will
construct a test field.
Real grass nets
From artificial grass to real grass. In many cases real
grass turf is cultivated on nets. These nets are mostly
produced from PP, which means that the customers will find
this net under their turf many years after installation. Even if
appreciated by some people for its protective effect against
moles, there remains one big disadvantage. In case the user
need to dig a hole in the garden or needs to scarify the lawn
grass, the net will destroy the grass field.
API is now developing a net for turf lawns that supports
the process of installing the turf, but since it is made from
a bioplastics that will completely biodegrade in soil, it will
disappear after a few months. Details about the resin however
cannot be disclosed at this time, due to confidentiality
agreements.
Final remarks
In addition to the examples mentioned above the API
Institute is working on a lot more projects related to
bioplastics commissioned by customers. In all projects the
polymers have to be selected and/or compounded in order to
meet the requirements for their application. For this reason
the API Institute is working closely together with suppliers
of the bioplastics resins, and the Institute has a lot of
experience in making the materials fit for these applications
by compounding with other polymers or additives, and by
optimizing the processing conditions of the bioplastics.
Acknowledgement
The grants from the European Union, Provincie Drenthe,
Gemeente Emmen, SenterNovem/Agentschap NL, Interreg
and EDR are thankfully acknowledged.
www.api-institute.com
(Photo iStock/EyeJoy)
bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7 19

Fibres & Textiles
Blended fabric
with PLA
Photo courtesy Jiangsu Danmao Textile Co.
PLA/wool blend
for clothing
Jiangsu Danmao Textile Co., Ltd., an eco-conscious
company with manufacturing facilities in Jiangsu
Province, China, specializes in producing wool fabrics for
high-end fashion. The company recently developed a new
range of wool fabrics blended with Ingeo PLA fibers.
Ingeo fiber is an economic and lower-carbon-footprint
alternative to polyester for blending with wool. The PLA/
wool fabric will be used for uniforms and informal and
corporate wear. Jiangsu Danmao Textile Company has
been investing in clean manufacturing technology for
more than a decade and has made major investments
in reducing water consumption and landfill waste. Its
emphasis on being a leader in sustainable manufacturing
led research and development personnel to explore
alternatives to polyester. Ingeo met the firm’s criteria
for performance, cost, and reduced carbon footprint.
The biopolymer also reduced the company’s exposure to
sourcing non-renewable materials.
Jiaxing Runzhi Wenhua Chuangxiang Co Ltd is located
in the Zhejiang province of China. The company recently
developed a series of Ingeo PLA based products
including underwear, camisoles, t-shirts, and infant’s
wear, all of which are destined for the Chinese domestic
market and sold under the YUSIRUN brand name.
The new fabric is a blend of Ingeo, Tencel, nylon, and
spandex. The owner of the firm Mr. Shang Jia lead an indepth
product development effort focused on utilization
of renewable materials. The company wanted to offer
products that would appeal to environmentally concerned
Chinese consumers, have measurable environmental
benefits, and look and feel great.
According to company officials, “The outstanding
features of this garment collection include sensational
touch, good drape, easy care, quick drying, excellent
wicking performance, and low odor retention. These
garments are comfortable and hypoallergenic.”
Website: www.yusirun.cn
www.danmaotex.com
www.natureworksllc.com
20 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7

Application News
Biodegradable toothbrush
FRISETTA Kunststoff GmbH (based in Schönau, Germany)
recently introduced their new monte-bianco NATURE, a
toothbrush with a replaceable head for adults. The handle and
head are made from plastic which is biodegradable according
to EU 13432/EN and US ASTM D6400 standards, and has
natural bristles.
The project was realized by a team from three
companies, namely Frisetta Kunststoff, A. Schulman
GmbH (Kerpen, Germany) and API S.P.A. (Mussolente,
Italy) using API´s biodegradable thermoplastic
polymer APINAT.
The packaging of this product is
also in line with the green concept.
The plastic cover is made from
biodegradable and compostable
corn-starch based PLA. The
back of the package consists of
FSC-certified paperboard. The
product is available in special
bio shops in Europe.
For more than 60 years
Friseatta have been producing
oral care products of a high quality at their location in the
Southern Black Forest in Germany. The latest state-of-theart
technology allows them to protect the environment whilst
simultaneously producing technologically advanced and high
quality products in their manufacturing process.
With this new product Frisetta follows a general
environmentally-friendly approach. The warm water from the
cooling system used for cooling the production machines is
then used for heating the rooms in the building during the
winter. The cooled water then flows back into the production
system. In summer, the water is cooled in a deep, in-house
well. The required electricity is derived from 100% renewable
energy from their neighbour, the Schönau (EWS) electricity
generating plant
Frisetta´s target is the constant improvement of their
products and product range. The innovations of the past
few months that complete the monte-bianco range are only
a beginning. They are currently working not only on product
optimisation but also on more new developments. MT
www.frisetta-kunststoff.de
www.aschulman.com
www.apinatbio.com
Green foam profiles
NMC, headquartered in Eynatten, Belgium recently
presented NOMAPACK ® Green, the first packaging profile
that is certified as biosourced, made using renewable
materials and 100% recyclable.
With globalisation and easier transport, companies send
their products all around the world. Fragile products need to
be protected with reliable, lightweight, compact packaging.
In this field, practical criteria are no longer the only deciding
factors, and today, the sustainable dimension of a product is
becoming more and more important.
NMC decided to focus on renewable resources to create
the Nomapack Green profile. The company has developed
a process technology to produce profiles from renewable
materials with similar properties to the traditional Nomapack
profiles made from petroleum-based polyolefins; including
foamability, excellent shock absorption and long-lasting
mechanical properties. Nomapack Green is 100% recyclable.
The raw material for the production of Nomapack Green
profile has been developed by polymer experts from NMC’s
Research and Development unit. The so-called NMC
NATUREFOAM is a polyethylene blend with more than
30% renewable raw materials. It has been tested by the
Vinçotte International Institute, who certified it with one star
for its level of non-fossil fuel materials (between 20 and
40% of its components come from renewable sources). The
availability of these
components is not
limited over time,
so the production of
Nomapack Green
profiles is less
dependent on the
fluctuating price of
petroleum-based
raw materials. Last but not least, no genetically modified
organisms (GMOs) are used in the composition of the
Nomapack Green profile. The cultivation of these plant-based
materials does not compete with food production and does
not cause any problems of access to food for local residents.
With Nomapack Green, NMC is investing more than ever in
the development of sustainable products. As a pioneer in this
field, the company has not used chlorofluorocarbon (CFC)
and hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC) gases in the production
of its products for over 20 years, putting it at the cutting edge
of the synthetic foam industry. Over time, it has honed its
choice of materials as well as its environmentally friendly
manufacturing processes so that now a large proportion of
its product range is recyclable. MT
www.nmc.eu
bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7 21

Application News
(Photo: Iggesund)
Airline breakfast box
The Swedish airline Malmö Aviation has recently launched
new breakfast boxes made of Invercote Bio, a bioplasticscoated
paperboard. The boxes save space on board, simplify
handling and have a lower environmental impact than
their plastic-based predecessors. In addition the bioplastic
coated paperboard exhibits a very good structural stiffness
compared to any pure plastics (or bioplastics) solution.
The environmental impact is reduced because some
members of the Invercote family of paperboard are certified
compostable. The new breakfast boxes are the result of a
long development process focusing on both functionality
and user friendliness. Instigators of the development
were the catering company PickNick (Bromma, Sweden),
the converters Omikron (Jönköping, Sweden) and Malmö
Aviation’s then project leader Annika Melin.
The materials used in the boxes are the virgin fibre-based
paperboards Invercote Bio from Iggesund Paperboard
(Iggesund, Sweden). In a first step the box is made of Invercote
Bio. In a later stage, the outer shell of the box will be made
from conventional Invercote and a serving tray inside made of
Invercote Bio to hold the fresh food. This tray will then be flow
packed with a modified atmosphere to increase the food’s
shelf life and help prevent fogging. The ingenious feature
of Invercote Bio is that it is coated with bioplastic. Iggesund
chose an extrusion coating version of a biobased Polyester by
Novamont (Novara, Italy). This means that once the service
is in full scale the tray will go into the same waste stream as
the food scraps – they will all be sent directly to an anaerobic
digestion plant to produce biogas without the need for prior
sorting, just as PickNick has been doing with their food waste
already in the past.
”The combination of paperboard and bioplastic which are
certified compostable to European standards means that the
new box functions well in today’s end-of-life systems and will
continue to do so in future systems,” comments Jonas Adler,
commercial manager of the Invercote Bio products from
Iggesund.
“Because the new breakfast boxes are smaller than our
current ones, we can load far more onto each serving trolley,”
explains Malin Olin, inflight and lounge manager for Malmö
Aviation. “That saves weight and space on board and helps
the environment. The boxes also have two parts, making
them easier to use.”
Omikron has been working with catering materials since
the beginning of the 1980s. It was a natural choice for the
company to work with Invercote and Invercote Bio.
“This has been an exciting development project, not least
because Malmö Aviation has consciously chosen to invest in
both quality and the environment,” comments Tony Norén,
CEO of the converters Omikron. “Being able to reduce the
space required by half and also to greatly extend the food’s
shelf life are interesting effects, while both the environmental
and climate impact are also reduced.”
“Increasingly organisations and individuals are thinking
about the ‘end-of-life’ issue of many products in everyday
use, and therefore the creation and disposal of waste. We
believe bioplastics can provide part of the solution to certain
aspects of this issue as they can be composted together with
organic waste,” said Catia Bastioli, CEO of Novamont. MT
www.malmoaviation.se
www.picknick.nu
www.iggesund.com
22 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7

Application News
New BPI certified hot cup
President Packaging (Tainan City, Taiwan) has been offering PLA coated paper cups
with great success for two years now. A new insulated hot cup from this company
is Biodegradable Products Institute (BPI) certified and warm to the touch, not hot,
when filled with a hot beverage. The double-wall paper construction provides its own
insulation and eliminates the need for an added outside sleeve for greater convenience
and ease of use. The company reports that beverages stay warmer longer than in noninsulated
paper hot cups. The leak barrier of the cups is provided by Ingeo PLA film
from NatureWorks. Five sizes from 234 ml (8 oz.) to 709 ml (24 oz.) are available as
are matching Ingeo lids. BPI certified products meet ASTM D6400 and are suitable for
commercial/industrial composting facilities where they exist.
“Ingeo is a product that enables our company to innovate for our customers in
environmentally responsible ways,” said Jimmy Liu, export manager, President
Packaging. “The utilization of this PLA resin, also helps further our corporate social
responsibility goals.”
“While PE lined cups are still the volume leader, an increasing number of coffee shops are moving to cups with higher
quality and superior environmental credentials. These new cups add brand appeal and pull in business. Plus the excellent heat
insulating properties and the rigidity when holding the cup gives the consumer the impression of a quality package for a quality
product,” Jimmy said to bioplastics MAGAZINE. In addition, these cups that don’t need insulating sleeves eliminate the hassle of
fitting sleeves to cups and reduces storage space requirements. MT
www.ppi.com.tw
www.natureworksllc.com
organized by
17. - 19.10.2013
Messe Düsseldorf, Germany
Bioplastics in
Packaging
Bioplastics
Business
Breakfast
B 3
PLA, an Innovative
Bioplastic
Injection Moulding
of Bioplastics
Subject to changes
Call for Papers now open
www.bioplastics-breakfast.com
Contact: Dr. Michael Thielen (info@bioplastics-magazine.com)
At the World’s biggest trade show on plastics and rubber:
K’2013 in Düsseldorf bioplastics will certainly play an
important role again.
On three days during the show from Oct 17 - 19, 2013 (!)
biopolastics MAGAZINE will host a Bioplastics Business
Breakfast: From 8 am to 12 noon the delegates get the
chance to listen and discuss highclass presentations and
benefit from a unique networking opportunity.
The trade fair opens at 10 am.
bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7 23

Materials
O O
O
H
O
H
PBS production
The energy-saving, resource-efficient production
of PBS using the 2-reactor process
Uhde Inventa-Fischer, based in Berlin, Germany and
Domat/Ems, Switzerland, can look back on over 50
years of history serving the polymer industry. During
this time more than 400 plants for the production of polyesters
such as PET and PBT, as well as polyamides like PA 6
and PA 6.6, have been successfully built and commissioned
worldwide. Years of experience and intensive research and
development work have enabled the company to launch and
successfully establish a multitude of innovative technologies
and concepts on the market.
As well as technologies based on the processing of
monomers obtained from fossil raw materials, Uhde
Inventa-Fischer has greatly extended its commitment to the
development of processes for producing biopolymers and
has expanded its product portfolio to include the PLAneo ®
polylactic acid technology and the process for producing
polybutylene succinate (PBS). The PBS here is purely aliphatic
polyester created from the polycondensation of succinic acid
and butanediol. PBS is usually produced in a two-stage
process. In the first stage the succinic acid is esterified with
an excess of butanediol with the water removed. The second
stage comprises the polycondensation of the esterification
product with the butanediol removed (see Figure 1).
Production of succinic acid and butanediol
from renewable resources
Even as recently as just a few years ago succinic acid was
produced exclusively by petrochemical means. Due to the
fact that succinic acid is found as an intermediate in the
metabolic chain of a variety of organisms such as bacteria
or yeast, however, the potential for biochemical production
was identified early on and research into this aspect was
promoted across the world. Today many companies are
already producing succinic acid from renewable resources
(see recent issues of bioplastics MAGAZINE). Furthermore,
intensive research is being carried out on processes which
enable the production of butanediol on the basis of renewable
resources such as, for example, the hydrogenation of biobased
succinic acid.
2-reactor technology – for the continuous
production of ultra-high-quality PBS
granulate
While developing a continuous process for the production
of PBS a series of important outline conditions had to be
taken into consideration. Based on a variety of laboratory
Figure 1: 2-stage PBS production process
2 step reaction:
A) Esterification of succinic acid with butanediol:
O
H
O
O
O
H
+ 2
H
O
O
H
H
O
O
O
+ 2 H 2
O
succinc acid
butanediol
B) Polycondensation of bis-hydroxybutylenesuccinate
H
O
O
O
H
O
O O
O
bis-hydroxybutylenesuccinate
- approx. 170 – 200°C, mole ratio approx. ca. 1.1 – 2.0 BDO/SAC
O
O
n
O
H
+(n-1)
O
H
O
H
bis-hydroxybutylenesuccinate
PBS
butanediol
- approx. 200 – 240°C
- approx. 0.1 – 1 mbar
24 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7

Materials
Table 1: Comparison of the properties of PBS
with polypropylene and polyethylene
PBS PP PE (LDPE / HDPE)
By
Christopher Hess
Vice President Research and
Development
Uhde Inventa-Fischer
Berlin, Germany
Heat Distortion
temperature (HDT-B)
°C 97 145 88 - 110
Melting temperature °C 115 - 118 164 108 - 130
Glass transition
temperature
°C -32 +5 -120
Crystallization
temperature
°C 75 120 80 - 104
Tensile strength at break MPa 57 44 35 - 39
Elongation at break % 700 800 400 - 650
Crystallinity % 35 - 45 56 49 - 69
Density g/cm³ 1.26 0.90 0.92 - 0.95
Data source: Biodegradable Plastic, Product Data,
SHOWA HIGHPOLYMER CO.. LTD., 2009
tests, the most important parameters for the PBS process,
e.g. the mole ratio of succinic acid to butanediol, the
optimum quantity, appropriate type and ideal catalyst feed
point, were set out first. Moreover, the ideal residence times
during the individual process stages as well as the required
temperature and pressure conditions had to be defined.
The results that were achieved showed that the 2R process,
which was developed and patented by Uhde Inventa-Fischer
and includes both the ESPREE ® and DISCAGE ® reactors, was
perfectly suited for the production of PBS. With this process
the succinic acid can react and the polymer can be produced
at very low temperatures and low thermal loads. High surface
renewal rates mean that the chain can be quickly and gently
built up to high molar masses (see Figure 2).
Following technical modifications to the 2-reactor pilot
plant at Uhde Inventa-Fischer, PBS granulate is being
successfully produced at a capacity of around 40 kg/h. The
material produced is of a very high quality and therefore
ideally suited for commercial use. This was borne out in a
multitude of tests which demonstrated that the PBS granulate
produced on the 2-reactor plant, or even compounds made
from it, were perfect for processing in various applications.
Thanks to its high degree of flexibility, low energy and raw
material consumption, and the low quantity of by-products
formed, the 2R process is the ideal choice for producing costeffective,
high-quality polyester. With the new continuous
PBS technology Uhde Inventa-Fischer is gearing up its plans
to establish other bio-based materials on the market.
Impressive material qualities are what make
PBS stand out
The thermal and mechanical properties of PBS are very
similar to those of polyolefins such as polyethylene (PE) and
polypropylene (PP) (see Table 1).
PBS can be easily processed on standard machinery into
films, extrusions and injection-moulded parts. A major
advantage of PBS, in addition to its good mechanical
properties, is primarily its biodegradability, making it the
ideal choice of material to be processed into films for use in
agriculture, as well as into food packaging or biodegradable
hygiene products. What‘s more, PBS is perfect for processing
into compounds or blends with PLA, among other materials.
The properties of PLA materials can be customized and
modified, for example if greater elasticity is required.
www.uhde-inventa-fischer.com
Figure 2: 2-stage PBS production process
ESPREE ® Reactor
DISCAGE ® HV Reactor
PBS
Succinc acid
+
Butanediol
bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7 25

Materials
From
meat waste
to bioplastics
Fig. 1: The ANIMPOL process:
From slaughterhouse waste to PHA
By
Martin Koller
Institute of Biotechnology and
Biochemical Engineering
Graz University of Technology
Graz, Austria
The 36 month ANIMPOL project (‘Biotechnological
conversion of carbon-containing wastes for ecoefficient
production of high added value products’)
funded by the EU was launched in 2010.
ANIMPOL is developing a sound industrial process
for the conversion of lipid-rich animal waste from
the meat processing industry as a contribution to the
production of biodiesel. The saturated biodiesel fractions
which negatively affect biodiesel’s properties as fuel
are separated and finally used as feedstock for the
biotechnological production of polyhydroxyalkanoates
(PHA), a versatile group of biopolymers for production
of bioplastics. The remaining unsaturated biodiesel
represents an excellent 2 nd generation biofuel.
The significance of the project is obvious considering
the high amounts of available ANIMPOL-relevant waste in
Europe (500,000 tonnes of animal waste and about 50,000
tonnes of saturated biodiesel fraction). The principle idea
of the project is visualized in Fig. 1.
Background
PHAs are a well-known family of polyesters
accumulated by micro-organisms in nature as an energy
reserve. The right photograph in Fig. 1 shows bacterial
cells containing PHA inclusions. The diverse desired
properties of PHAs are accessible from renewable
resources by the biosynthetic action of selected
prokaryotes and this opens the door for replacing petrolbased
thermoplastics, elastomers, or latexes (see Fig. 2)
with these bio-inspired alternatives.
Alternative Raw Materials
The need for alternative materials, because of the
finite sources of fossil reserves, is obvious and generally
undisputed. In order to become a competitive alternative
on the market, the price of a biopolymer for a certain
application must be in the same range as the competing
‘traditional’ plastic. Hence, the costs of PHAs have to be
reduced considerably despite the current unstable price
of crude mineral oil.
Project Philosophy and Schematic
The utilization of various renewable feed stocks for
production of biochemicals, bioplastics or biofuels, and
so coming into competition with food production, is
frequently discussed. As an alternative solution, diverse
waste streams exist which currently constitute severe
disposal problems for the industrial branches concerned,
and at the same time do not interfere with the nutrition
chain. The utilization of these waste streams is a viable
strategy to overcome a potential ethical conflict; it can be
considered as the most promising approach in making
PHAs economically more competitive. The ANIMPOL
project aims at the value-added conversion of waste from
26 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7

Materials
slaughterhouses, the animal waste rendering industry,
and biodiesel production. Lipids from slaughterhouse
waste are converted to fatty acid methylesters (FAMEs,
biodiesel). FAMEs consisting of saturated fatty acids,
generally constitute a fuel that has an elevated cold filter
plugging point (CFPP) which can be disadvantageous
in blends that exceed 20% by vol. FAMEs. In ANIMPOL,
these saturated fractions are biotechnologically
converted towards PHA biopolymers. As a by-product
of the transesterification of lipids to FAMEs, crude
glycerol phase (CGP) accrues in high quantities. CGP
is also available as a carbon source for the production
of catalytically active biomass and the production of
low molecular mass PHA. This brings together waste
producers from the animal processing industry with meat
and bone meal (MBM) producers (rendering industry),
the bio-fuel industry and polymer processing companies.
This synergism results in value creation for all players.
The basic scheme is illustrated in Fig. 3, whereas Fig. 4
provides a rough estimation for the available amounts
of raw materials in Europe and the amounts of PHA
biopolyesters that are theoretically accessible therefrom.
Major Objectives of ANIMPOL
The project activities are based on a total of 13 main
pillars:
1. Design of an integrated industrial process for
microbial mediated, cost-efficient production of
biodegradable PHA biopolyesters, by starting from
waste from slaughterhouses, rendering industry, and
biodiesel production. These wastes are upgraded to
renewable raw materials. After the end of the project,
data should be available for designing a pilot scale
production plant.
2. Improvement of the quality of biodiesel by removal of
its saturated fraction.
3. Assessment of the raw materials (lipids from animal
waste, saturated biodiesel fraction, surplus glycerol
from biodiesel production) for the fermentation
process by selected microbial strains accumulating
structurally diversified PHAs.
4. For improvement of microbial growth and quality, and
the amount of the PHA produced, appropriate strains
are studied, including recombinant gene expression
or host cell genome modification. Microbial growth
and the PHA production phase are established to be
scaled-up for optimized production of structurally
predefined PHAs. Protocols for controlled PHA
production are developed aiming at reproducible
product quality.
6. Development of an environmentally safe, inexpensive
and efficient downstream process for recovery and
purification of PHAs.
Figure 2: Highly elastic medium-chain length PHA latex
produced by a Pseudomonas strain on animal-derived biodiesel.
(Picture: M. Koller, TU Graz)
Rendering
Industry
MBM
(Meat and Bone
Meal)
Carbon and
Nitrogen source for
microbial growth
Grude Glycerol
265.000
metric tons/year
Catalytically
ActiveBiomass
(0.4-0.5g/g)
ANIMAL
Lipids
Biotechnological
Production of PHAs
Polymer Industry
PHA
120.000 t
(0.3g/g)
Animal Waste Lipids
500.000 t/y
Saturated
Fraction
50.000 t/year
PHA
35.000 t
(0.7g/g)
Slaughterhouses
Biodiesel Industry
(Transesterification)
CPG
(Crude Glycerol
Phase)
Carbon source for
- Microbial growth
- Low molecular mass
PHA accumulation
Saturated
fraction
Carbon source
for PHA production
Biodiesel
Figure 4: Available raw materials for the ANIMPOL process
and potentially accessible quantities of PHA biopolyesters
Biodiesel
(Fatty Acid
Alkyl Esters)
Figure 3: Application of different waste streams from diverse
industrial branches to be utilized for biopolymer production in
the ANIMPOL project
Unsaturated:
Biodiesel
High Quality
Unsaturated
Fraction
Excellent 2 nd
generation
Biofuel!
bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7 27

Materials
7. Chemical, structural, biological, physical and mechanical
characterization of the PHAs that are produced..
8. Preparation of blends and composites of PHAs with
selected polymeric materials including synthetic analogues
of PHA, inorganic and/or organic fillers such as nanofillers.
The organic fillers also include renewable agro-waste
(lignocelluloses, polysaccharides and surplus crops),
either directly or after appropriate physical or chemical
modification.
9. Engineering design of PHA production and extraction unit
operations combined with the analysis of the cost efficiency
of the industrial process as found in the down-stream
processing of slaughterhouses, rendering and biodiesel
factories.
10. A key factor for the success of the project, i.e. its cost
efficiency for industrial scale production of PHAs, is
assessed in terms of the costs of raw materials, chemicals
and energy required for the production of PHAs and its
blends.
11. Assessment of eco-compatibility with evaluation of
biodegradability under different environmental conditions
of the obtained PHA formulations, as well as of some
selected prototype items based on relevant blends and
composites. Validation of the eco-compatibility of selected
items is assessed by means of LCA and ecotoxicity tests.
12. Assessment of the biocompatibility of some selected PHA
formulations and relevant items processed by means of in
vitro cell toxicity and genotoxicity tests in respect of their
potential value-added applications in food, packaging and
biomedical fields.
13. The utilization of novel bioplastics, as attainable by
means of environmentally sound processes based on
waste from renewable resources as the raw material, for
environmentally friendly plastic materials, meeting the EC
directive 62/94 and the subsequent national regulations,
constitutes the ultimate goal of the project.
The Project Team
Industry
Reistenhofer
Argent Energy
Termoplast
Argus Umweltbiotechnologie
Academic partners
Graz University of Technology
(Dr. Koller)
Graz University of Technology
(Prof. Narodoslawsky)
Graz University of Technology
Prof. Schnitzer
University of Padua
(Prof. Casella)
University of Zagreb
(Prof. Horvat)
University of Graz
(Prof. Mittelbach)
University of Pisa
(Prof. Chiellini)
National Institute of Chemistry
(Dr. Kržan, Ljubljana)
Polish Academy of Science
(Prof. Kowalczuk)
University of Pisa
Advisory Board
KRKA (Slovenia)
Novamont (Italy)
Chemtex Italia
(Gruppo Mossi e Ghisolfi, Italy)
Eksportera USB (Lithuania)
Austrian meat converter
Large biodiesel producer (UK)
Producer of plastic packaging
materials
German company, responsible
for Downstream Processing
Coordinator and expert on
biotechnology
Process engineering and
Life Cycle Assessment
Cleaner Production Studies
Support in the field of microbiology
and genetic engineering
Mathematical modelling of
bioprocesses
Optimized conversion of animal
lipids to biodiesel
Special tasks in PHA
characterization and composite
preparation
Special tasks in PHA
characterization and composite
preparation
Special tasks in PHA
characterization and composite
preparation
Tests for biodegradability and
ecotoxicity of the novel materials
Conclusion and Outlook
From the already available data from the ANIMPOL project, it
is obvious that important progress has been achieved in terms
of combining the environmental benefit of future-oriented
bio-polyesters with the economic viability of their production.
This should finally facilitate the decision of responsible policymakers
from waste-generating industrial sectors and from the
polymer industry to break new ground in sustainable production.
In future, PHA production from animal-derived waste should be
integrated into existing process lines of biodiesel companies,
where the raw material directly accrues. This can be considered
as a viable strategy to minimize production costs by taking
profit of synergistic effects.
Info:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=PUnaZDCT7jA
www.animpol.tugraz.at
28 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7

Material News
th
www.bio-based.eu
www.biowerkstoff-kongress.de
Int. Congress 2013
6on Industrial Biotechnology and
Bio-based Plastics & Composites
April 10 th – 11 th 2013,
Maternushaus, Cologne, Germany
Highlights from the world wide leading countries in
bio-based economy: USA & Germany
Organiser
www.nova-institute.eu
Partner
ARBEIT
UMWELT
S T I F T U N G
UND
DER IG BERGBAU, CHEMIE, ENERGIE
www.arbeit-umwelt.de www.kunststoffl and-nrw.de
WWW.CO2-chemistry.eu
Conference on
Carbon Dioxide
as Feedstock
for Chemistry
and Polymers
CO2
Bio-based tie layer
Yparex B.V. (Enschede, The Netherlands) recently
announced that it is the first supplier in the packaging
industry to develop and commercialize an adhesive tie
layer for multilayer packaging films that is to a great
extent bio-based. This tie-layer resin is derived from 95%
annually renewable resources and is fully recyclable,
yet it meets the same performance specifications as
non-renewable petroleum-based polymers of the same
family. Being asked about the chemistry of the adhesive
resin, Wouter van den Berg, General Manager of Yparex
told bioplastics MAGAZINE, that it is a maleic anhydride-
(MAH)-modified and functionalized polyolefin compound,
where the polyolefin is biobased. More details cannot be
disclosed here, but van den Berg is open to all kind if
direct inquiries.
Yparex’s response to the need for more sustainable and
environmentally friendly packaging was to develop a biobased
version of the company’s popular Yparex ® brand
adhesive tie-layer resin for multilayer barrier-packaging
producers. Adhesive tie layers are special polymers
used in very-popular multilayer films that bond together
dissimilar resins that otherwise would not adhere to each
other. The new extrusion grade is suitable for blown or
cast multilayer film structures that use common barrier
resins like polyamide (PA) and ethylene vinyl alcohol
(EVOH). The new polymer is the first of what the company
hopes will become a growing family of bio-based ‘green’
tie layer grades. Since the plant-based resin behaves
exactly as the same grade of petroleum-derived resin
does, it is a perfect drop in solution for packaging
manufacturers looking to lower their carbon footprint
and offer their customers a more sustainable product. MT
www.yparex.com.
CO 2
as chemical feedstock –
a challenge for sustainable chemistry
10 th – 11 th October 2012, Haus der Technik, Essen (Germany)
Organiser
Partners
Institute
for Ecology and Innovation
www.nova-institute.eu www.hdt-essen.de www.kunststoffland-nrw.de
www.co2-chemistry.eu www.clib2021.de
30 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7
www.arbeit-umwelt.de

Material News
New
PLA/ABS blend
Toray introduces High Plant
Content Grade ECODEAR
By
Kotaro Sagara
R&C Green Innovation Business
Planning Dept.
Toray Industries, Inc.
Chuo-ku, Tokyo, Japan
Toray Industries, Inc. (Chuo-ku, Tokyo, Japan) recently
announced that it has developed a high plant content
grade of the environmentally friendly biomass-based
resin ECODEAR , which contains 50% or more polylactic acid
(PLA) made from plant derived starch. Toray will start selling
the material in September this year for office automation
equipment and electronic products that need to comply with
EPEAT, the environmental rating tool for electronic products
in the U.S.
Toray’s Ecodear is a biomass-based resin polymer alloy
that combines PLA with ABS to give sufficient mouldability
and physical properties, as PLA alone would have inadequate
mouldability, durability, heat resistance and strength for
certain applications. The use of PLA in Ecodear until now
was limited to 30% to give the material the required physical
properties, but the new development enabled to increase
the content of PLA to 50% or more. This has resulted in
further improving Ecodear’s potential to reduce emissions of
greenhouse gases including CO 2
.
2 µm
ABS
PLA
While PLA-based
resins carry high
expectations for
expansion of its use
in the future, they
are less suitable for
certain moulding
processes compared
with other materials
and rather inferior to these materials in durability, heat
resistance and strength over a long period. On the other
hand, ABS resins have a wide range of applications including
home electronics, office automation equipment, automobile
and toys and are highly versatile given its well-balanced
properties of high mouldability, durability, heat resistance
and strength. Toray developed an alloy resin combining these
two materials to offer Ecodear , which is an environmentally
friendly and high-utility resin material.
In recent years it has become an important issue to increase
the content ratio of PLA resin while maintaining sufficient
physical properties. Towards that end, a method has been
proposed to add talc, a mineral used for reinforcement,
to crystalize PLA to improve the physical properties of the
material when increasing the portion of PLA resin. This
method, however, is not productive and far from practical, as
it requires moulding at the temperatures of 90°C or higher
for crystallization.
Toray aimed to achieve the level of mouldability and
physical properties of the material containing 70% or
more of ABS resins with the lowest possible content ratio
of ABS polymer, and succeeded in evenly dispersing small
amount of ABS resin in PLA resin by utilizing morphological
control, which gives full command of control over molecular
structure. This resulted in the realization of the high plant
content grade of Ecodear that addresses PLA resin s existing
weakness in mouldability and physicality with 30% less ABS
resin content.
www.toray.com
General
purpose
ABS resin
PLA resin
Existing
ECODEAR
Newly
developed
grade
Competing
products
by other
companies
Content ratio of PLA resin
(% by weight)
0 100 30 ≥50 ≥50
Moldability
Features
Tool temperature
(degree Celsius)
40~80 40 40~60 40~60 ≥90
Molding Time Short Long Short Short Long
Charpy impact
strength
(kJ/m2)
Heat Deflection
temperature
HDT/B
( @ 0.45MPa)
10~20 2 ≥10 ≥10 ≥10
95 57 ≥80 >70 ≥80
bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7 31

Material News
High-performance and bio-based—
the Vestamid Terra product family
Rayon fiber reinforced bio-PA
high bio-content and a good reinforcement potential
Evonik Industries (Essen, Germany) has developed and
launched on the market a novel combination of biobased
high-performance polyamides and bio-based
high-performance fibers.
Reinforcing fibers, particularly chopped fiberglass, are often
mixed into a plastic to improve its mechanical properties. But
in the case of bio-based polymers this means that the biocontent
is lowered 1 , reducing the ecological advantage. The
use of natural fibers, on the other hand, has so far resulted
in significant deterioration of reinforcing potential, and also
an unpleasant odor in the end product. VESTAMID ® Terra
with rayon fibers retains the high bio-content — along with
excellent reinforcing potential.
Two polyamide grades of the Vestamid Terra product family
form the polymer matrix: Terra HS (PA 6.10) and Terra DS
(PA 10.10). These polyamides are fully or partially obtained
from the castor oil plant. Commercially available chopped
rayon fibers form the reinforcing fiber substrate. Rayon is
also known as man-made cellulose or technically as viscose
fibers. These fibers are obtained entirely from wood residues
(dissolving pulp), and are therefore also based on renewable
raw materials. The overall bio-content is thus high, lying
between 67 and 100%.
Compared with fiberglass reinforced systems, the
combination of viscose fibers and polymer matrix offers a
significantly improved carbon balance. As an example, CO 2
savings for a viscose fiber system of PA1010 with a fiber
content of 30% are 57% higher than for a 30% glass fiber
reinforced PA66.
Additionally, viscose reinforcing fibers have a significantly
lower density than mineral fibers: Depending on fiber
content, bio-polyamides reinforced with viscose fibers offer
a weight reduction of up to 10%, for the same reinforcing
performance.
“With this product development, we want to further
support the unrestricted expansion of bio-based products in
technically demanding applications for our customers,“ says
Dr. Benjamin Brehmer, Business Manager Biopolymers at
Evonik.
Evonik offers Vestamid Terra grades of varying fiber
content, to satisfy a wide range of mechanical demands.
1: Editor’s note: This means that the biomass content of the
compound is reduced, because glass fibres do not contain any
biomass. Since glass fibres do not contain any carbon, the
bio-based carbon content of the compound remains the same.
It is an ongoing discussion, which of these values are more
important (see bM 03/2010) - MT
www.evonik.com
32 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7

Material News
Growth in PLA bioplastics
Production capacity of over 800,000 tonnes per annum
expected by 2020
t/a
The nova-Institute (Hürth, Germany) recently published
the first results of a multi-client market survey covering
the international bioplastics market.
25 companies have developed production capacity at 30
sites worldwide of (currently) more than 180,000 tonnes per
annum (t/a) of polylactic acid (PLA), which is one of the leading
bio-based plastics. The largest producer, NatureWorks, has
a capacity of 140,000 t/a. The other producers have a current
capacity of between 1,500 and 10,000 t/a.
According to their own forecasts, existing PLA producers
are planning considerable expansion of their capacity to
reach around 800,000 t/a by 2020 (see diagram). There should
be at least seven sites with a capacity of over 50,000 t/a by
that time. A survey of lactic acid producers – the precursor
of PLA – revealed that production capacity to meet concrete
requests from customers (who cannot yet be named) could
even rise to roughly 950,000 t/a.
Michael Carus, managing director of nova-Institute,
reacted thus to the survey results: “For the very first time
we have robust market data about worldwide PLA production
capacity. These are considerably higher than in previous
studies, which did not cover all producers. Forecasts of
800,000 or even 950,000 t/a by 2020 show that PLA is definitely
a polymer for the future.”
The results are derived from the most comprehensive
international market survey of bioplastics to date, which
was carried out in conjunction with renowned international
plastics experts. The ‘Market Study on Bio-based Polymers
Evolution of PLA production capacities worldwide 2011-2020
(source: nova-Institute)
900.000
800.000
700.000
600.000
500.000
400.000
300.000
200.000
100.000
and Plastics in the World’ will be published in January
2013 and contains, along with a 300-page report, access to
the newly developed ‘Bioplastics Producer Database’. It is
the methodology of this market survey that is so special,
since it provides a comprehensive study of every producer
of over 30 different bioplastics around the world. The data
covering the capacity, production, uses and raw materials
was collected through over 100 interviews with senior and
top-level managers as well as questionnaires and a literature
review. Alongside this market data, the report will contain
analyses of future trends by renowned experts Jan Ravenstijn
(bioplastics consultant, The Netherlands), Wolfgang Baltus
(National Innovation Agency NIA, Thailand), Dirk Carrez
(Clever Consult, Belgium), Harald Käb (narocon, Germany)
and Michael Carus (nova-Institute, Germany). The report
and database access will be available for €6,500 net from
January.
A summer promotion that ended in September was extended
for the readers of bioplastics MAGAZINE. Pre-order the study
before October 31 st from books@bioplasticsmagazine.com for
€5,500 net and save €1,000 on the original price.
www.nova-institute.eu
Info:
Coordinated by nova-Institute, the multi-client
survey has already been funded by more than 20
renowned companies and institutions, which have
also overseen the project as part of the Advisory
Board. Additional partners are more than welcome.
For €6,000 they receive not only the report and
access to the “Bioplastics Producer Database”
but can also sit on the Advisory Board. In-depth
information about the survey programme and the
partnership agreement, as well as the producer
questionnaire, can be found at www.bio-based.eu/
market_study
Bioplastics producers that submit a completed
questionnaire will not only be easy to find by
potential new business partners via the ‘Bioplastics
Producer Database’ but will also receive free online
access for a limited period of time.
0 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7 33

Material News
JV for bio-based butadiene
Versalis to partner with Genomatica and Novamont
www.eni.com
www.genomatica.com
www.novamont.com
Versalis (Milan, Italy), chemicals subsidiary of Eni (Rome,
Italy) leader in the production of elastomers, together
with Genomatica (San Diego, California, USA, a leading
developer of process technology for renewable chemicals), and
Novamont (Novara, Italy, a leader in biodegradable plastics and
pioneer in third generation integrated biorefineries) are going
to cooperate. On July 24 they signed a Memorandum of Understanding
(MOU) to establish a strategic partnership to enable
production of butadiene from renewable feedstocks. Butadiene
is a raw material used in the production of rubber for tires,
electrical appliances, footwear, plastics, asphalt modifiers, additives
for lubricating oil, pipes, building components, and latex.
The partnership, on the basis of which a joint venture will
be established, will develop a comprehensive ‘end-to-end’ process
for production of polymer-grade butadiene from biomass.
Versalis will hold a majority interest in the joint venture holding
company and aims to be the first to build commercial plants
using the process technology upon project success.
This unique and important agreement brings together the
core competencies of all three companies. The partnership will
leverage Genomatica’s proprietary technologies and intellectual
property for producing butadiene, Versalis’ extensive expertise
in catalysis process development and process engineering
scale-up and market applications of butadiene derivatives,
as well as Novamont’s experience in renewable feedstocks.
Under this agreement, Versalis will use Genomatica’s process
technology for economically competitive and sustainable
process technology aspect production of an important supplyconstrained
chemical. The process technology aspect of the
agreement is intended to be made available for future licensing
in Europe, Africa and Asia.
Butadiene is a key intermediate for Versalis elastomers
business. The raw material required to produce it, extracted
from ‘C4’s (a mixture of molecules containing four carbon
atoms) and produced by cracking plants, is increasingly subject
to availability problems. Decreasing supplies and a lack of
dedicated butadiene production facilities have resulted in
significant long-term pressure on the price and volatility of the
chemical, which in turn increases the price of butadiene-based
products, including tires.
Concerns of scarcity in the butadiene market are compounded
by growth forecasts within the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia,
India, China) where demand for automotive products made
from butadiene, such as tires, is expected to increase.
exemplary picture
34 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7

Polyurethanes / Elastomers
In this context, butadiene supplies from biomass become
strategic to Versalis, because in times of C4 stream scarcity
it can be freed from naphtha cracking processes. So the
partnership represents a valuable opportunity to boost the
supply of butadiene with the support of its know- how and
the industrial system, and to expand its bio-based portfolio.
“Genomatica’s process technology for on-purpose
butadiene combined with our experience in downstream
applications and our ability to rapidly scale and commercialize
the process can expand our industry’s approach to C4
production, seizing a promising business opportunity in
a market that is experiencing a critical time” said Daniele
Ferrari, CEO of Versalis. “This partnership, which follows
the establishment of Matrìca, the equal joint venture with
Novamont for the production of monomers, intermediates
and polymers from renewable sources, accelerates the entry
of Versalis in that business by strengthening its leadership
in elastomers, in line with the new strategy of focusing on
products with high-added value.“
“Together we will have a great opportunity to apply
Novamont’s concept of third generation integrated
biorefineries to a well-known chemical like butadiene,
applying new biotechnological and chemical processes
to local biomass for an innovative industry at local level,
thereby improving environmental, economical and social
sustainability,” said Catia Bastioli, CEO, Novamont. “And
the ability for on-purpose production will make it easier to
adjust supply to meet local market demand while staying
close to a low volatility feedstock and reducing environmental
footprint.”
“Versalis and Novamont are ideal partners to join us
in leading the development of process technology for the
production of butadiene from renewable feedstocks,” said
Christophe Schilling, Ph.D., CEO of Genomatica. “Together
we can cover the entire value chain, and drive from
innovation to commercialization, providing a comprehensive
solution. This partnership is further validation of the ability
of Genomatica’s technology platform to address multiple
chemical market opportunities.”
The agreement between the three parties builds upon
a series of recent key events including the June 2011
formation of Matrìca, a 50:50 joint venture in bio-based
chemicals production between Versalis and Novamont;
the announcement that Versalis plans to heavily invest in
innovation and capitalize on Elastomers, and Genomatica’s
successful production of pound quantities of bio-based
butadiene in August 2011. MT
Bio meets plastics.
The specialists in plastic recycling systems.
An outstanding technology for recycling both
bioplastics and conventional polymers
bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7 35

Polyurethanes / Elastomers
A new
compostable
TPE
By
Kevin Ireland
Communications Manager
Green Dot Holdings LLC
Cottonwood Falls, Kansas, USA
Thermoplastic elastomers present a unique challenge
for safety and sustainability. Consumers are increasingly
concerned about the health risks and disposal issues
surrounding these materials. Elastomeric plastics often
contain phthalates and bisphenol A (BPA) and are difficult to
be recycled in many communities. Several plastics producers
have introduced bio-based plasticizers to avoid the disadvantages
associated with traditional petroleum elastomers. Unfortunately,
these materials only contain a small percentage of
bio-based feedstocks and the materials still face the same end
of life issues, most often ending up in a municipal landfill in
many countries. The limited physical attributes of some of the
new compostable bioplastics made them ill suited for durable
goods. Now there’s a new solution for sustainable soft plastics
that provides cradle to cradle integrity with no compromise in
performance.
Green Dot, a new bioscience social enterprise headquartered
in Cottonwood Falls, Kansas, is introducing a new compostable
elastomeric bioplastic GDH-B1 is a rubber-like material that’s
soft, pliable and durable, It’s made from renewable plant based
sources (starch). It’s been tested by NSF International to be
free from phthalates, BPA, cadmium and lead. And GDH-B1 is
the only soft plastic elastomer made in North America verified
to meet U.S. (ASTM D6400) and E.U. (EN13432) standards for
compostability.
Green Dot’s elastomeric bioplastic offers a range of physical
attributes comparable to petroleum based thermoplastic
elastomers. The material is strong and pliable with an
exquisite soft touch. The characteristics of the bioplastic
provide excellent performance in fabrication and can be used
with existing manufacturing equipment in the majority of
plastic processing applications including, injection molding,
profile extrusion, blow molding, blown film and lamination. It
has a lower melt temperature compared to petroleum based
elastomers, reducing energy cost and shortening production
cycle times and it provides excellent compatibility with other
thermoplastic elastomers. The starch based material also
offers superior printing and scenting compared to silicone, PLA
and Hytrel.
GDH-B1 is ideal for durable soft plastic products that are
designed to last. When the useful life of these products has
ended the material can be returned to nature in a composting
environment. The new elastomer does not require an industrial
composting environment to biodegrade. The bioplastic will
biodegrade in a matter of months in a home composting
environment as well. The enhanced compostability is an
36 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7

attribute that is particularly important to North American
consumers, who often do not have access to industrial
composting facilities.
Under the leadership of Mark Remmert Green Dot’s
CEO and a thirty year veteran of the plastic industry the
company has adopted an innovative strategy to introduce
its bioplastic. “We don’t just sell resin,” he explained. “We
work with companies throughout the entire process of
product development from design to mold building and
manufacturing. Our team works with OEMs to guide them
through this process. We feel that the most effective way
demonstrate the physical and environmental attributes
of this new to the world material is to place it directly in
the hands of millions of consumers, and we’re doing just
that, with stylish products that enable users to contribute
while they consume.” Green Dot’s team includes an in
house industrial designer and a creative consultant,
internationally renowned fashion designer Elizabeth
Rickard Shah.
PURALACT ® Lactides
for biobased PLA in
demanding applications
Foam | Film | Fiber | Molded parts
The companies initial product success is the market’s
first compostable soft plastic phone case. The BioCase
is designed and manufactured by Green Dot and is
distributed by Nite Ize. Nearly 100,000 units have been
shipped since the product’s introduction in December
2011.
Green Dot has also worked with Fort Collins, Colorado
toy maker, BeginAgain Toys. BeginAgain is introducing
Green Dot’s compostable, toxin-free bioplastic to parents
and children with two products featuring GDH-B1,
Scented Scoops’, an imaginative ice cream play set and
the Green Ring teether. These toys have already received
accolades for their creative design and sustainable
materials. BeginAgain’s Chris Clemmer described
GDH-B1 as “the most innovative eco-material we’ve ever
had our hands on.”
Green Dot serves both the plastics industry and styleconscious
consumers who want to protect the Earth,
not pollute it with enduring waste. Green Dot aspires to
improve the environment in which we live, by building a
more sustainable world with renewable bio-based resins
and promoting their use through invention, creation
and research so everyone can contribute to a more
sustainable world.
www.greendotpure.com
PLA homopolymers
High heat resistance | High impact resistance
Biobased | Recyclable | Biodegradable
purac.com/bioplastics
bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7 37

Polyurethanes / Elastomers
PPC Polyol from CO 2
Jiangsu Jinlong-CAS Chemical Co., Ltd., a Chinese
company focusing on the reuse of carbon dioxide emissions
to create new chemical materials, has developed
a highly efficient catalytic system and innovative technology
to produce biodegradable aliphatic polypropylene carbonate
polyol (PPC polyol) by copolymerizing CO 2
with propylene oxide
(PO). This kind of polyol, that has been proven to show a
high reaction activity, may be widely used in the polyurethane
(PU) industry.
The company has developed the world’s first 10,000
tonnes per annum production line for PPC polyol. They
own the intellectual property rights, including 15 Chinese
patents concerning the catalyst preparation, polymerization
technology, reaction (production) equipment etc.
Polypropylene Carbonate Polyol
Polypropylene carbonate polyol (PPC polyol) is a kind of
colourless or yellowish viscous liquid with a rather complex
molecular structure and a molecular weight ranging from
2000 to 5000 Daltons. It is made with more than 30% by
wt CO 2
. PPC polyol shows a better hydrolysis resistance
compared to common polyester polyols, as well as physical
and mechanical properties superior to polyether polyols.
PPC polyol could replace PTMEG (Polytetramethylene
ether glycol) partially in superior artificial leather, that would
exhibit good touch and feel properties and light weight quality
– but also a certain toughness.
The new polyol has also proven that it can be used to
produce high adhesive strength coating materials (PU
adhesive) and may be widely used in cast polyurethane (CPU)
and thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) elastomers.
PPC Thermoplastic Polyurethane (PPC-TPU)
PPC-TPU is a new kind of biodegradable polymer
copolymerized from PPC polyol, BDO (1,4-butanediol) and
MDI (Methylendiphenyldiisocyanat). It shows excellent
biodegradability with the final level of biodegradation (ISO
14855) being higher than 90% after 130 days.
The physical properties of PPC-TPU are similar to
traditional TPU. It shows excellent impact strength, tear
resistance and low temperature performance, as well as
excellent adhesion etc.
The product can be used for example for the production
of industrial packaging materials or as an impact modifier
additive for engineering plastics.
CH 3
CH 3
O CH 3
O CH 3
[ [
[
HO CH 2
CH O CH 2
CHO C O CH CH 2
O C O CH CH 2
OH
m - 1 n - 1
[
Polypropylene Carbonate Polyol
Blown film line producing a
PBS/PPC-TPU blend film
PPC polyol
PPC-TPU
Heat resistance sheet for
hot drink and food package
38 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7

Not all chemicals are created equal TM
By
Jingdong Zong
Jiangsu Jinlong-CAS chemical CO., LTD
Taixing, Jiangsu, China
Another advantageous property of PPC-TPU film is
its relatively high barrier performance to O 2
and water
vapour compared to other bioplastics.
By blending with other biodegradable plastics such as
PBS, PLA etc. PPC-TPU may improve the tear resistance
of the compound. Jiangsu Jinlong-CAS successfully
converted such blends into film that can be used for
degradable mulch, shopping bags and waste bags, etc.
Other compounds
Jiangsu Jinlong-CAS is also cooperating with a partner
to develop other new compound materials made with
PBS, PLA, natural fibres (such as rice husk, plant straw )
and inorganic ingredients. By now they have successfully
developed new heat resistance blended materials (up
to 100°C). These materials can be used for the positive
pressure and vacuum assisted thermoforming processes
and for injection moulding. The main fields of application
are food packaging and industrial packaging.
www.zhongkejinlong.com.cn
Application examples
Myriant produces high performance, bio-based
chemicals using renewable feedstocks that are
not derived from food sources. Our commercial
Succinic Acid plant starts up in 2012 and will be
the world’s first of its kind and scale. We have
proven economics that allow us to offer Succinic
Acid with no green price premium.
Material
WVTR
g/m 2 /24h
PPC-TPU 36 120
PBS - 1200
PLA 325 550
PBAT 170 1400
OTR
cm 3 /m 2 /d/atm
Water vapour transmission rate (WVTR)
and oxygen transmission rate (OTR)
www.myriant.com
855.MYRIANT (697.4268)
productinfo@myriant.com
bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7 39

Polyurethanes / Elastomers
Polyurethanes from
orange peel and CO 2
by
Rolf Mülhaupt and Moritz Bähr
Freiburg Materials Research Center (FMF)
and Institute for Macromolecular Chemistry
University of Freiburg
Freiburg, Germany
The Freiburg Materials Research Center (FMF) of the
University of Freiburg, jointly with Volkswagen, has
developed novel families of 100% renewable resource
based polyurethanes derived from natural terpene oils and
the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO 2
). In contrast to the
conventional polyurethanes, neither hazardous isocyanate
resins nor fossil resources are required. Produced by a great
variety of plants as essential oils, terpenes are exclusively
recovered from bio-wastes and do not compete with food
production. Prominent terpene raw material for the production
of non-isocyanate polyurethanes is the citrus oil limonene,
obtained from orange peel as a waste product in
the manufacturing of orange juice. Based upon limonene and
the chemical fixation of carbon dioxide recovered from the
exhausts of power plants and as a by-product of liquid air
production, a very versatile and cost-effective molecular toolbox
has been developed at FMF for tailoring rigid and flexible
polyurethanes with diverse applications ranging from automotive
parts to textiles, rubbers, foams, coatings, sealants,
and adhesives.
Stimulated by the expected skyrocketing costs of crude
oil and growing public awareness of global warming, the
lean and clean production of renewable resource based
plastics with a low carbon footprint has gained high priority
[1]. Going well beyond the traditional scope of renewable
polymers, bio-based intermediates supplied by biorefineries
and the chemical fixation of carbon dioxide offer
attractive opportunities for tailoring environmentally benign
polyurethanes (PU). Conventional PU technology requires
very strict health and safety precautions, owing to the severe
health hazards upon exposure to toxic isocyanate monomers.
In contrast, non-isocyanate polyurethanes (NIPU) are formed
without using hazardous isocyanate resins at any point in the
production process. Key NIPU intermediates are non-toxic
polyfunctional cyclic carbonate monomers, which are readily
produced by chemical conversion of epoxy resins with carbon
dioxide [2, 3]. When cured with amines the cyclic carbonates
undergo ring opening, thus forming poly(N-hydroxyethylurethanes).
In contrast to the highly moisture-sensitive
isocyanates, cyclic carbonate resins tolerate humidity and
can be cured on wet substrates without foaming. Tedious
drying of fillers is not required. NIPUs (Green Polyurethane TM )
based upon fossil resources and conventional epoxy resins
are commercially available as zero VOC coatings with
improved adhesion and better resistance to chemical
degradation, corrosion, organic solvents, and wear [4, 5].
Most attempts towards the development of 100 % renewable
resource based NIPU make use of epoxidized soybean and
linseed oils, which are converted with carbon dioxide into
the corresponding bio-based cyclic carbonate resins [6, 7,
8]. However, the ester groups of plant oil carbonates are
partially cleaved during amine cure. These side reactions
can cause undesirable emission problems and impair NIPU
properties due to plasticization of the NIPU matrix. Therefore,
at FMF an innovative generation of 100% renewable resource
based NIPU has been produced from novel ester-fee cyclic
carbonate resins derived from terpenes [9]. The limonenebased
NIPU process is illustrated on the next page.
Terpenes represent highly unsaturated, ester-free, natural
hydrocarbons. Typical members of the terpene family include
limonene, camphene, vitamin A, steroids, carotenoids and
natural rubber. More than 300 plants produce limonene. For
example, orange peel contains up to 90 wt.-% of limonene,
which is readily recovered on a commercial scale using the
waste products from orange juice production. The colorless
viscous oil limonene dioxide, produced by oxidation of
40 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7

Polyurethanes / Elastomers
CO 2
C
CH 3
H 3
C H 3
C O
O
O
C
C
C CH 2
H 3
C CH 2
H 3
C CH 2
H 3
C
O
O O
Limonene
C
+ H 2
N
O
O
H 3
C
OH
O
C
O
NH
Limonene
dicarbonate
O
C
C
O
C
H 3
C
OH
H 2
bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7 41
NH
NIPU
limonene, is commercially used as component of epoxy
resins. The FMF research has succeeded in reacting terpene
oxides quantitatively with carbon dioxide, thus producing
novel and cost-effective families of terpene carbonates.
This chemical carbon dioxide fixation is highly effective.
Around 34 wt-% carbon dioxide is incorporated into limonene
dicarbonate! As a function of their stereoisomer compostion,
limonene dicarbonates can be obtained as viscous liquid
or white crystalline solid. The limonene dicarbonate reacts
with a great variety of amines, producing multifunctional
urethanes. Reaction with amines and amino-alcohols affords
cycloaliphatic polyols useful as intermediates in conventional
PU synthesis. As a chain extender of oligomeric polyamines
and amino-alcohols limonene dicarbonate incorporates
hard limonene segments into flexible curing agents. This
approach has been used to produce new families of reactive
prepolymers which can be functionalized in numerous
ways. Upon curing with polyamines, e.g. using bio-based
diamines or novel aminoamides derived from citric acid,
100% renewable and even 100% citrus-based NIPU are
made available. In contrast to the rather soft soybean-oilbased
NIPU, the mechanical properties of limonene-NIPU
can be varied over a very wide range from highly rigid and
stiff to rubbery and ultrasoft. Applications include casting
resins, rubbers, thermoplastic elastomers, foams, coatings,
sealants and adhesives. As illustrated using the example of
limonene, this NIPU strategy can be applied to a very large
variety of terpenes. Terpene carbonates are also attractive
as components and non-toxic solvents for numerous other
applications, going well beyond the scope of bio-based NIPU.
www.fmf.uni-freiburg.de
[1] R. Mülhaupt: “Green polymer chemistry and bio-based plastics –
dreams and reality”, Macromol. Chem. Phys., accepted, in press
[2] O. Figovsky, L. Shapovalov. F. Buslov: Ultraviolet and
thermostable non-isocyanate polyurethane coatings“,Surface
Coatings International Part B: Coatings Transactions 88, B1,
1-82 (2005)
[3] B. Ochiai, S. Inoue, T. Endo: “One-Pot Non-Isocyanate
Synthesis of Polyurethanes from Bisepoxide, Carbon Dioxide,
and Diamine”, Journal of Polymer Science: Part A: Polymer
Chemistry 43, 6613–6618 (2005)
[4] www.hybridcoatingtech.com, accessed Sept. 08, 2012
[5] www.nanotechindustriesinc.com/GPU.php, accessed Sept. 08,
2012
[6] Ivan Javni, Doo Pyo Hong, Zoran S. Petrovi, Soy-Based
Polyurethanes by Nonisocyanate Route, Journal of Applied
Polymer Science, Vol. 108, 3867–3875 (2008)
[7] B. Tamami, S. Sohn, G. L. Wilkes: “Incorporation of carbon
dioxide into soybean oil and subsequent preparation and studies
of nonisocyanate polyurethane networks”, J. Appl. Polym. Sci.
92, 883-891 (2004)
[8] M. Bähr, R. Mülhaupt: “Linseed and soybean oil-based
polyurethanes prepared via the non-isocyanate route and
catalytic carbon dioxide conversion”, Green Chem. 14, 483–489
(2012)
[9] M. Bähr, A. Bitto, R. Mülhaupt: “Cyclic limonene dicarbonate as
a new monomer for non-isocyanate oligo- and polyurethanes
(NIPU) based upon terpenes”, Green Chem., 14, 1447–1454
(2012)

Polyurethanes / Elastomers
Renewable Building Blocks
for Polyurethanes
Bio-based succinic acid has emerged as one of the most
competitive of the new bio-based chemicals. As a platform
chemical, bio-based succinic acid has a wide
range of applications, including in polyurethanes, coatings,
adhesives and sealants, personal care, flavours and food.
BioAmber (Minneapolis, Minnesota) has demonstrated
that bio-based succinic acid can be used as a replacement
for petroleum-based adipic acid in polyester polyols, with
equivalent performance and differentiated functionality.
Thermoplastic polyurethanes made using BioAmber
bio-based succinic acid exhibit higher glass transition
temperatures, equating to higher crystallinity, which can be a
benefit in applications such as adhesives. Due to the higher
density of ester groups, succinate polyesters also exhibit
more hard-phase to soft-phase interaction than those with
polybutylene adipate.
In addition to the differentiated performance benefits of
succinate polyesters, bio-based succinic acid also offers a
better carbon footprint. BioAmber’s bio-based succinic acid
gives a 99% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and a
50% reduction in energy savings compared to petroleumbased
adipic acid.
The bio-based succinic acid is also used as a building block
for the large volume chemical intermediate 1,4-butanediol
(BDO), which is both a monomer for polyols and a chain
extender for polyurethane formulations. Combining biobased
succinic acid with bio-based 1,4-BDO gives polyester
polyols with even numbered carbons based on 100%
renewable building blocks. Combining BioAmber’s biobased
succinic acid with 1,3-propanediol (1,3-PDO) gives a
polyester polyol with an odd numbered alcohol.
The options of odd and even pairings are expected to
have significantly different physical properties, offering
formulation flexibility over a range of properties. With both
bio-based succinic acid and bio-based 1,4-BDO, BioAmber
offers polyurethane manufacturers formulation flexibility
with the highest levels of renewable carbon.
The company has already scaled up its hydrogenation
catalyst technology under license from DuPont and
converted multi-ton quantities of bio-based succinic acid
into 100% bio-based 1,4-butanediol (BDO), terahydrofuran
(THF) and gamma-butyrolactone (GBL), using bio-based
succinic acid from its commercial plant in Pomacle, France.
BioAmber is building industrial capacity for both bio-based
succinic acid and bio-based 1,4-BDO in Sarnia, Canada and
in Thailand, with its manufacturing partner, Mitsui & Co., to
meet projected market demand for a new family of succinate
polyurethanes with differentiated functionality and reduced
carbon footprint. MT
www.bio-amber.com
42 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7

Basics
No ‘greenwashing‘
with bioplastics
European Bioplastics publishes ‘Environmental Communications Guide‘
By
Kristy-Barbara Lange
Head of Communications
European Bioplastics
Berlin, Germany
The emotional debate about our future in the face of increasingly serious environmental
problems has left its mark. The consumer is sensitized and willing
to contribute his or her share.
The willingness to contribute to environmental protection goes along with an
increasing demand for truthful, accurate and easy to verify information on products
that claim a reduced impact on the environment. The demand for simple information
is high, especially for complex products such as bioplastics and products made
thereof. However, breaking down complex properties and expert language into easily
understandable claims is a challenge – particularly in the face of international
standards giving strict guidelines for environmental communication.
European Bioplastics has taken on this topic with the goal to strengthen accurate
environmental communication within the bioplastics industry. The association just
published its ‘Environmental Communications Guide’ (ECG), which was
developed by an international ad hoc working group
within the last six months.
Next to general guidelines for
environmental communication the
brochure offers recommendations
regarding relevant claims for
bioplastics such as biobased,
biodegradable, compostable or
CO 2
-neutral. Recommendations are
illustrated by a number of examples.
Focusing on safeguarding good
communication along the entire value
chain of bioplastics, the ECG is intended
to be a practical help to marketing and
communications professionals striving
to present the innovation of bioplastics
correctly according to the status quo and
without neglecting its ample untapped
potential.
The Guide is available in English language
(see info-box below).
Sample page
from the ECG
Info:
In addition there will be a half-day
‘Environmental Communications Workshop’
in Berlin on Nov. 05. More info as well as
the download of the Guide can be found at
www.european-bioplastics.org/ecg
bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7 43

Basics
Plastics made from CO 2
First plastics from CO 2
coming onto the market -
and they can be biodegradable
Carbon dioxide is one of the most discussed molecules
in the popular press, due to its role as greenhouse gas
(GHG) and the increase in temperature on our planet,
a phenomenon known as global warming.
Carbon dioxide is generally regarded as an inert molecule,
as it is the final product of any combustion process, either
chemical or biological in cellular metabolism (an average
human body emits daily about 0.9 kg of CO 2
). The abundance
of CO 2
prompted scientists to think of it as a useful raw
material for the synthesis of chemicals and plastics rather
than as a mere emission waste.
Traditionally CO 2
has been used in numerous applications,
such as in the preparation of carbonated soft drinks, as
an acidity regulator in the food industry, in the industrial
preparation of synthetic urea, in fire extinguishers and many
others.
Today, as CO 2
originating from energy production, transport
and industrial production continues to accumulate in the
atmosphere, scientists and technologists are looking more
closely at different alternatives to reduce flue-gas emissions
and are exploring the possibility of using CO 2
as a direct
feedstock for chemicals production, and first successful
examples have already been achieved.
The carbon cycle on our planet is able to recycle the
CO 2
from the atmosphere back in the biosphere and it has
maintained an almost constant level of CO 2
concentration
over the last hundred thousand years. The carbon cycle fixes
approx. 200 gigatonnes of CO 2
yearly while the anthropogenic
CO 2
accounts for about 7 gigatonnes per year (3-4% of the
CO 2
fixed in the carbon cycle). Even if this quantity looks
small, we must bear in mind that this excess of CO 2
has been
accumulating year after year in the atmosphere, and in fact
we know that CO 2
concentration rose to almost 400 ppm from
280 ppm in the preindustrial era.
In recent years different processes have been patented
and are currently used to recover CO 2
from the flue-gases of
coal, oil or natural gas, or from biomass power plants. The
recovered CO 2
can be either stored in natural caves, used for
Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR), or can be used as feedstock
for the chemical industry. The availability of a high quantity of
CO 2
triggered different research projects worldwide that are
aimed at finding a high added value use for what otherwise
is a pollutant.
Plastics from CO 2
When it comes to the question of CO 2
and plastics there
are many different strategies aiming at either obtaining
plastics from molecules derived directly from CO 2
or using
CO 2
in combination with monomers that could either be
traditional fossil-based or bio-based chemicals. Moreover,
the final plastics can be biodegradable or not, depending
to their structures. Noteworthy among already existing CO 2
derived plastics are polypropylene carbonate, polyethylene
carbonate, polyurethanes (see also p. 38) and many promising
others that are still in the laboratories.
Polypropylene carbonate
Polypropylene carbonate (PPC) is the first remarkable
example of a plastic that uses CO 2
in its preparation. PPC is
obtained through alternated polymerization of CO 2
with PO
(propylene oxide, C 3
H 6
O) (Fig. 1).
The production of PPC worldwide is rising and this trend is
not expected to change.
Polypropylene carbonate (PPC) was first developed 40
years ago by Inoue, but is only now coming into its own.
PPC is 43% CO 2
by mass, is biodegradable, shows high
temperature stability, high elasticity and transparency, and
a memory effect. These characteristics open up a wide
range of applications for PPC, including countless uses as
packaging film and foams, dispersions and softeners for
brittle plastics. The North American companies Novomer
and Empower Materials, the Norwegian firm Norner and SK
Innovation from South Korea are some of those working to
develop and produce PPC.
Today PPC is a high quality plastic able to combine several
advantages at the same time.
44 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7

Basics
By
Fabrizio Sibilla
Achim Raschka
Michael Carus
nova-Institute, Hürth, Germany
Thinking further ahead, in a future when propylene oxide
will be produced from methanol reformed from CO 2
, PPC
will be available derived 100% from recycled CO 2
, therefore
making it very attractive for the final consumer.
PPC is also a biodegradable polymer that shows good
compostability properties. These properties, when combined
with the 43% or 100% ‘Recycled CO 2
’ can contribute to the
development of a plastic industry that can aim at being
sustainable in its three pillars (social, environmental,
economy).
Other big advantages of PPC are its thermoplastic
behaviour similar to many existing plastics, its possibility
to be combined with other polymers, and its use with
fillers. Moreover, PPC does not require special tailor-made
machines for its forming or extruding, hence this aspect
contributes to make PPC a ‘ready to use’ alternative to many
existing plastics.
PPC is also a good softener for bioplastics: many biobased
plastics, e.g. PLA and PHA, are originally too brittle
and can therefore only be used in conjunction with additives
in many applications. Now a new option is available which
can cover an extended range of material characteristics
through combinations of PPC with PLA or PHA. This keeps
the material biodegradable and translucent, and it can be
processed without any trouble using normal machinery
(see also p. 48). It must be pointed out that it is not easy to
give an unambiguous classification to PPC, but it falls more
into a grey area of definitions. As discussed above, it can
be prepared either from CO 2
recovered from flue gases and
conventional propylene oxide, and in this case although not
definable as ‘bio-based’ it may still be attractive for its 43%
by wt. of recycled CO 2
and its full biodegradability. It can in
theory also be produced using CO 2
recovered from biomass
combustion, thus being classified as 43% biomass-based
(25% biobased according to the bio-based definition ASTM
D6866). As already mentioned above, if propylene oxide could
be produced from the oxidation of bio-based propylene, then
it can be declared 57% biomass-based or 100% bio-based
if CO 2
and propylene oxide are both bio-based. As more and
more different plastics and chemicals in the future will be
derived from recycled CO 2
they will need a new classification
and definition such as ‘recycled CO 2
’ in order not to bewilder
the consumer.
Polyethylene carbonate and polyols
Polypropylene carbonate is not the only plastic that
recently came onto the market. Other remarkable examples
are the production of polyethylene carbonate (PEC) and
polyurethanes from CO 2
.
The company Novomer has a proprietary technology to
obtain PEC from ethylene oxide and CO 2
, in a process similar
to the production of PPC. PEC is 50% CO 2
by mass and can
be used in a number of applications to replace and improve
traditional petroleum based plastics currently on the market.
PEC plastics exhibit excellent oxygen barrier properties
that make it useful as a barrier layer for food packaging
applications. PEC has a significantly improved environmental
footprint compared to barrier resins ethylenevinyl alcohol
(EVOH) and polyvinylidene chloride (PVDC) which are used as
barrier layers.
H 3
C
O
CO 2
catalyst
CH 3
O
O
C
O
n
propylene oxide
polypropylene carbonate
Fig. 1: Route to PPC from CO 2
and propylene oxide
bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7 45

Basics
CO 2
CO 2
Photosynthesis
Metabolism
Artificial
Photosynthesis
Industrial
usage
Carbohydrates
Energy / Material
Resources
Fig. 2: The carbon cycle as occurring in nature (left) and
the envisioned carbon cycle for the ‘CO 2
Economy’ (right).
Bayer Material Science exhibited polyurethane blocks at
ACHEMA, which were made from CO 2
polyols. CO 2
replaces
some of the mineral oils used. Industrial manufacturing of
foams for mattresses and insulating materials for fridges
and buildings is due to start in 2015. Noteworthy is the fact
that the CO 2
used by Bayer Material Science is captured
at a lignite-fired power plant, thus contributing to lower
greenhouse gas emissions.
Implementing a CO 2
economy
These examples, combined with the strong research efforts
of different corporations and national research programs,
are disclosing a future where we will probably be able to
implement a real ‘CO 2
Economy’; where CO 2
will be seen as
a valuable raw material rather than a necessary evil of our
fossil-fuel based modern life style.
Steps toward the implementation of such a vision are
already in place. The concept of Artificial Photosynthesis
(APS) is a remarkable example (Fig. 2).
This field of chemical production is aiming to use either CO 2
recaptured from a fossil fuel combustion facility, or acquiring
CO 2
from the atmosphere together with water and sunlight to
obtain what is often defined as ‘solar fuel’ - mainly methanol
or methane. The word ‘fuel’ is used in a broad sense: it refers
not only to fuel for transportation or electricity generation, but
also to feedstocks for the chemicals and plastics industries.
However research is also focused on other chemicals, such
as, for example, the direct formation of formic acid. Efforts
are in place to mimic the natural photosynthesis to such an
extent that even glucose or other fermentable carbohydrates
are foreseen as possible products. Keeping this in mind,
a vision where carbohydrates, generated by APS, will be
used in subsequent biotechnological fermentation to obtain
almost any desired chemicals or bio-plastics (such as PLA,
PHB and others) can become reality in a future that is nearer
than expected.
The Panasonic Corporation for example, released its
first prototype of a working APS device (Fig. 3) that shows
the same efficiency of photosynthetic plants and is able to
produce formic acid from water, sunlight and CO 2
; formic
acid is a bulk chemical that is required in many industrial
processes.
Water oxidation by
light energy
CO 2
reduction
Carbon dioxide
water
Light
source
Oxygen
Nitride Semiconductor
Metal catalyst
Formic acid
Fig. 3: Panasonic scheme of its fully functioning artificial
photosynthesis device
(Courtesy of Panasonic Corporation).
46 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7

We can conclude that artificial photosynthesis and
modern chemistry will give us the chance to transform the
chemicals and plastics industries into really sustainable
industries in terms of raw materials supply and climate
protection. The technological conversion from today´s
chemistry to molecules and products obtained from CO 2
’that is itself recovered from flue-gases or even from
the atmosphere’ is a real opportunity for our economies
to create a new market and improve the quality of our
environment. If this target is reached, mankind will be able
to extend the high living standard reached by advanced
economies to the whole world without the typical negative
environmental spin-offs related to economic growth.
www.bio-based.eu
www.co2-chemistry.eu
Info:
More info on what production of plastics from
CO 2
will be like tomorrow at Carbon Dioxide
as Feedstock for Chemistry and Polymers, a
conference organized by nova-Institute in Essen,
Germany, 10-11 th October 2012.
Register now!
6/7 November 2012
Maritim proArte Hotel
Berlin
Conference contact:
conference@european-bioplastics.org
c +49 .30 28 48 23 50
www.conference.european-bioplastics.org
bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7 47

Basics
Sustainable Plastic
from CO 2
Waste
Fig. 1: Vacuum cleaner cover
By
Robert Greiner
Corporate Research and Technologies
Siemens AG
Erlangen, Germany
Fig. 2: Door-holder for refrigerators
As part of the project ‘CO 2
as a polymer building
block’, funded by the German Federal Ministry of
Education and Research, scientists from Siemens
Corporate Technology, together with their project partners
from BASF, the Technical University of Munich and
the University of Hamburg, have been seeking an alternative
for the standard plastics ABS (acrylonitrile butadiene
styrene) and PS (polystyrene). Both plastics are frequently
used in consumer products. Compounds based on PHB
(polyhydroxybutyrate) could be a competitive alternative
to ABS. PHB is a polymer produced by micro-organisms
as a form of energy storage molecule based on sugar
(mostly cornstarch) or plant oils as renewable feedstock.
But PHB is a very brittle plastic and, unless modified,
is unsuitable as a material for example for housings. A
transparent alternative to PS could be compounds based
on PLA.
For these two materials polypropylene carbonate (PPC)
can be used as an impact modifier. PPC is an amorphous
thermoplastic material and shows a glass transition
temperature of around 30 °C. Thus it is very flexible at
room temperature, and moreover it shows at least a
partial miscibility with both bioplastics and therefore it is
suitable for adjusting the ductility of PHB and PLA. PPC
consists of around 43% by wt. of carbon dioxide obtained
by removing CO 2
from waste gases, e.g. from power
plants. The copolymerization occurs with PO (propylene
oxide) in the presence of appropriate catalysts. These
catalysts are the key to a new CO 2
-chemistry which uses
carbon dioxide as a valuable resource for base chemicals.
H 3
C
O
CO 2
catalyst
CH 3
O
O
C
O
n
propylene oxide
polypropylene carbonate
48 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7

Basics
Polypropylene carbonate is highly clear, biodegradable,
stable under UV light and easy to process by injection
moulding or extrusion.
The following new formulations were developed as green
alternatives to ABS and PS (figures in weight percent):
A) ABS alternative: ((PHB (70 %) + PPC (30 %))
+ talc (10 %) + carbon black master batch (3 %)
B) PS alternative: (PLA (70 %) + PPC (30 %))
+ green pigment (0,25 %)
In table 1 some properties of the new compounds are
given in comparison to ABS and PS. In comparison with the
standard materials the green compounds show an absolutely
satisfactory property profile. With the recipe A merely the
impact strength falls off noticeably compared to the ABS.
With the recipe B the heat distortion temperature is below
that of the PS but toughness is increased significantly.
In both green compounds there is a better ecological
balance compared to ABS and PS. In recipe A the share of
sustainable polymers is slightly above 70 % by wt. and in
recipe B around 85 %.
80 kg of each compound were produced on a twin screw
extruder in the Siemens technical centre. At the BSH company
(Bosch und Siemens Hausgeräte GmbH) the compounds
were injection moulded on normal production ABS and PS
moulds. The green ABS alternative was used to manufacture
covers for vacuum cleaners and, using the green replacement
for PS, transparent door holders for refrigerators were
produced. These products are shown in the figures 1 and 2
and demonstrate in an impressive manner that by means of
a product-oriented material development many applications
can be realized with sustainable compounds based on
biopolymers from renewable sources and CO 2
-polymers.
www.siemens.com
Table 1: Comparison of properties
ABS recipe A. PS recipe B.
shrinkage in flow dir. % 0.6 0.7 0.4 0.07
shrinkage vertical % 0.7 0.8 0.6 0.09
E-modulus, MPa 2300 2550 3300 3400
σy, MPa 39 35 46 58
εy, % 2.1 2.5 2 27
Izod Impact RT, kJ/m² 70 10 8 28
HDT / B, °C 97 105 82 51
density, g/cm³ 1.07 1.30 1.07 1.25
New ‘basics‘ book on bioplastics
This new book, created and published by Polymedia Publisher, maker of bioplastics
MAGAZINE is now available in English and German language.
The book is intended to offer a rapid and uncomplicated introduction into the subject
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yet had the opportunity to dig deeply into the subject, such as students, those just joining
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which renewable resources can be used to produce bioplastics, what types of bioplastic
exist, and which ones are already on the market. Further aspects, such as market
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An extensive index allows the reader to find specific aspects quickly, and is
complemented by a comprehensive literature list and a guide to sources of additional
information on the Internet.
The author Michael Thielen is editor and publisher bioplastics MAGAZINE. He is a
qualified machinery design engineer with a degree in plastics technology from the
RWTH University in Aachen. He has written several books on the subject of blowmoulding
technology and disseminated his knowledge of plastics in numerous
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bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7 49

Basics
Glossary 3.0
In bioplastics MAGAZINE again and again
the same expressions appear that some of our readers
might not (yet) be familiar with. This glossary shall help
with these terms and shall help avoid repeated explanations
Bioplastics (as defined by European Bioplastics
e.V.) is a term used to define two different
kinds of plastics:
a. Plastics based on → renewable resources
(the focus is the origin of the raw material
used). These can be biodegradable or not.
b. → Biodegradable and → compostable
plastics according to EN13432 or similar
standards (the focus is the compostability of
the final product; biodegradable and compostable
plastics can be based on renewable
(biobased) and/or non-renewable (fossil) resources).
Bioplastics may be
- based on renewable resources and biodegradable;
- based on renewable resources but not be
biodegradable; and
- based on fossil resources and biodegradable.
Aerobic - anaerobic | aerobic = in the presence
of oxygen (e.g. in composting) | anaerobic
= without oxygen being present (e.g. in
biogasification, anaerobic digestion)
[bM 06/09]
Anaerobic digestion | conversion of organic
waste into bio-gas. Other than in → composting
in anaerobic degradation there is no oxygen
present. In bio-gas plants for example,
this type of degradation leads to the production
of methane that can be captured in a controlled
way and used for energy generation.
[14] [bM 06/09]
Amorphous | non-crystalline, glassy with unordered
lattice
Amylopectin | Polymeric branched starch
molecule with very high molecular weight (biopolymer,
monomer is → Glucose)
[bM 05/09]
Amylose | Polymeric non-branched starch
molecule with high molecular weight (biopolymer,
monomer is → Glucose) [bM 05/09]
Biobased plastic/polymer | A plastic/polymer
in which constitutional units are totally or in
part from → biomass [3]. If this claim is used,
a percentage should always be given to which
extent the product/material is → biobased [1]
[bM 01/07, bM 03/10]
updated
such as ‘PLA (Polylactide)‘ in various articles.
Since this Glossary will not be printed
in each issue you can download a pdf
version from our website
bioplastics MAGAZINE is grateful to European Bioplastics for the permission to use parts of their Glossary (see [1])
Readers who would like to suggest better or other explanations to be added to the list, please contact the editor.
[*: bM ... refers to more comprehensive article previously published in bioplastics MAGAZINE)
Biobased | The term biobased describes the
part of a material or product that is stemming
from → biomass. When making a biobasedclaim,
the unit (→ biobased carbon content,
→ biobased mass content), a percentage and
the measuring method should be clearly stated [1]
Biobased carbon | carbon contained in or
stemming from → biomass. A material or
product made of fossil and → renewable resources
contains fossil and → biobased carbon.
The 14 C method [4, 5] measures the amount
of biobased carbon in the material or product
as fraction weight (mass) or percent weight
(mass) of the total organic carbon content [1] [6]
Biobased mass content | describes the
amount of biobased mass contained in a material
or product. This method is complementary
to the 14 C method, and furthermore, takes
other chemical elements besides the biobased
carbon into account, such as oxygen, nitrogen
and hydrogen. A measuring method is currently
being developed and tested by the Association
Chimie du Végétal (ACDV) [1]
Biodegradable Plastics | Biodegradable Plastics
are plastics that are completely assimilated
by the → microorganisms present a defined
environment as food for their energy. The
carbon of the plastic must completely be converted
into CO 2
during the microbial process.
The process of biodegradation depends on
the environmental conditions, which influence
it (e.g. location, temperature, humidity) and
on the material or application itself. Consequently,
the process and its outcome can vary
considerably. Biodegradability is linked to the
structure of the polymer chain; it does not depend
on the origin of the raw materials.
There is currently no single, overarching
standard to back up claims about biodegradability.
As the sole claim of biodegradability
without any additional specifications is vague,
it should not be used in communications. If it is
used, additional surveys/tests (e.g. timeframe
or environment (soil, sea)) should be added to
substantiate this claim [1].
One standard for example is ISO or in Europe:
EN 14995 Plastics- Evaluation of compostability
- Test scheme and specifications
[bM 02/06, bM 01/07]
Biomass | Material of biological origin excluding
material embedded in geological formations
and material transformed to fossilised
material. This includes organic material, e.g.
trees, crops, grasses, tree litter, algae and
waste of biological origin, e.g. manure [1, 2]
Blend | Mixture of plastics, polymer alloy of at
least two microscopically dispersed and molecularly
distributed base polymers
Bisphenol-A (BPA) | Monomer used to produce
different polymers. BPA is said to cause
health problems, due to the fact that is behaves
like a hormone. Therefore it is banned
for use in children’s products in many countries.
BPI | Biodegradable Products Institute, a notfor-profit
association. Through their innovative
compostable label program, BPI educates
manufacturers, legislators and consumers
about the importance of scientifically based
standards for compostable materials which
biodegrade in large composting facilities.
Carbon footprint | (CFPs resp. PCFs – Product
Carbon Footprint): Sum of → greenhouse
gas emissions and removals in a product system,
expressed as CO 2
equivalent, and based
on a → life cycle assessment. The CO 2
equivalent
of a specific amount of a greenhouse gas
is calculated as the mass of a given greenhouse
gas multiplied by its → global warmingpotential
[1, 2]
Carbon neutral, CO 2
neutral | Carbon neutral
describes a product or process that has
a negligible impact on total atmospheric CO 2
levels. For example, carbon neutrality means
that any CO 2
released when a plant decomposes
or is burnt is offset by an equal amount
of CO 2
absorbed by the plant through photosynthesis
when it is growing.
Carbon neutrality can also be achieved
through buying sufficient carbon credits to
make up the difference. The latter option is
not allowed when communicating → LCAs
or carbon footprints regarding a material or
product [1, 2].
Carbon-neutral claims are tricky as products
will not in most cases reach carbon neutrality
if their complete life cycle is taken into consideration
(including the end-of life).
If an assessment of a material, however, is
conducted (cradle to gate), carbon neutrality
might be a valid claim in a B2B context. In this
case, the unit assessed in the complete life
cycle has to be clarified [1]
Catalyst | substance that enables and accelerates
a chemical reaction
Cellophane | Clear film on the basis of → cellulose
[bM 01/10]
Cellulose | Cellulose is the principal component
of cell walls in all higher forms of plant
life, at varying percentages. It is therefore the
most common organic compound and also
the most common polysaccharide (multisugar)
[11]. C. is a polymeric molecule with
very high molecular weight (monomer is →
Glucose), industrial production from wood or
cotton, to manufacture paper, plastics and fibres
[bM 01/10]
Cellulose ester| Cellulose esters occur by the
esterification of cellulose with organic acids.
The most important cellulose esters from a
technical point of view are cellulose acetate
50 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/11] Vol. 7

Basics
(CA with acetic acid), cellulose propionate (CP
with propionic acid) and cellulose butyrate
(CB with butanoic acid). Mixed polymerisates,
such as cellulose acetate propionate
(CAP) can also be formed. One of the most
well-known applications of cellulose aceto
butyrate (CAB) is the moulded handle on the
Swiss army knife [11]
Cellulose acetate CA| → Cellulose ester
CEN | Comité Européen de Normalisation
(European organisation for standardization)
Compost | A soil conditioning material of decomposing
organic matter which provides nutrients
and enhances soil structure.
[bM 06/08, 02/09]
Compostable Plastics | Plastics that are
→ biodegradable under ‘composting’ conditions:
specified humidity, temperature,
→ microorganisms and timefame. In order
to make accurate and specific claims about
compostability, the location (home, → industrial)
and timeframe need to be specified [1].
Several national and international standards
exist for clearer definitions, for example EN
14995 Plastics - Evaluation of compostability -
Test scheme and specifications. [bM 02/06, bM 01/07]
Composting | A solid waste management
technique that uses natural process to convert
organic materials to CO 2
, water and humus
through the action of → microorganisms.
When talking about composting of bioplastics,
usually → industrial composting in a managed
composting plant is meant [bM 03/07]
Compound | plastic mixture from different
raw materials (polymer and additives) [bM 04/10)
Copolymer | Plastic composed of different
monomers.
Cradle-to-Gate | Describes the system
boundaries of an environmental →Life Cycle
Assessment (LCA) which covers all activities
from the ‘cradle’ (i.e., the extraction of raw
materials, agricultural activities and forestry)
up to the factory gate
Cradle-to-Cradle | (sometimes abbreviated
as C2C): Is an expression which communicates
the concept of a closed-cycle economy,
in which waste is used as raw material
(‘waste equals food’). Cradle-to-Cradle is not
a term that is typically used in →LCA studies.
Cradle-to-Grave | Describes the system
boundaries of a full →Life Cycle Assessment
from manufacture (‘cradle’) to use phase and
disposal phase (‘grave’).
Crystalline | Plastic with regularly arranged
molecules in a lattice structure
Density | Quotient from mass and volume of
a material, also referred to as specific weight
DIN | Deutsches Institut für Normung (German
organisation for standardization)
DIN-CERTCO | independant certifying organisation
for the assessment on the conformity
of bioplastics
Dispersing | fine distribution of non-miscible
liquids into a homogeneous, stable mixture
Elastomers | rigid, but under force flexible
and elastically formable plastics with rubbery
properties
EN 13432 | European standard for the assessment
of the → compostability of plastic
packaging products
Energy recovery | recovery and exploitation
of the energy potential in (plastic) waste for
the production of electricity or heat in waste
incineration pants (waste-to-energy)
Enzymes | proteins that catalyze chemical
reactions
Ethylen | colour- and odourless gas, made
e.g. from, Naphtha (petroleum) by cracking,
monomer of the polymer polyethylene (PE)
European Bioplastics e.V. | The industry association
representing the interests of Europe’s
thriving bioplastics’ industry. Founded
in Germany in 1993 as IBAW, European Bioplastics
today represents the interests of over
70 member companies throughout the European
Union. With members from the agricultural
feedstock, chemical and plastics industries,
as well as industrial users and recycling
companies, European Bioplastics serves as
both a contact platform and catalyst for advancing
the aims of the growing bioplastics
industry.
Extrusion | process used to create plastic
profiles (or sheet) of a fixed cross-section
consisting of mixing, melting, homogenising
and shaping of the plastic.
Fermentation | Biochemical reactions controlled
by → microorganisms or → enyzmes (e.g.
the transformation of sugar into lactic acid).
FSC | Forest Stewardship Council. FSC is an
independent, non-governmental, not-forprofit
organization established to promote the
responsible and sustainable management of
the world’s forests.
Gelatine | Translucent brittle solid substance,
colorless or slightly yellow, nearly tasteless
and odorless, extracted from the collagen inside
animals‘ connective tissue.
Genetically modified organism (GMO) | Organisms,
such as plants and animals, whose
genetic material (DNA) has been altered
are called genetically modified organisms
(GMOs). Food and feed which contain or
consist of such GMOs, or are produced from
GMOs, are called genetically modified (GM)
food or feed [1]
Global Warming | Global warming is the rise
in the average temperature of Earth’s atmosphere
and oceans since the late 19th century
and its projected continuation [8]. Global
warming is said to be accelerated by → green
house gases.
Glucose | Monosaccharide (or simple sugar).
G. is the most important carbohydrate (sugar)
in biology. G. is formed by photosynthesis or
hydrolyse of many carbohydrates e. g. starch.
Greenhouse gas GHG | Gaseous constituent
of the atmosphere, both natural and anthropogenic,
that absorbs and emits radiation at
specific wavelengths within the spectrum of
infrared radiation emitted by the earth’s surface,
the atmosphere, and clouds [1, 9]
Greenwashing | The act of misleading consumers
regarding the environmental practices
of a company, or the environmental benefits
of a product or service [1, 10]
Granulate, granules | small plastic particles
(3-4 millimetres), a form in which plastic is
sold and fed into machines, easy to handle
and dose.
Humus | In agriculture, ‘humus’ is often used
simply to mean mature → compost, or natural
compost extracted from a forest or other
spontaneous source for use to amend soil.
Hydrophilic | Property: ‘water-friendly’, soluble
in water or other polar solvents (e.g. used
in conjunction with a plastic which is not water
resistant and weather proof or that absorbs
water such as Polyamide (PA).
Hydrophobic | Property: ‘water-resistant’, not
soluble in water (e.g. a plastic which is water
resistant and weather proof, or that does not
absorb any water such as Polyethylene (PE)
or Polypropylene (PP).
IBAW | → European Bioplastics
Industrial composting | Industrial composting
is an established process with commonly
agreed upon requirements (e.g. temperature,
timeframe) for transforming biodegradable
waste into stable, sanitised products to be
used in agriculture. The criteria for industrial
compostability of packaging have been defined
in the EN 13432. Materials and products
complying with this standard can be certified
and subsequently labelled accordingly [1, 7]
[bM 06/08, bM 02/09]
Integral Foam | foam with a compact skin and
porous core and a transition zone in between.
ISO | International Organization for Standardization
JBPA | Japan Bioplastics Association
LCA | Life Cycle Assessment (sometimes also
referred to as life cycle analysis, ecobalance,
and → cradle-to-grave analysis) is the investigation
and valuation of the environmental
impacts of a given product or service caused.
[bM 01/09]
Microorganism | Living organisms of microscopic
size, such as bacteria, funghi or yeast.
Molecule | group of at least two atoms held
together by covalent chemical bonds.
Monomer | molecules that are linked by polymerization
to form chains of molecules and
then plastics
Mulch film | Foil to cover bottom of farmland
PBAT | Polybutylene adipate terephthalate, is
an aliphatic-aromatic copolyester that has the
properties of conventional polyethylene but is
fully biodegradable under industrial composting.
PBAT is made from fossil petroleum with
first attempts being made to produce it partly
from renewable resources [bM 06/09]
PBS | Polybutylene succinate, a 100% biodegradable
polymer, made from (e.g. bio-BDO)
and succinic acid, which can also be produced
biobased [bM 03/12].
PC | Polycarbonate, thermoplastic polyester,
petroleum based, used for e.g. baby bottles
or CDs. Criticized for its BPA (→ Bisphenol-A)
content.
PCL | Polycaprolactone, a synthetic (fossil
based), biodegradable bioplastic, e.g. used as
a blend component.
PE | Polyethylene, thermoplastic polymerised
from ethylene. Can be made from renewable
resources (sugar cane via bio-ethanol)
[bM 05/10]
PET | Polyethylenterephthalate, transparent
polyester used for bottles and film
bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/11] Vol. 7 51

PGA | Polyglycolic acid or Polyglycolide is a
biodegradable, thermoplastic polymer and
the simplest linear, aliphatic polyester. Besides
ist use in the biomedical field, PGA has
been introduced as a barrier resin [bM 03/09]
PHA | Polyhydroxyalkanoates are linear polyesters
produced in nature by bacterial fermentation
of sugar or lipids. The most common
type of PHA is → PHB.
PHB | Polyhydroxybutyrate (better poly-3-hydroxybutyrate),
is a polyhydroxyalkanoate
(PHA), a polymer belonging to the polyesters
class. PHB is produced by micro-organisms
apparently in response to conditions of physiological
stress. The polymer is primarily a
product of carbon assimilation (from glucose
or starch) and is employed by micro-organisms
as a form of energy storage molecule to
be metabolized when other common energy
sources are not available. PHB has properties
similar to those of PP, however it is stiffer and
more brittle.
PHBH | Polyhydroxy butyrate hexanoate (better
poly 3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyhexanoate)
is a polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA),
Like other biopolymers from the family of the
polyhydroxyalkanoates PHBH is produced by
microorganisms in the fermentation process,
where it is accumulated in the microorganism’s
body for nutrition. The main features of
PHBH are its excellent biodegradability, combined
with a high degree of hydrolysis and
heat stability. [bM 03/09, 01/10, 03/11]
PLA | Polylactide or Polylactic Acid (PLA), a
biodegradable, thermoplastic, linear aliphatic
polyester based on lactic acid, a natural acid,
is mainly produced by fermentation of sugar
or starch with the help of micro-organisms.
Lactic acid comes in two isomer forms, i.e.
as laevorotatory D(-)lactic acid and as dextrorotary
L(+)lactic acid. In each case two
lactic acid molecules form a circular lactide
molecule which, depending on its composition,
can be a D-D-lactide, an L-L-lactide
or a meso-lactide (having one D and one L
molecule). The chemist makes use of this
variability. During polymerisation the chemist
combines the lactides such that the PLA
plastic obtained has the characteristics that
he desires. The purity of the infeed material is
an important factor in successful polymerisation
and thus for the economic success of the
process, because so far the cleaning of the
lactic acid produced by the fermentation has
been relatively costly [12].
Modified PLA types can be produced by the
use of the right additives or by a combinations
of L- and D- lactides (stereocomplexing),
which then have the required rigidity for use
at higher temperatures [13] [bM 01/09]
Plastics | Materials with large molecular
chains of natural or fossil raw materials, produced
by chemical or biochemical reactions.
PPC | Polypropylene Carbonate, a bioplastic
made by copolymerizing CO 2
with propylene
oxide (PO) [bM 04/12]
Renewable Resources | agricultural raw materials,
which are not used as food or feed, but
as raw material for industrial products or to
generate energy
Saccharins or carbohydrates | Saccharins or
carbohydrates are name for the sugar-family.
Saccharins are monomer or polymer sugar
units. For example, there are known mono-,
di- and polysaccharose. → glucose is a monosaccarin.
They are important for the diet and
produced biology in plants.
Semi-finished products | plastic in form of
sheet, film, rods or the like to be further processed
into finshed products
Sorbitol | Sugar alcohol, obtained by reduction
of glucose changing the aldehyde group
to an additional hydroxyl group. S. is used as
a plasticiser for bioplastics based on starch.
Starch | Natural polymer (carbohydrate)
consisting of → amylose and → amylopectin,
gained from maize, potatoes, wheat, tapioca
etc. When glucose is connected to polymerchains
in definite way the result (product) is
called starch. Each molecule is based on 300
-12000-glucose units. Depending on the connection,
there are two types → amylose and →
amylopectin known. [bM 05/09]
Starch derivate | Starch derivates are based
on the chemical structure of → starch. The
chemical structure can be changed by introducing
new functional groups without changing
the → starch polymer. The product has
different chemical qualities. Mostly the hydrophilic
character is not the same.
Starch-ester | One characteristic of every
starch-chain is a free hydroxyl group. When
every hydroxyl group is connect with ethan
acid one product is starch-ester with different
chemical properties.
Starch propionate and starch butyrate |
Starch propionate and starch butyrate can be
synthesised by treating the → starch with propane
or butanic acid. The product structure
is still based on → starch. Every based → glucose
fragment is connected with a propionate
or butyrate ester group. The product is more
hydrophobic than → starch.
Sustainable | An attempt to provide the best
outcomes for the human and natural environments
both now and into the indefinite future.
One of the most often cited definitions of sustainability
is the one created by the Brundtland
Commission, led by the former Norwegian
Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland.
The Brundtland Commission defined sustainable
development as development that ‘meets
the needs of the present without compromising
the ability of future generations to meet
their own needs.’ Sustainability relates to the
continuity of economic, social, institutional
and environmental aspects of human society,
as well as the non-human environment).
Sustainability | (as defined by European Bioplastics
e.V.) has three dimensions: economic,
social and environmental. This has been
known as “the triple bottom line of sustainability”.
This means that sustainable development
involves the simultaneous pursuit of
economic prosperity, environmental protection
and social equity. In other words, businesses
have to expand their responsibility to include
these environmental and social dimensions.
Sustainability is about making products useful
to markets and, at the same time, having societal
benefits and lower environmental impact
than the alternatives currently available. It also
implies a commitment to continuous improvement
that should result in a further reduction
of the environmental footprint of today’s products,
processes and raw materials used.
Thermoplastics | Plastics which soften or
melt when heated and solidify when cooled
(solid at room temperature).
Thermoplastic Starch | (TPS) → starch that
was modified (cooked, complexed) to make it
a plastic resin
Thermoset | Plastics (resins) which do not
soften or melt when heated. Examples are
epoxy resins or unsaturated polyester resins.
WPC | Wood Plastic Composite. Composite
materials made of wood fiber/flour and plastics
(mostly polypropylene).
Yard Waste | Grass clippings, leaves, trimmings,
garden residue.
References:
[1] Environmental Communication Guide,
European Bioplastics, Berlin, Germany,
2012
[2] ISO 14067. Carbon footprint of products -
Requirements and guidelines for quantification
and communication
[3] CEN TR 15932, Plastics - Recommendation
for terminology and characterisation
of biopolymers and bioplastics, 2010
[4] CEN/TS 16137, Plastics - Determination
of bio-based carbon content, 2011
[5] ASTM D6866, Standard Test Methods for
Determining the Biobased Content of
Solid, Liquid, and Gaseous Samples Using
Radiocarbon Analysis
[6] SPI: Understanding Biobased Carbon
Content, 2012
[7] EN 13432, Requirements for packaging
recoverable through composting and biodegradation.
Test scheme and evaluation
criteria for the final acceptance of packaging,
2000
[8] Wikipedia
[9] ISO 14064 Greenhouse gases -- Part 1:
Specification with guidance..., 2006
[10] Terrachoice, 2010, www.terrachoice.com
[11] Thielen, M.: Bioplastics: Basics. Applications.
Markets, Polymedia Publisher,
2012
[12] Lörcks, J.: Biokunststoffe, Broschüre der
FNR, 2005
[13] de Vos, S.: Improving heat-resistance of
PLA using poly(D-lactide),
bioplastics MAGAZINE, Vol. 3, Issue 02/2008
[14] de Wilde, B.: Anaerobic Digestion, bioplastics
MAGAZINE, Vol 4., Issue 06/2009
52 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/11] Vol. 7

A sustainable alternative to traditional plastics
Cereplast ® offers a wide range of
bioplastic resin grades that are
suitable for a variety of applications
Cereplast Compostables ® resins for
certied compostable, single-use
applications
Cereplast Sustainables ® resins for
biobased, durable applications
Cereplast ® resins work with all
major converting processes
Injection Molding
Thermoforming
Blown Film
Blow Molding
Extrusions
www.cereplast.com

Suppliers Guide
1. Raw Materials
10
20
30
40
Showa Denko Europe GmbH
Konrad-Zuse-Platz 4
81829 Munich, Germany
Tel.: +49 89 93996226
www.showa-denko.com
support@sde.de
www.cereplast.com
US:
Tel: +1 310.615.1900
Fax +1 310.615.9800
Sales@cereplast.com
Europe:
Tel: +49 1763 2131899
weckey@cereplast.com
Natur-Tec ® - Northern Technologies
4201 Woodland Road
Circle Pines, MN 55014 USA
Tel. +1 763.225.6600
Fax +1 763.225.6645
info@natur-tec.com
www.natur-tec.com
50
60
70
80
90
100
Simply contact:
Tel.: +49 2161 6884467
suppguide@bioplasticsmagazine.com
Stay permanently listed in the
Suppliers Guide with your company
logo and contact information.
For only 6,– EUR per mm, per issue you
can be present among top suppliers in
the field of bioplastics.
For Example:
DuPont de Nemours International S.A.
2 chemin du Pavillon
1218 - Le Grand Saconnex
Switzerland
Tel.: +41 22 171 51 11
Fax: +41 22 580 22 45
plastics@dupont.com
www.renewable.dupont.com
www.plastics.dupont.com
Kingfa Sci. & Tech. Co., Ltd.
No.33 Kefeng Rd, Sc. City, Guangzhou
Hi-Tech Ind. Development Zone,
Guangdong, P.R. China. 510663
Tel: +86 (0)20 6622 1696
info@ecopond.com.cn
www.ecopond.com.cn
FLEX-162 Biodeg. Blown Film Resin!
Bio-873 4-Star Inj. Bio-Based Resin!
PolyOne
Avenue Melville Wilson, 2
Zoning de la Fagne
5330 Assesse
Belgium
Tel.: + 32 83 660 211
www.polyone.com
110
120
130
140
150
160
170
180
39 mm
Polymedia Publisher GmbH
Dammer Str. 112
41066 Mönchengladbach
Germany
Tel. +49 2161 664864
Fax +49 2161 631045
info@bioplasticsmagazine.com
www.bioplasticsmagazine.com
Sample Charge:
39mm x 6,00 €
= 234,00 € per entry/per issue
Sample Charge for one year:
6 issues x 234,00 EUR = 1,404.00 €
The entry in our Suppliers Guide is
bookable for one year (6 issues) and
extends automatically if it’s not canceled
three month before expiry.
Jincheng, Lin‘an, Hangzhou,
Zhejiang 311300, P.R. China
China contact: Grace Jin
mobile: 0086 135 7578 9843
Grace@xinfupharm.com
Europe contact(Belgium): Susan Zhang
mobile: 0032 478 991619
zxh0612@hotmail.com
www.xinfupharm.com
1.1 bio based monomers
FKuR Kunststoff GmbH
Siemensring 79
D - 47 877 Willich
Tel. +49 2154 9251-0
Tel.: +49 2154 9251-51
sales@fkur.com
www.fkur.com
GRAFE-Group
Waldecker Straße 21,
99444 Blankenhain, Germany
Tel. +49 36459 45 0
www.grafe.com
WinGram Industry CO., LTD
Benson Liu
Great River(Qin Xin)
Plastic Manufacturer CO.,LTD
Mobile (China): +86-18666691720
Mobile (Hong Kong): +852-63078857
Fax: +852-3184 8934
Benson@greatriver.com.hk
1.3 PLA
Shenzhen Esun Ind. Co;Ltd
www.brightcn.net
www.esun.en.alibaba.com
bright@brightcn.net
Tel: +86-755-2603 1978
1.4 starch-based bioplastics
190
200
210
220
230
PURAC division
Arkelsedijk 46, P.O. Box 21
4200 AA Gorinchem -
The Netherlands
Tel.: +31 (0)183 695 695
Fax: +31 (0)183 695 604
www.purac.com
PLA@purac.com
1.2 compounds
Guangdong Shangjiu
Biodegradable Plastics Co., Ltd.
Shangjiu Environmental Protection
Eco-Tech Industrial Park,Niushan,
Dongcheng District, Dongguan City,
Guangdong Province, 523128 China
Limagrain Céréales Ingrédients
ZAC „Les Portes de Riom“ - BP 173
63204 Riom Cedex - France
Tel. +33 (0)4 73 67 17 00
Fax +33 (0)4 73 67 17 10
www.biolice.com
240
250
260
270
www.facebook.com
www.issuu.com
www.twitter.com
www.youtube.com
API S.p.A.
Via Dante Alighieri, 27
36065 Mussolente (VI), Italy
Telephone +39 0424 579711
www.apiplastic.com
www.apinatbio.com
Tel.: 0086-769-22114999
Fax: 0086-769-22103988
www.999sw.com www.999sw.net
999sw@163.com
Jean-Pierre Le Flanchec
3 rue Scheffer
75116 Paris cedex, France
Tel: +33 (0)1 53 65 23 00
Fax: +33 (0)1 53 65 81 99
biosphere@biosphere.eu
www.biosphere.eu
54 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7

Suppliers Guide
1.6 masterbatches
3. Semi finished products
3.1 films
ROQUETTE Frères
62 136 LESTREM, FRANCE
00 33 (0) 3 21 63 36 00
www.gaialene.com
www.roquette.com
GRAFE-Group
Waldecker Straße 21,
99444 Blankenhain, Germany
Tel. +49 36459 45 0
www.grafe.com
Huhtamaki Films
Sonja Haug
Zweibrückenstraße 15-25
91301 Forchheim
Tel. +49-9191 81203
Fax +49-9191 811203
www.huhtamaki-films.com
Cortec® Corporation
4119 White Bear Parkway
St. Paul, MN 55110
Tel. +1 800.426.7832
Fax 651-429-1122
info@cortecvci.com
www.cortecvci.com
Grabio Greentech Corporation
Tel: +886-3-598-6496
No. 91, Guangfu N. Rd., Hsinchu
Industrial Park,Hukou Township,
Hsinchu County 30351, Taiwan
sales@grabio.com.tw
www.grabio.com.tw
PolyOne
Avenue Melville Wilson, 2
Zoning de la Fagne
5330 Assesse
Belgium
Tel.: + 32 83 660 211
www.polyone.com
2. Additives/Secondary raw materials
www.earthfirstpla.com
www.sidaplax.com
www.plasticsuppliers.com
Sidaplax UK : +44 (1) 604 76 66 99
Sidaplax Belgium: +32 9 210 80 10
Plastic Suppliers: +1 866 378 4178
Eco Cortec®
31 300 Beli Manastir
Bele Bartoka 29
Croatia, MB: 1891782
Tel. +385 31 705 011
Fax +385 31 705 012
info@ecocortec.hr
www.ecocortec.hr
PSM Bioplastic NA
Chicago, USA
www.psmna.com
+1-630-393-0012
1.5 PHA
Division of A&O FilmPAC Ltd
7 Osier Way, Warrington Road
GB-Olney/Bucks.
MK46 5FP
Tel.: +44 1234 714 477
Fax: +44 1234 713 221
sales@aandofilmpac.com
www.bioresins.eu
Metabolix
650 Suffolk Street, Suite 100
Lowell, MA 01854 USA
Tel. +1-97 85 13 18 00
Fax +1-97 85 13 18 86
www.mirelplastics.com
TianAn Biopolymer
No. 68 Dagang 6th Rd,
Beilun, Ningbo, China, 315800
Tel. +86-57 48 68 62 50 2
Fax +86-57 48 68 77 98 0
enquiry@tianan-enmat.com
www.tianan-enmat.com
Arkema Inc.
Functional Additives-Biostrength
900 First Avenue
King of Prussia, PA/USA 19406
Contact: Connie Lo,
Commercial Development Mgr.
Tel: 610.878.6931
connie.lo@arkema.com
www.impactmodifiers.com
GRAFE-Group
Waldecker Straße 21,
99444 Blankenhain, Germany
Tel. +49 36459 45 0
www.grafe.com
The HallStar Company
120 S. Riverside Plaza, Ste. 1620
Chicago, IL 60606, USA
+1 312 385 4494
dmarshall@hallstar.com
www.hallstar.com/hallgreen
Rhein Chemie Rheinau GmbH
Duesseldorfer Strasse 23-27
68219 Mannheim, Germany
Phone: +49 (0)621-8907-233
Fax: +49 (0)621-8907-8233
bioadimide.eu@rheinchemie.com
www.bioadimide.com
Taghleef Industries SpA, Italy
Via E. Fermi, 46
33058 San Giorgio di Nogaro (UD)
Contact Frank Ernst
Tel. +49 2402 7096989
Mobile +49 160 4756573
frank.ernst@ti-films.com
www.ti-films.com
3.1.1 cellulose based films
INNOVIA FILMS LTD
Wigton
Cumbria CA7 9BG
England
Contact: Andy Sweetman
Tel. +44 16973 41549
Fax +44 16973 41452
andy.sweetman@innoviafilms.com
www.innoviafilms.com
4. Bioplastics products
alesco GmbH & Co. KG
Schönthaler Str. 55-59
D-52379 Langerwehe
Sales Germany: +49 2423 402
110
Sales Belgium: +32 9 2260 165
Sales Netherlands: +31 20 5037 710
info@alesco.net | www.alesco.net
Minima Technology Co., Ltd.
Esmy Huang, Marketing Manager
No.33. Yichang E. Rd., Taipin City,
Taichung County
411, Taiwan (R.O.C.)
Tel. +886(4)2277 6888
Fax +883(4)2277 6989
Mobil +886(0)982-829988
esmy@minima-tech.com
Skype esmy325
www.minima-tech.com
NOVAMONT S.p.A.
Via Fauser , 8
28100 Novara - ITALIA
Fax +39.0321.699.601
Tel. +39.0321.699.611
www.novamont.com
President Packaging Ind., Corp.
PLA Paper Hot Cup manufacture
In Taiwan, www.ppi.com.tw
Tel.: +886-6-570-4066 ext.5531
Fax: +886-6-570-4077
sales@ppi.com.tw
bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7 55

Suppliers Guide
7. Plant engineering
10
20
30
40
50
60
Simply contact:
Tel.: +49 2161 6884467
suppguide@bioplasticsmagazine.com
WEI MON INDUSTRY CO., LTD.
2F, No.57, Singjhong Rd.,
Neihu District,
Taipei City 114, Taiwan, R.O.C.
Tel. + 886 - 2 - 27953131
Fax + 886 - 2 - 27919966
sales@weimon.com.tw
www.plandpaper.com
6. Equipment
6.1 Machinery & Molds
Uhde Inventa-Fischer GmbH
Holzhauser Strasse 157–159
D-13509 Berlin
Tel. +49 30 43 567 5
Fax +49 30 43 567 699
sales.de@uhde-inventa-fischer.com
Uhde Inventa-Fischer AG
Via Innovativa 31
CH-7013 Domat/Ems
Tel. +41 81 632 63 11
Fax +41 81 632 74 03
sales.ch@uhde-inventa-fischer.com
www.uhde-inventa-fischer.com
UL International TTC GmbH
Rheinuferstrasse 7-9, Geb. R33
47829 Krefeld-Uerdingen, Germany
Tel: +49 (0)2151 88 3324
Fax: +49 (0)2151 88 5210
ttc@ul.com
www.ulttc.com
10. Institutions
10.1 Associations
70
80
90
100
110
120
130
140
150
160
170
180
190
200
39 mm
Stay permanently listed in the
Suppliers Guide with your company
logo and contact information.
For only 6,– EUR per mm, per issue you
can be present among top suppliers in
the field of bioplastics.
For Example:
Polymedia Publisher GmbH
Dammer Str. 112
41066 Mönchengladbach
Germany
Tel. +49 2161 664864
Fax +49 2161 631045
info@bioplasticsmagazine.com
www.bioplasticsmagazine.com
Sample Charge:
39mm x 6,00 €
= 234,00 € per entry/per issue
Sample Charge for one year:
6 issues x 234,00 EUR = 1,404.00 €
The entry in our Suppliers Guide is
bookable for one year (6 issues) and
extends automatically if it’s not canceled
three month before expiry.
Molds, Change Parts and Turnkey
Solutions for the PET/Bioplastic
Container Industry
284 Pinebush Road
Cambridge Ontario
Canada N1T 1Z6
Tel. +1 519 624 9720
Fax +1 519 624 9721
info@hallink.com
www.hallink.com
Roll-o-Matic A/S
Petersmindevej 23
5000 Odense C, Denmark
Tel. + 45 66 11 16 18
Fax + 45 66 14 32 78
rom@roll-o-matic.com
www.roll-o-matic.com
ProTec Polymer Processing GmbH
Stubenwald-Allee 9
64625 Bensheim, Deutschland
Tel. +49 6251 77061 0
Fax +49 6251 77061 500
info@sp-protec.com
www.sp-protec.com
6.2 Laboratory Equipment
8. Ancillary equipment
9. Services
Osterfelder Str. 3
46047 Oberhausen
Tel.: +49 (0)208 8598 1227
Fax: +49 (0)208 8598 1424
thomas.wodke@umsicht.fhg.de
www.umsicht.fraunhofer.de
Institut für Kunststofftechnik
Universität Stuttgart
Böblinger Straße 70
70199 Stuttgart
Tel +49 711/685-62814
Linda.Goebel@ikt.uni-stuttgart.de
www.ikt.uni-stuttgart.de
narocon
Dr. Harald Kaeb
Tel.: +49 30-28096930
kaeb@narocon.de
www.narocon.de
BPI - The Biodegradable
Products Institute
331 West 57th Street, Suite 415
New York, NY 10019, USA
Tel. +1-888-274-5646
info@bpiworld.org
European Bioplastics e.V.
Marienstr. 19/20
10117 Berlin, GermanyTel. +49 30
284 82 350
Fax +49 30 284 84 359
info@european-bioplastics.org
www.european-bioplastics.org
10.2 Universities
Institute for Bioplastics
and Biocomposites
IfBB – Institute for Bioplastics
and Biocomposites
University of Applied Sciences
and Arts Hanover
Faculty II – Mechanical and
Bioprocess Engineering
Heisterbergallee 12
30453 Hannover, Germany
Tel.: +49 5 11 / 92 96 - 22 69
Fax: +49 5 11 / 92 96 - 99 - 22 69
lisa.mundzeck@fh-hannover.de
http://www.ifbb-hannover.de/
210
220
230
240
MODA : Biodegradability Analyzer
Saida FDS Incorporated
3-6-6 Sakae-cho, Yaizu,
Shizuoka, Japan
Tel : +81-90-6803-4041
info@saidagroup.jp
www.saidagroup.jp
nova-Institut GmbH
Chemiepark Knapsack
Industriestrasse 300
50354 Huerth, Germany
Tel.: +49(0)2233-48-14 40
E-Mail: contact@nova-institut.de
Michigan State University
Department of Chemical
Engineering & Materials Science
Professor Ramani Narayan
East Lansing MI 48824, USA
Tel. +1 517 719 7163
narayan@msu.edu
250
260
www.facebook.com
www.issuu.com
www.twitter.com
Bioplastics Consulting
Tel. +49 2161 664864
info@polymediaconsult.com
270
www.youtube.com
56 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7

Events
Event
Calendar
7th European Bioplastics Conference
06.11.2012 - 07.11.2012 - Berlin, Germany
Maritim proArte Hotel
http://en.european-bioplastics.org/conference2012/
Biopolymere 2012
20.11.2012 - Straubing, Germany
http://bayern-innovativ.de/biopolymere2012
Composites Europe
09.10.2012 - 11.10.2012 - Duisburg, Germany
Exhibition Centre Duesseldorf
http://www.composites-europe.com/kontakt_57.html
Biopolymere in Folienanwendungen
10.10.2012 - 11.10.2012 - Würzburg, Germany
http://www.skz.de/457
Carbon Dioxide as Feedstock for Chemicals and
Polymers
10.10.2012 - 11.10.2012 - Essen, Germany
Haus der Technik“ Essen
http://www.co2-chemistry.eu/
Biopolymers Symposium 2012
15.10.2012 - 16.10.2012 - San Antonio (TX), USA
The Westin Riverwalk Hotel
http://www.biopolymersummit.com
The 2013 Packaging Conference
04.02.2013 - 06.02.2013 - Atlanta, Georgia, USA
The Ritz-Carlton, Buckhead
www.thepackagingconference.com
Bioplastics - The Re-Innovation of Plastics
04.03.2013 - 06.03.2013 - Las Vegas, USA
Cesar‘s Palace
www.bioplastix.com
23. Stuttgarter Kunststoff-Kolloquium
06.03.2013 - 07.03.2013 - Straubing, Germany
University of Stuttgart
http://www.ikt.uni-stuttgart.de
BioKunststoffe 2013
06.03.2013 - 07.03.2013 - Duisburg, Germany
Haus der Unternehmer
www.hanser-tagungen.de/biokunststoffe
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Bioplastics -
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General conditions, market situation,
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New ‘basics‘ book on bioplastics:
The book is intended to offer a rapid
and uncomplicated introduction into the
subject of bioplastics, and is aimed at all
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who have not yet had the opportunity to
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and lay readers.
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Handbook of Bioplastics and
Biocomposites Engineering Applications
Engineering Applications
The intention of this new book (2011), written by
40 scientists from industry and academia, is to
explore the extensive applications made with
bioplastics & biocomposites. The Handbook focuses
on five main categories of applications packaging;
civil engineering; biomedical; automotive; general
engineering. It is structured in six parts and a total of
19 chapters. A comprehensive index allows the quick
location of information the reader is looking for.
€ 279,44*
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Hans-Josef Endres, Andrea Siebert-Raths
Engineering Biopolymers
Markets, Manufacturing, Properties
and Applications
Hans-Josef Endres, Andrea Siebert-Raths
Technische Biopolymere
Rahmenbedingungen, Marktsituation,
Herstellung, Aufbau und Eigenschaften
This book is unique in its focus on market-relevant
bio/renewable materials. It is based on comprehensive
research projects, during which these
materials were systematically analyzed and
characterized. For the first time the interested
reader will find comparable data not only for
biogenic polymers and biological macromolecules
such as proteins, but also for engineering
materials. The reader will also find valuable
information regarding micro-structure,
manufacturing, and processing-, application-,
and recycling properties of biopolymers
bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7 57

Companies in this issue
Company Editorial Advert Company Editorial Advert Company Editorial Advert
A&O FilmPAC 55
A. Schulman 21
ACS 7
Alesco 55
Antibioticòs 5
API 21 54
API Institute 18
Argent Energy 28
Argus Umweltbiologie 28
Arkema 55
BASF 5, 6
Bayer Material Science 46
BioAmber 42
BioPro 16
Biosphere 54
BPI 56
Braskem 59
Cargill 5
Cereplast 53, 54
Chemtex Italia 28
Coca-Cola 13
Cortec 55
DuPont 54
Eksportera USB 28
Erema 35
European Bioplastics 3, 9, 14, 43 47, 56
EuroSpeedway 6
Evonik 32
FKuR 2, 54
FNR 9
Fort Collins 37
Fourmotors 9
Fraunhofer UMSICHT 56
Frisetta Kunststoff 21
Full Circle Design 14
Genomatica 34
Grabio Greentech 55
Grafe 54, 55
Graz University of Technology 26
Green Dot Holdings 15, 36
Guangdong Shangjiu 54
Hallink 56
Hallstar 55
Hosti 6
Huhtamaki Films 55
Iggesund 22
Innovia Films 55
Institut für Kunststofftechnik 56
Institute for Biopolymers and Biocomposites 9, 15 56
InteriorPark 16
Jiangsu Danmao Textrile 20
Jiangsu Jilang-CAS 38
Jiaxing Runzhi 20
Kingfa 54
KRKA 28
Limagrain Céréales Ingrédients 8 54
Linotech 15
Livemold trading 15
London Bio Packaging 12
Malmö Aviation 22
Martin Fuchs Spielwaren 15
McDonalds 13
Metabolix 5 55
Michigan State University 56
Minima Technology 55
Myriant 39
narocon 56
Nat. Inst. of Chem. Ljubljana 28
NatureWorks 8, 10, 20, 23
Natur-Tec 54
Nite Ize 37
NMC 21
NNFCC 12
nova-Institut 33, 44 30, 56
Novamont 13, 22, 25, 34 55, 60
Novozymes 5
Omikron 22
Organic Waste Systems 8
Panasonic 46
PickNick 22
plasticker 10
Polish Academy of Science 28
Polster Catering 6
Polymediaconsult 56
Polyone 54, 55
President Packaging 23 55
ProTec Polymer Processing 56
PSM 55
Purac 37, 54
Reistenhofer 28
Rhein Chemie 17, 55
Roll-o-Matic 56
Roquette 55
Saida 56
Shenzhen Esun Industrial Co. 54
Showa Denko 54
Sidaplax 55
Siemens 47
Starbucks 7
Sulzer Chemtech 10
Taghleef Industries 55
Takata 14
Termoplast 28
TianAn Biopolymer 55
Toray 31
Uhde Inventa-Fischer 24 11, 56
UL Thermoplastics 56
University Freiburg 40
University Hong Kong 7
University Padua 28
University Pisa 28
University Rostock 6
University Zagreb 28
Versalis 34
Volkswagen 40
Wei Mon 29, 56
WinGram 54
Xinfu Pharm 54
Yparex 30
Editorial Planner 2012 / 2013
Issue Month pub-date deadline Editorial Focus (1) Editorial Focus (2) Basics Event / Fair
06/2012 Nov/Dec 03.12.12 03.11.12 ed.
17.11.12 ad.
Films / Flexibles /
Bags
Consumer
Electronics
Film Blowing
01/2013 Jan/Feb 04.02.2013 21.12.12 ed.
21.01.13 ad.
Automotive Foam t.b.d.
Subject to changes
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58 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/12] Vol. 7

I’m green : it begins
with sugarcane and
ends with solutions that
contribute to a better planet.
The I’m green seal identifies and lends credibility to products made from Braskem’s
green polyethylene, which not only is recyclable using conventional recycling stream,
but also is made from a renewable raw material, the sugarcane, which contributes
towards reducing greenhouse gases.
A product differential that makes the difference to nature.
For more information, visit www.braskem.com.br/greenplastic

A real sign
of sustainable
development.
There is such a thing as genuinely sustainable
development.
Since 1989, Novamont researchers have been working
on an ambitious project that combines the chemical
industry, agriculture and the environment: “Living Chemistry
for Quality of Life”. Its objective has been to create products
with a low environmental impact. The result of Novamont’s
innovative research is the new bioplastic Mater-Bi ® .
Mater-Bi ® is a family of materials, completely biodegradable and compostable
which contain renewable raw materials such as starch and vegetable oil
derivates. Mater-Bi ® performs like traditional plastics but it saves energy,
contributes to reducing the greenhouse effect and at the end of its life cycle,
it closes the loop by changing into fertile humus. Everyone’s dream has
become a reality.
Living Chemistry for Quality of Life.
www.novamont.com
Inventor of the year 2007
Within Mater-Bi ® product range the following certifications are available
The “OK Compost” certificate guarantees conformity with the NF EN 13432 standard
(biodegradable and compostable packaging)
3_2012