Using bioplastics for packaging, cases of electronic or medical devices and similar purposes is an increasing opportunity to turn the plastic processing industry towards sustainability. Furthermore, this will lead to independence from crude oil and makes costs predictable for the long term. Moreover the use of biopolymers is currently very trendy. But generally, manufacturing of [...]
The Lactic Acid Big Business
As mentioned several times in previous articles, polylactic acid (PLA) is the most promising bioplastic. So I felt it was time to contribute an article to the current market situation of PLA and its monomer lactic acid. Lactic acid has a variety of applications in the food and beverage sector as a preservative. It is [...]
PLA Recycling Infrastructure
Polylactic acid (PLA) is only biodegradable in industrial settings. Recovery of bioplastics like PLA in recycling facilities is not easy due to low volumes and often optical similarity with traditional polymers. California based BioCor LLC created an optical sorting machine able to detect and sort PLA from PET (polyethylene terephthalate) or HDPE (high density polyethylene) [...]
Types of Bioplastic
Commonly used types of bioplastics are based on cellulose, starch, glucose and oil. Specific techniques are then employed to convert these feedstocks into thermoplastic starch, polylactic acid, poly-3-hydroxybutyrate, polyamide 11 and biopolyethylene. Starch Today, thermoplastic starch, accounting for about 50 % (some sources state about 80 %) of the global bioplastics market, is the most [...]
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