JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #39 - March/April 2008 - 38

FEATURE “Environment” Biopolymers: market potential and challenging research Biopolymers may constitute no more than a niche, but the market’s interest in them is constantly growing. Volume growth for these products will depend on how well they penetrate the consumer-goods market. For this to become a reality, further research is needed in a number of areas, such as durability, processing techniques, end-of-life issues and development of tailored formulations for such materials. disintegration (after 12 weeks, no more than 10% of the original dry-weight material should be found in the >2 mm fraction of the compost). For soil improvers, the law sets a maximum permissible plastic-fragment content. All this could strongly influence the development of bioplastics, particularly in the case of thick-walled parts (a few some millimetres), typical of durable or industrial goods. ANTONIO CASALE, TECHNICAL DIRECTOR PROPLAST onsumers, end users, processors, and manufacturers are all increasingly interested in biopolymers. This is due both to concerns about limited petrochemical resources accompanied by a potential surge in oil prices, and to heightened awareness of ecological problems. According to a recent report, there are currently 26 commercial producers of biopolymers and some 60 companies involved in R&D in this field. There is still confusion around the definition of biopolymers, as definitions can vary according to the source. As a result, things like statistical data, market prospects and even political initiatives could be subjected to misunderstanding. According to the European Bioplastics Association, bioplastics are either biodegradable polymers with approved biodegradability (EN 13432) from renewable and petrochemical resources, or biobased polymers (polymers from renewable raw materials) that may or may not be biodegradable. According to other sources, only biobased polymers should be classified as bioplastics. Standards for biodegradability and compostability encompass other important concepts. For example, EN 13432 establishes that biodegradability shall be determined for each relevant organic component accounting for more than 1% of a product’s dry weight; the total quantity of non-relevant organic components should not exceed 5%. This means that biodegradable additives and fillers must be used. Accredited institutes around the world can certify and label the biodegradability of plastics. The same concept is also present in the definition of compostability; the standard also defines not only the level of degradation but also the permissible level of The biopolymer market Global polymer production capacity is estimated to reach 766,000 metric tons (MT) by 2009 and 1.5 million MT by 2011 (Figure 1). The 2nd European Bioplastics Conference forecasted significant growth for the biobased/nonbiodegradable polymer share. Such growth would push that share up to nearly 40% of total capacity by 2011, compared to about 12% today. Market demand for biopolymers is strongly influenced by factors such as price competitiveness, the potential growth of “fitfor-use” applications, laws and regulations, and the optimization of commercial composting processes. It is interesting to note that, according to a recent report prepared by the Utrecht University and the Fraunhofer Institute for the Fig. 1: Annual bioplastics production 2007-2011 JEC Composites Magazine / No39 March - April 2008

JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #39 - March/April 2008

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #39 - March/April 2008