The field of bioplastics encompasses a wide variety of materials, most of which are relatively new to the industry. It is therefore logical that these materials do not benefit from all the technological advances and optimizations that have been made for petroleum-based polymers with a longer track record.
There are thus gaps to be filled for certain materials, which require adaptation in terms of both processing and usage properties. Others have exactly the same capabilities, or even surpass those of petroleum-based materials, such as Polyamide-11. Several types of technical advantages can be observed thanks to the use of bioplastics:
- New functions
- Intrinsic properties
- Biodegradability
intrinsic properties
Polyethylene furanoate (PEF) is a concrete example of the technical advantages that can be achieved by using a bioplastic. It is a new polymer under development that will compete with PET with the following characteristics:
- 100% biobased and always transparent and recyclable : use and end-of-life identical to PET.
- 10 times better barrier to oxygen and 2 times better barrier to carbon dioxide and water vapour: this allows, for example, a reduction in wall thickness for packaging (soft-drink bottles).
- The glass transition temperature (Tg) is 12°C higher, enabling hot filling, which is impossible with standard amorphous PET.
- The melting temperature is 30°C lower, providing energy savings in processing.
biodegradability
This property makes it possible to provide new functionalities appreciated by manufacturers. Indeed, it can be interesting to manufacture a product with a given useful life, which can then biodegrade in its environment of use in an environmentally-friendly way . The main example today in the plastics industry is agricultural mulching film: its main function is to regulate soil temperature while maintaining relative humidity, thus enabling better vegetation growth. It is now possible to manufacture mulch film using biodegradable polymers. The advantage here is twofold:
- The grower can leave the film fragments in the soil once its use is assured, so that it can finish biodegrading, saving himself the task of collecting and processing a film that is not biodegradable.
- Biodegradation of mulch enriches soil with organic matter and nutrients.
Other examples include clips for vineyards, ties for horticulture (tomatoes, etc.), hunting (cartridges, etc.) or fireworks (see MATADORE project).
NEW FEATURES
This biodegradability property can also be used to confer new functionalities on the product. It is thus possible to incorporate additives of interest that can be released during use or at the end of the product’s life. Biodegradation thus becomes a technical asset for use rather than end-of-life. The following non-exhaustive functions can be obtained:
- Pollution control (water, soil, etc.)
- Attraction (pests, insects, etc.)
- Repulsion (pests, insects, etc.)
- Nutrition (plants, etc.)