NaturalPlastics1

The manufacture of NatureWorks’ Ingeo™ plastic, made from plants not oil, emits fewer greenhouse gasses (GHGs) than the comparable manufacture of every other common petrochemical-based plastic, according to a peer-reviewed article published in the August 2010 edition of Industrial Biotechnology.

The article, "The eco-profile for current Ingeo polylactide production," was peer reviewed and approved for publication in Industrial Biotechnology by an independent panel of experts. The article documents the energy and GHG inputs and outputs of Ingeo production, including planting, harvesting, fermenting plant sugars, and resin production.

Plants absorb CO2 as they grow and that offsets and lowers the overall GHG emissions from Ingeo production by 61 percent. The yellow bar in the “Gross GHG Emissions” chart shows the amount of CO2 absorbed by plants. The blue bars indicate the total CO2 emitted during various stages of plant growth through polymer production. The yellow bar represents the 61 percent overall offset.

The CO2 absorbed by the growing plant not only reduces GHG emissions, but also directly replaces the fossil resources that are required as the building block for today’s petro-based polymers.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Biopreferred Program and the European Union’s Lead Market Initiative are both designed to promote biobased products. The data on lowering carbon footprint presented in the article shows why these programs are important in terms of stimulating the use of biobased material over non-renewable material.

"Using renewable performance materials in lowering carbon footprints is why brand owners and retailers are becoming increasingly interested in using materials such as Ingeo biopolymer," said Marc Verbruggen, president and chief executive officer, NatureWorks. "It is one of the principal reasons Ingeo sales are climbing at a double-digit rate, and why NatureWorks is planning on building a second production facility to meet the growing demand for Ingeo."

Ingeo is the NatureWorks brand name for its portfolio of polylactide biopolymers and the study notes:

"The data provided in this report is only valid for Ingeo (polylactides produced by NatureWorks in Blair, Nebraska, USA) and not for polylactide production in general. The life cycle inventory data for polylactides that might be produced elsewhere will be different due to different raw materials (sugar or starch source) and raw material production practices, different technologies for processing these raw materials, different fermentation and polymerization technology, and different background data for electricity/fuel mixes used."

Since the NatureWorks Ingeo facility in Nebraska began production in 2002, technology improvements there have further lowered energy consumption and GHG emissions. The following charts compare the energy consumption and the GHG emissions of Ingeo and common petrochemical plastics on an equal-weight basis in the cradle-to-factory stage of their life cycle.

To view examples of how companies around the world have incorporated the Ingeo eco profile into their products, visit NatureWorks’ most recent "LookBook."  Visit the NatureWorks website www.natureworksllc.com for news and product information and sign up to receive the Ingeo News newsletter.

About NatureWorks LLC
NatureWorks LLC is a company dedicated to meeting the world’s needs today without compromising the earth’s ability to meet the needs of tomorrow. NatureWorks LLC is the first company to offer a family of commercially available, low-carbon footprint Ingeo biopolymers derived from 100 percent annually renewable resources with performance and economics that compete with oil-based plastics and fibers. For more information, visit www.natureworksllc.com.

Source: www.natureworksllc.com

Danone-owned water brand Volvic has launched its ‘greener bottle’, made with 25% recycled plastic and 20% plant material, on the UK market.

The bottle has a 38% lower packaging carbon footprint and 16% lower lifecycle footprint than the previous 50cl Volvic bottle, thanks to the materials used. The plant material – BioPET – is made from PET produced using some feedstocks manufactured from fermented and dehydrated sugarcane waste. The resulting bottle is 100% recyclable, says the firm.

The bio material is made in India, using sugarcane molasses from the country, spokesperson Felicity McKane told European Plastics News.

Volvic is also reducing the weight to 15g from 17g and the bottles, which are already on sale in France and Germany, are manufactured at the company’s own facilities in France.

McKane said that the company is not commenting on how the initiative will affect manufacturing costs but said that consumers will not pay more for their regular bottled water purchases.

Stéphane Cousté, director of the nature committee at Evian Volvic Worldwide, described the new design as a “real breakthrough”, which is part of plans to reduce the global carbon footprint of the Volvic brand by 40% by 2012.

Over the past 15 years, Volvic has reduced the weight of its plastic packaging by 30%, claims the firm.

Source: www.europeanplasticsnews.com

Biopolymers are the more eco-friendly material, but farming and energy-intense chemical processing means they are dirtier to produce than petroleum-derived plastics, according to study in Environmental Science & Technology.

An analysis of plant and petroleum-derived plastics by University of Pittsburgh researchers suggests that biopolymers are not necessarily better for the environment than their petroleum-based relatives, according to a report in Environmental Science & Technology. The Pitt team found that while biopolymers are the more eco-friendly material, traditional plastics can be less environmentally taxing to produce.

Biopolymers trumped the other plastics for biodegradability, low toxicity, and use of renewable resources. Nonetheless, the farming and chemical processing needed to produce them can devour energy and dump fertilizers and pesticides into the environment, wrote lead authorMichaelangelo Tabone (ENG, A&S ’10), who conducted the analysis as an undergraduate student in the lab of Amy Landis, a professor of civil and environmental engineering in Pitt’s Swanson School of Engineering. Tabone and Landis worked with James Cregg, an undergraduate chemistry student in Pitt’s School of Arts and Sciences; and Eric Beckman, codirector of Pitt’s Mascaro Center for Sustainable Innovation and the George M. Bevier Professor of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering in Pitt’s Swanson School. The project was supported by the National Science Foundation.

The researchers examined 12 plastics—seven petroleum-based polymers, four biopolymers, and one hybrid. The team first performed a life-cycle assessment (LCA) on each polymer’s preproduction stage to gauge the environmental and health effects of the energy, raw materials, and chemicals used to create one ounce of plastic pellets. They then checked each plastic in its finished form against principles of green design, including biodegradability, energy efficiency, wastefulness, and toxicity.

Biopolymers were among the more prolific polluters on the path to production, the LCA revealed. The team attributed this to agricultural fertilizers and pesticides, extensive land use for farming, and the intense chemical processing needed to convert plants into plastic. All four biopolymers were the largest contributors to ozone depletion. The two tested forms of sugar-derived polymer—standard polylactic acid (PLA-G) and the type manufactured by Minnesota-based NatureWorks (PLA-NW), the most common sugar-based plastic in the United States—exhibited the maximum contribution to eutrophication, which occurs when overfertilized bodies of water can no longer support life. One type of the corn-based polyhydroyalkanoate, PHA-G, topped the acidification category. In addition, biopolymers exceeded most of the petroleum-based polymers for ecotoxicity and carcinogen emissions.

Results of life-cycle assessment with biopolymers listed as PLA-NW, PLA-G, PHA-G, and PHA-S. Hybrid is B-PET. Table from Environmental Science & Technology.

Once in use, however, biopolymers bested traditional polymers for ecofriendliness. For example, the sugar-based plastic from NatureWorks jumped from the sixth position under the LCA to become the material most in keeping with the standards of green design. On the other hand, the ubiquitous plastic polypropylene (PP)—widely used in packaging—was the cleanest polymer to produce, but sank to ninth place as a sustainable material.

Interestingly, the researchers found that the petroleum-plant hybrid biopolyethylene terephthalate, or B-PET, combines the ills of agriculture with the structural stubbornness of standard plastic to be harmful to produce (12th) and use (8th).

Landis is continuing the project by subjecting the polymers to a full LCA, which will also examine the materials’ environmental impact throughout their use and eventual disposal.

Source: http://www.news.pitt.edu

Today, Gov. Bobby Jindal joined Myriant Technologies LLC chairman Stephen Gatto and Port of Lake Providence Director Wyly Gilfoil to announce Myriant Technologies, through its wholly-owned subsidiary Myriant Lake Providence, Inc. will soon begin building a new 392,000 square-foot plant at the Port of Lake Providence that will be the world's largest bio-based succinic acid plant.
The project will create 176 new direct and indirect jobs in the area and represent a capital investment of approximately $80 million. This total includes 49 new direct jobs at an average annual salary of nearly $40,000 plus benefits, and an estimated 127 new indirect jobs. Additionally, the 18-month core construction period is scheduled to begin in early 2011, and will require at least 250 construction workers.
"Our commitment to making Louisiana the best place in the world for businesses to invest and succeed continues to create more opportunities for our workers to pursue their dreams right here at home," said Gov. Jindal. "Myriant's new, sustainable specialty chemical manufacturing plant is great news for Lake Providence and for Northeast Louisiana. Not only does this project create nearly 200 new jobs for the people of Northeast Louisiana, it also is a beacon to innovators everywhere by using cutting-edge technology to help reduce our dependence on foreign imported oil. This type of alternative energy manufacturing venture is one of our top target growth industries that helps to diversify the economy of our state, attract more businesses, and create more jobs. Our state's great low-cost manufacturing environment, well-established transportation and logistics networks, and skilled workforce trained in specialty chemicals provide several competitive advantages for companies like Myriant."
"This project puts Louisiana at the forefront of innovation to reduce our dependence on foreign oil," said U.S. Department of Energy, or DOE, Secretary Steven Chu.
The world's largest bio-based succinic acid refinery was awarded funding in January 2010 from the DOE and will also benefit from funding provided by the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development, or DOTD, to the port via its Port Priority program. In addition, Louisiana Economic Development is providing an incentive package that includes turnkey workforce solutions from LED FastStart, a five percent to six percent rebate on payroll expenses and certain sales taxes through the Quality Jobs program, and property tax abatement for materials used in new manufacturing through the Industrial Tax Exemption program.
Once operational in 2012, the project will use sorghum and carbon dioxide to produce up to 30 million pounds per year of succinic acid. Succinic acid is traditionally produced from petroleum-based feedstocks and used in a wide variety of applications, including the production of polymers, fibers, surfactants, detergents and flavors. Bio-based succinic acid can directly substitute for the petroleum-based version, thus providing a renewable bio-based industrial chemical building block and reducing U.S. dependence on imported oil while reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
"Myriant is thrilled to be on the verge of launching this breakthrough project," said Gatto. "We are extremely impressed by and grateful for the support and coordination from the state, from the Governor, LED, Louisiana DOTD, the Port of Lake Providence and Sen. Mary Landrieu. We are thankful for all of these constituents, as well as DOE, and their recognition of the vital role this technology will play in job creation, economic growth and environmental security."
Key site selection factors included the strategic location at the Port of Lake Providence, with its combination of rail, highway and barge access, as well as incentives offered by the state. The Lake Providence location provides a variety of feedstock options for the facility, as well as low-cost transportation options for both the inputs and products.
About Myriant Technologies

Headquartered in Quincy, Mass., Myriant Technologies LLC uses proprietary technology to advance the development of low-cost cellulosic sugars for the sustainable manufacturing of high-value specialty chemicals. The company's D(-) lactic acid started production at commercial scale in June 2008 for use in polylactic acid. Myriant's second commercial product, succinic acid, will begin commercial production in 2012.
Visit  Myriant Technologies website to learn more.

This year the prestigious Bioplastics Award was given to EconCore. The Bioplastics Award is organized by two trade publications: bioplastics MAGAZINE and European Plastics News. From a total of more than 20 high class proposals our product PLA honeycomb sandwich structure was selected by the judging panel. The winner of the Bioplastics award was announced during the 5th European Bioplastics Conference on December 1st, 2010 in Düsseldorf (Germany).
The jury based its decision on the innovative approach to use intelligent design in order to increase the mechanical properties of a PLA product and explained “This innovation offers the potential to considerably reduce weight and materials needed in construction as a result of the consistently applied sandwich. The products of EconCore would contribute decisively to more sustainable construction.”

A leaflet on our bio-renewable honeycomb panels can be downloaded here.

Source: www.econcore.com/