New production process to help packaging market move towards bio-based plastics

- 5% of world’s oil consumption attributable to plastics; 40% of all plastics used in packaging

 

- Use of renewable natural resources reduces dependence on oil and carbon footprint attributable to consumption

 

VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland has devised a way to produce the PGA monomer glycolic acid from bio-based materials more efficiently than before, in a development that will help the plastic packaging industry with its efforts to move towards completely bio-based products.

 

The volume of oil used every year in the production of plastics equates to approximately five per cent of the world’s total oil consumption.

 

With around 40 per cent of all plastics used in packaging, pressure is on the packaging industry to reduce its dependence on oil.

 

According to lifecycle analyses, carbon dioxide emissions from bio-based plastics can be as much as 70 percent lower than from oil-based plastics.

 

The use of renewable natural resources in industrial applications reduces dependence on oil and the carbon footprint attributable to consumption.

 

A transition to a bio-based economy nevertheless requires products that are not only ecologically sustainable but also competitive in terms of quality.

 

VTT said the new generation of bio-based plastic packaging is not only eco-friendly but also has several superior qualities compared to traditional plastic packaging.

 

To achieve this, VTT has developed a technique that enables the production of the PGA monomer glycolic acid from bio-based materials more efficiently than before.

 

Bio-based PGA plastic has excellent barrier properties. Adding PGA into the structure of traditional plastic packaging significantly improves its quality. In addition to strength and heat resistance, plastic packaging also needs to be airtight, vapor-proof and grease-resistant.

 

This plastic formulation is also between 20 and 30 percent stronger than PLA – the most popular biodegradable plastic on the market – and able to withstand temperatures 20 degrees Celsius higher. It also breaks down more quickly than PLA, but its biodegradability can be regulated if necessary.

 

Bio-based plastic opens up new business opportunities for the forest industry, with the estimated total volume of the global packaging market approximately €500 billion, and the Chinese and Indian markets, for example, growing rapidly.

 

Ethical consumption principles and legislative changes are steering the packaging industry towards sustainable development, and bio-based plastic currently only account for around one per cent of global plastic production.

 

VTT research professor Aki Harlin said: ‘Bio-based plastics are a tangible step closer to a bio-based economy.

 

‘This new generation of plastic packaging not only reduces our dependence on oil but also offers superior quality compared to traditional plastic packaging.’

 

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