Green and bio-plastics - The Expert's View

Mar 08, 2010 - Environmental impacts of conventional and bio-based carrier bags by Duane B. Priddy (R&D Highlight)

The use of bio-based products as carrier bags, packaging materials, and many other applications has been increasingly replacing conventional polymer products. One of the main driving forces of bio-plastic applications is the perceived...
Jul 05, 2009 - Natural and man-made cellulose fibre-reinforced poly(lactic acid) (PLA) composites: An overview about mechanical characteristics and application areas by Duane B. Priddy (R&D Highlight)

The paper describes the manufacture and mechanical characteristics of composites made completely of renewable raw materials. Composites of different kinds of containing up to 40% by weight of natural fibers including cotton, hemp, kenaf... (2 Member Reactions)
Jun 15, 2009 - Process and plant for the production of composite thermoplastics from recycled materials by Duane B. Priddy (R&D Highlight)

This invention describes a process for the manufacture of composite thermoplastic materials with a very high content of filler, starting from materials normally disposed in landfill or sent for incineration, or in any case for uses with a... (8 Member Reactions)
Mar 12, 2010 - High-barrier cellulose-based packaging for chocolate by ISPA (Innovation Brief)

The Dutch company Amigos International has launched its new range of dark, Fair Trade, organic chocolate on the occasion of the latest Germany organic tradefair ‘Biofach 2010’. This new product that is available in five mouthwatering...
Mar 08, 2010 - Soy-based foam for mattresses by ISPA (Innovation Brief)

One of the largest mattress manufacturers in the United States i.e. Denver Matress has announced that it uses between 2.54cm (one inch) and 7.62cm (three inches) of soybean oil-based foam for the quilted top layer of nearly all of its...
Mar 05, 2010 - Design of biodegradable polymer systems for tissue engineering by Duane B. Priddy (R&D Highlight)

A vast majority of biodegradable polymers studied belongs to the polyester family which includes polyglycolides and polylactides. Some disadvantages of these polymers in tissue engineering applications are their poor bio-compatibility,...
Mar 05, 2010 - First solar car that integrates bio-based plastics by ISPA (Innovation Brief)

The Italian automaker Fiat has announced that it has designed the first solar car, which is notably made from bio-based thermoplastic materials, thanks to a collaborative partnership between two Italian universities. This innovative...
Mar 03, 2010 - Tufted PET carpet technology for cars by ISPA (Innovation Brief)

The American automaker General Motors (GM) has received a 2009 PACE Partnership Award for its collaboration with the American company Futuris Automotive Interiors on the development of an alternative to polyamide (PA) carpet i.e. a tufted...
Mar 01, 2010 - Sustainable carbon based materials by Duane B. Priddy (R&D Highlight)

The production of functional nanostructured materials starting from cheap natural precursors using environmentally friendly processes is a highly attractive subject in material research. Recently, much attention has been focused on the use...
Feb 25, 2010 - Bio-based urban hybrid concept car by ISPA (Innovation Brief)

A student team at the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH) in Stockholm, Sweden, has designed a high-performance hybrid concept car for the Shell Eco-marathon, whose aim was to design and build a vehicle that used the least amount of fuel to...
Feb 23, 2010 - Life cycle assessment and eco-efficiency analysis of drinking cups used at public events by Duane B. Priddy (R&D Highlight)

At the request of the Public Waste Agency for the Flemish Region, the Flemish Institute for Technology Research performed a life cycle assessment (LCA), according to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 14040 procedures...
Feb 17, 2010 - A cordless phone with low carbon footprint by ISPA (Innovation Brief)

A bio-based thermoplastic i.e. a poly(lactic acid) (PLA) material has been chosen by Telecom Italia to produce its latest innovative products: the Eco Cordless phones. The new phones designed by MID Product Design Studio combine an...
Feb 10, 2010 - Innovative biodegradable system for water treatment by ISPA (Innovation Brief)

The American company Bioverse, a specialist in natural products to assist bioremediation of commercial and residential water features, has chosen a bio-based thermoplastic material in order to produce an innovative version of its patented...
Feb 10, 2010 - Nanocomposites in food packaging by Duane B. Priddy (R&D Highlight)

The development of nanocomposites is a new strategy to improve physical properties of polymers, including mechanical strength, thermal stability, and gas barrier properties. The most promising nanoscale size fillers are montmorillonite and...
Feb 08, 2010 - Snow goggle made from biobased TPU by ISPA (Innovation Brief)

The American company Smith Optics that is known for its diverse line of sunglasses, goggles and helmets has chosen a biobased thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) material i.e. Pearlthane™ Eco from the Spain-based material producer Merquinsa to...
Feb 04, 2010 - PLA-based desktop accessories by ISPA (Innovation Brief)

The Canadian company Mako Plastics Ltd. has announced that it has developed a new line of environmentally friendly desktop accessories made from bioplastics. In fact, these new products that are commercialized under the trade name “Carta”...
Feb 03, 2010 - Environmentally friendly composite materials useful for retail and/or shipping packages by Duane B. Priddy (R&D Highlight)

This patent application desribes composite materials having at least one of the following desirable properties: rigidity, printability, water-proofness, pliability, recyclability, thermochromicity, antimicrobial nature, electrical...
Feb 03, 2010 - Luxury shoe heels made from biobased material by ISPA (Innovation Brief)

Renewable resources have been used by Sergio Rossi, a subsidiary of the famous Gucci Group in order to produce environmentally friendly shoes. These new shoes, which are available under the brand name “EcoPump”, provide an elegant and...
Jan 29, 2010 - PLA shrink labels for sustainable packaging by ISPA (Innovation Brief)

The American company Printpack Inc. has introduced Earthfirst®, a new range of shrink film labels specially designed for Body Glove water filtration systems manufactured by 3M and distributed by Water, Inc. The packaging of this 3M...
Jan 27, 2010 - Bioplastic based Contactless IC card by ISPA (Innovation Brief)

IC cards are widespread as e-money or security card. They include a printed circuit board with IC chip, antenna inside and plastic lamination sheets on both sides. The Japanese group Sony Corporation has developed a new contactless IC card...
Jan 25, 2010 - Biobased polyamide for ultra-slim TV by ISPA (Innovation Brief)

The Japanese group Sony Corporation is a pioneer for the use of bio-based plastics in electronics products. The company has been continuously increasing these materials since 2000. Recently it has introduced bio-based polyamide components...
Jan 22, 2010 - An environmentally friendly Formula 3 racing car by ISPA (Innovation Brief)

British researchers have built an innovative Formula 3 racing car by using recycled plastic stemming from water and juice bottles. They have also used carrot fibers and other materials that normally expect to find in the recycling or...
Jan 19, 2010 - Innovative compostable corn-based water bottle by ISPA (Innovation Brief)

An industrial collaborative project between the American beverage specialist Biota Brands of America Inc., the material producer Cargill Dow LLC and the plastic processing equipment manufacturers SIG Corpoplast and Husky has allowed to...
Jan 15, 2010 - Prototype wall plugs made from bio-sourced PA by ISPA (Innovation Brief)

Zytel® RS from the American material producer DuPont is a renewably-sourced polyamide (PA) material range including PA-6,10 (PA-6,10) and PA-10,10 grades. The Zytel® RS grade that has a renewably-sourced content by weight of 58% has...
Jan 11, 2010 - Biosourced PA components for Nordic walking stick by ISPA (Innovation Brief)

The first European commercial use of the renewably-sourced unreinforced polyamide-6,10 grade stemming from castor oil plants i.e. Zytel® RS from the American material producer DuPont is for the hand grip, tip, cap and inter-locking...
Jan 08, 2010 - Multifunctional nanomaterial-enabled membranes for water treatment by Duane B. Priddy (R&D Highlight)

The recent progress in the synthesis and characterization of nanomaterials has provided new methods and building blocks for the design of membranes. Of special interest are functional nanoparticles that can be used to develop membranes...
Jan 07, 2010 - The chemical recycling of polyurethanes by Duane B. Priddy (R&D Highlight)

This paper reviews the ways to reduce polyurethanes of various types to oligomers and monomers as well as suitable products for processing them to new polyurethanes with similar or new properties. Any possible reaction of the urethane...
Jan 06, 2010 - Nanotechnology-based membranes for water purification by Duane B. Priddy (R&D Highlight)

This article provides a critical review of protein-polymer biomimetic membranes, aligned-carbon nanotube membranes, and thin film nanocomposite membranes. Each technology has been touted as a possible low-energy replacement for...
Jan 05, 2010 - Materials design and engineering for high performance polymer solar cells by Duane B. Priddy (R&D Highlight)

This paper explores the challenging issues encountered in the technology development for organic photovoltaics. The key achievements in this field of interest are presented. These include development of an effective method to tune the...
Jan 04, 2010 - Food-packaging interactions by Duane B. Priddy (R&D Highlight)

Sensory changes in food products result from intentional or unintentional interactions with plastic packaging materials and from failure of materials to protect product integrity or quality. Resolving sensory issues related to plastic food...