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En México se vive el inicio del fin de la era del petróleo, por ello, producir bioplásticos con el maíz es una alternativa y una forma también de dar valor agregado al producto.
 Adalberto Martín Mustieles Ibarra, ponente de la Expo Agro Sinaloa 2010, detalló que en México la Ley de Bionergéticos sólo impide el uso del maíz para combustibles.
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“En donde materiales como los plásticos que ya se han hecho cotidianos en nuestras vidas tienen que ser reemplazados con otras materias primas, el maíz es uno de ellos, pero no solamente el maíz, hay otras opciones siempre y cuando tengan un poquito de almidones”.
Tampoco se puede pensar que con la fabricación de biomateriales a partir del maíz se competirá con los alimentos, debido que sólo se pedirá prestado al maíz parte de los almidones y se concentrarían proteínas que podrían ser utilizadas en otro tipo de alimentos para el ser humano.
Se debe avanzar más hacia el uso del maíz para otros fines.
“Yo pienso que tenemos muchas oportunidades para incrementar nuestros rendimientos a través de la tecnificación y la capacitación de nuestros productores, sin embargo, esto requiere financiamiento, si tú no vas a cadenas de valor agregado que permitan financiar esos procesos de tecnificación, entonces siempre vamos a estar con rendimientos reducidos”.
Mustieles Ibarra aseveró que la propuesta es tecnificar al maíz para que algunos excedentes de esa producción se utilice para generar valor agregado que vengan a financiar procesos de tecnificación.
Detalló que una planta para producir 50 mil toneladas de bioplásticos en un mercado que demanda 2 millones de toneladas y se producen sólo 200 mil en el planeta, sólo se requieren 120 mil toneladas de maíz.
“Entonces realmente no es una cantidad que pudiera venir a competir con la alimentación humana y por otro lado, de 120 mil toneladas saco 50 mil de bioplásticos, pero genero 70 mil de subproductos que pueden ir a la alimentación humana también”.
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… Walmart has announced that it would be moving to eliminate non-biodegradable plastic bags from stores across the United States to reduce their collection in landfills. While they’ve demonstrated positive green initiatives, this week there’s been accusations of hypocrisy because they’ve been passing off a harmful, manufactured textile as sustainable.
Environmental advocates had been applauding Walmart for their plastic bag reduction goals and the installation of more energy-efficient systems. For example, coolers that only light up when a shopper’s presence is detected. So this new accusation from the Federal Trade Commission comes at a bad time.
Walmart, along with many other big box and chain stores across the United States, has been selling products as bamboo that are actually rayon. It is a textile shrouded in debate, because it contains cellulose that is naturally occurring. However, it does require an extensive manufacturing process to produce.
Regardless of whether rayon is natural or not; it’s definitely not bamboo. This labelling misleads consumers who think that they’re purchasing clothing and other home goods made from one of the most sustainable materials on the planet.
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Bioplastics: Ten Points To Remember, from European Bioplastics
1. Bioplastics are a family of different resin types, which are either bio-based or compostable or both. Bioplastics add new properties and performance characteristics to the huge family of plastics. So-called oxo-biodegradable polymer products, which fragment into small pieces, are not considered to be a bioplastic.
2. Bioplastics have been developed to address a range of sustainability issues. The use of renewable raw materials instead of fossil sources and where applicable, their biodegradability can also make a difference. Like with every other (plastic) product, claims about sustainability need an individual assessment and a differentiated approach.
3. Considerable investments have been made by the global bioplastics industry and high growth rates result from a continually increasing market interest. This has continued even through the currently difficult economic situation and is expected to continue.
(see graph 1)
4. The term “bioplastic” today can also cover commodities like PE or PET which can be fully or partially bio-based and perfectly recyclable – in exactly the same way as fossil-based PE or PET. However the bio-based content can lead to an increased degree of sustainability.
5. “Older” bioplastics have been in the market place for decades due to their excellent application performance, e.g. certain types of polyamides and PUR or cellulosics – without causing any significant issues for recyclers.
6. The recycling industry has found workable solutions to handle a huge variety of post-industrial and post-consumer plastic waste. The existing sorting and processing technology can handle bioplastics either without or with slight adaptation to specific material characteristics.
7. In reality Bioplastics represent a high growth business opportunity rather than a threat to the plastic recycling industry. One example is PLA, a polyester which can be recycled in a similar way to PET. Separation technology allows high value recycling of both resin types. The establishment of an infrastructure for the recycling of PLA has started recently.
8. Organic recycling of compostable polymers – e.g. in composting plants – adds new efficient recovery options to the world of plastics recycling and has significant advantages where heavy contamination with food waste or soil is unavoidable, e.g. catering products, tableware, mulching film, etc.
9. Energetic recovery is a viable and useful solution until volumes allow the operation of more sophisticated ‘back-to-plastics’ recycling schemes. When renewable raw materials have been used for the production, renewable energy can be recovered.
10. European Bioplastics calls on the traditional plastic and recycling industries, industrial plastic users, NGOs and governmental institutions to develop and establish workable solutions, in legislation as well as in practice, which support the increase of plastics recycling and the use of recyclates – whether from conventional, bio-based and/or biodegradable plastics.
Despite the recent global economic slowdown, the global biodegradable polymers market grew stronger and doubled its market size from 2005-2009. This market is positioned to grow 13% annually between 2009 and 2014.
Recently, SRI Consulting (SRIC) released its global Biodegradable Polymers report that provides the most comprehensive and timely information on the worldwide biodegradable polymers industry.
Overall, the biodegradable polymers industry might develop even faster than expected. Lead author and Consultant Michael Malveda commented, “Future legislation enacted will have a major impact as to how widely these polymers are used.” Mr. Malveda continued, “Likewise, prices of petroleum-based alternatives and the economy’s recovery will help shape the industry’s future.”
SRI Consulting’s Biodegradable Polymers report provides current and comprehensive information on this global industry, including trends, supply and demand, and analysis of the competitive environment.
In 2009, demand for biodegradable polymers in North America, Europe and Asia accounted for most of the global consumption. Despite the economic crisis, which hit the chemical and plastics industry, the market for biodegradable polymers did grow in 2009 in almost all regions. In Europe, the largest global market, growth was in the range of 5–10% (depending on products and applications, compared with 2008). Total consumption of biodegradable polymers in these three regions is forecast to grow at an average annual rate of nearly 13% over the five-year period from 2009 to 2014. The food packaging, dishes and cutlery market is the single largest end use and will be the major growth driver in the future.
This pie chart shows world consumption of biodegradable polymers:
Europe continues to be the largest biodegradable polymers consuming region, with about half of the global total. Major market drivers for biodegradable polymers in this region include legislation, depleting landfill capacities, pressure from retailers, growing consumer interest in sustainable plastic solutions, fossil oil and gas independence, and the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.
North American consumption of biodegradable polymers has grown significantly in recent years. The following factors have contributed to and will continue to contribute to growth: biodegradable polymers have become more cost-competitive with petroleum-based products; there has been growing support at the local, state and federal levels for these products and for addressing needs about solid waste disposal; there is increasing public awareness regarding the depletion of petroleum-based raw materials; large retailers and manufacturing companies desire to develop more sustainable raw material sources as well as to impact global warming; and the properties and processing of biodegradable polymers have improved.
In Japan, there has been some growth in biodegradable polymers use as a result of government and industry promoting their use. The rising prices for petroleum and petroleum-based products have also contributed to the replacement of petroleum-based polymers with biodegradable polymers. However, Japanese consumption of biodegradable polymers has not increased as much as expected. In Other Asian countries, biodegradable polymer demand is expected to increase greatly in the next several years. In China, high growth will be due to several factors: an increase in production capacity, demand for environmentally friendly products, and the government’s plastic waste control legislation.
Use of biodegradable polymers has continued to grow, even though some of their other benefits are viewed as of more longer-term interest. Their greatest impact may be in the future, when infrastructures and systems have improved. For example, in the United States, it is expected that when there is a large volume of compostable products (driven by their low carbon footprint), then it will make economic and environmental sense to compost and recycle more. In Europe, however, Western European countries have large-scale composting facilities already in place and are composting several million metric tons of source-separated organic waste.
For biodegradable materials, it is generally regarded that the product will degrade into water and carbon dioxide by virtue of a naturally occurring organism, such as microorganisms. Some industry sources have offered the term compostable in place of biodegradable. To be considered compostable, three criteria must be met: biodegradation—it has to break down into carbon dioxide, water and biomass at the same rate as cellulose; disintegration—the plastic must become indistinguishable in the compost; and nontoxicity. Most international standards (such as ISO 17088) require at least a 60% biodegradation of a product within 180 days, along with other factors, in order to be called compostable.
Biodegradable polymers are part of the larger biopolymers market. The industry defines biopolymers, or bioplastics, as polymers that are either bio-based or biodegradable (some materials like PLA are both). Some bio-based products are not necessarily biodegradable (e.g., polyethylene based on ethanol), while some biodegradable products are actually made from petroleum-based products (e.g., polycaprolactone).
The issue between bio-based and biodegradable materials has continued to attract attention worldwide. In Japan, the idea of bio-based renewability is becoming more important relative to biodegradable materials. In the United States and Europe, industry sources comment that the idea of bio-based or “where it comes from” versus biodegradable, or “where it goes” is currently driving or will drive the overall biopolymers market in the future. Bio-based products have gained support as a result of the current focus on climate change and the low carbon footprint that results, as well as legislation (at the national and international levels), cap and trade issues, etc. The USDA has even set up a bio-preferred program that promotes consumer use of bio-based products through labels identifying bio-based content.
After the the start-up of the world’s first bio-based succinic acid plant by BioAmber (a joint venture between DNP Green Technology and ARD), DNP Green Technology has acquired a controlling stake in Sinoven Biopolymers Inc. Under the terms of the agreement, Sinoven Biopolymers will operate as a subsidiary of DNP Green Technology with a sales office in Philadelphia, PA and a manufacturing and formulation development facility in Shanghai, China.
Sinoven Biopolymers has proprietary technology for modifying polybutylene succinate (PBS), giving it unique properties that other biodegradable polymers do not offer. These include heat resistance above 100°C, excellent strength and the ability to be processed in existing production equipment. Sinoven Biopolymers currently sources PBS from third parties and subsequently modifies it.
“This acquisition will accelerate our top-line growth and help DNP Green move down the value chain. With the acquisition of Sinoven, DNP Green can now transform corn and other crops into a diverse range of renewable, biodegradable products, from coffee cup lids and disposable razors to automotive parts.” said Jean-Francois Huc, President of DNP Green Technology. “This acquisition also gives us a solid presence in China, which we consider an important strategic market” he added.
“This acquisition will help Sinoven Biopolymers to leverage low cost succinic acid and 1,4 butanediol (BDO) produced by DNP Green, which in turn will drive down the cost of our modified PBS and open up vast new markets for our biodegradable plastics”, added Ray Balee, President of Sinoven Biopolymers.
About DNP Green Technology
DNP Green Technology is a private US company that produces renewable chemicals. Through numerous scientific and business partnerships, DNP Green Technology has built an extensive IP portfolio and know-how covering the production, purification and uses of succinic acid and its derivatives. DNP Green Technology has established a joint venture, known as Bioamber, to scale up and commercialize its succinic acid technology. DNP Green is actively developing other bio-based chemical platforms, leveraging industrial biotechnology and chemical synthesis to produce renewable chemicals and bio-based materials. The company has offices in Princeton, N.J. and Montreal, Canada.
About Sinoven Biopolymers
Sinoven Biopolymers, Inc. (SBI) is a private US company that produces high performance biodegradable polybutylene succinate (PBS) based plastic. With its proprietary technology and extensive composite portfolio, SBI tailors cost effective products for industries, including foodservice, consumer use, medical, electronics and automotive. The company has production facilities in Shanghai, China and offices in Philadelphia, PA, Shanghai and Beijing, China.
La caseína y el suero constituyen una nueva forma efectiva de elaborar envases alimentarios biodegradables y comestibles.
La creciente demanda de alimentos más sanos y ecológicos ha llevado a los investigadores a desarrollar nuevos sistemas de envasado que, además de prolongar su vida útil, sean reciclables. A día de hoy, la gran mayoría de los envases utilizan una mezcla de compuestos químicos sintéticos que no son biodegradables. Una de las alternativas que más fuerza ha cobrado en los últimos años es el recubrimiento comestible a partir de una película transparente que envuelve el alimento y que actúa de barrera frente a la humedad y al oxígeno. Además, estos films son útiles también como apoyo a los aditivos para conservar las propiedades del producto. Uno de los últimos hallazgos en este campo ha sido el desarrollo de películas biodegradables fabricadas con proteínas lácteas como el suero y la caseína.
Primero fue el suero obtenido de los quesos para fabricar un film transparente destinado a envolver alimentos listos para congelar; luego el almidón de maíz para crear botellas de agua biodegradables en cuatro meses. Y ahora vuelven las proteínas lácteas (suero y caseína) a ser las protagonistas de una investigación estadounidense en el campo de los recubrimientos comestibles, que algunos expertos auguran ya que serán los “envases del futuro”. Se trata de una importante alternativa, la de aprovechar ingredientes alimentarios, a la elaboración actual a partir de compuestos químicos como el polietileno y otros materiales sintéticos que, en ocasiones, se asocian a problemas de contaminación.
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Sustancias como el almidón, la gelatina, las pectinas o el salvado de trigo han servido en los últimos años para que la tecnología del envasado haya evolucionado hacia sistemas más respetuosos con el medio ambiente sin que ello ponga en riesgo la inocuidad de los alimentos. Son envases hechos a base de capas finas que, cuando entran en contacto con el producto, activan su capacidad protectora y, al mismo tiempo, se integran en el propio alimento y se pueden consumir. Uno de los productos que más contribuye al desarrollo de estos envases es la leche, y sus proteínas, con beneficios demostrados ya en productos como las pechugas de pollo, salmón o frutos secos.
También se han realizado estudios con capas realizadas a base de almidón de mandioca para envolver cualquier tipo de fruta pelada y cortada. Este compuesto transparente ha demostrado una gran resistencia a la acidez que, además, evita que la fruta se oscurezca con el paso de las horas. Y es que uno de los principales objetivos en el desarrollo de estos envases es demostrar su efectividad en los alimentos más sensibles al deterioro, como frutas y hortalizas.
A finales de 2009 un grupo de expertos del Departamento de Agricultura estadounidense (USDA, en sus siglas inglesas) daba cuenta de la capacidad antimicrobiana de alimentos como el ajo, el orégano, la cebolla o el arándano. Los expertos aprovecharon esta propiedad para desarrollar films comestibles con el fin de proteger los tomates. Según la investigación, es posible proteger los productos contra patógenos como “E.coli” o “Listeria monocytogenes”.
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PHA stands for “Polyhydroxyalkanoate”, a family of biopolyesters synthesized by a variety of microorganisms.
PHAs are bioplastics. Their properties are similar to many petroleum based thermoplastics and elastomeric materials. But unlike most petroleum plastics, PHAs are sustainable, biodegradable and biocompatible.
Sustainable: Naturally, many microorganisms can synthesize PHA from a wide variety of organic matter. These include sugars, vegetable oils, petroleum hydrocarbons, wastewater sludge, and even carbon dioxide. Technological advancements are making the microbial conversion of sugars and vegetable oils to PHAs more and more efficient in large scale fermentations. PHAs are truly sustainable and renewable plastics.
Biodegradable: PHAs are made by microorganisms but, they can also be degraded to water and carbon dioxide by microorganisms found in soil, compost, as well as in rivers, lakes, and oceans. The mechanism is microbial enzymatic degradation, not simple aqueous hydrolysis. Products made of PHA or containing PHA are actually water resistant, and with lifespan similar to conventional plastics. They only biodegrade when exposed to suitable enzynmes. PHAs can also be recycled with some loss of molecular weight and mechanical properties.
Biocompatible: Numerous studies have shown that PHAs are generally biocompatible, and can be slowly degraded and absorbed in the body.
These intracellular polyester granules are accumulated, possibly as carbon and energy storage materials, or as an electron sink similar to ethanol production in fermentative organisms. PHA granules can be observed by electron microscopy (left photo), or by phase contrast microscopy using a light microscope (right photo).
Polyhydroxyalkanoates are generally classified into short-chain-length PHA (SCL-PHA) and medium-chain-length PHA (MCL-PHA) by the different number of carbons in their repeating units (general structure as below). SCL-PHAs contain 4 or 5 carbons in their repeating units, while MCL-PHAs contain 6 or more carbons in the repeating units.
There are numerous microorganisms capable of synthesizing PHAs, one form or another. Some of the most-studied ones are listed in the following table, along with typical PHAs synthesized and their chemical structures.
Naturally occurring polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) are optically active linear polyesters with each repeating unit in the stereochemical R-configuration. Their physical and mechanical properties are largely determined by the chemical structure and relative amount of the monomers, as well as the molecular weight. To date, more than 150 different monomeric constituents have been reported in microbially synthesized PHAs. As a result, properties may vary. In general, SCL-PHAs are thermoplastics with high melting temperature and crystallinity. MCL-PHAs are typically elastomers with low melting temperature and crystallinity but good elongation properties. SCL-co-MCL-PHAs are somewhere in between depending on the exact compositions.
There are lots of similarities between properties of PHAs and those of many conventional plastics. Therefore, PHAs can be processed to many different forms and shapes using conventional techniques such as injection molding, extrusion, film blowing, fiber-spray molding, etc. They may also be provided in the form of colloidal suspensions in water, or solutions in various solvents. Combining their unique water resistance, biodegradability and biocompatibility not found in any other materials, a wide range of possible commercial applications can be exploited.
PolyFerm Canada is focused on the development, manufacture, and commercialization of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) – a family of biodegradable bioplastics made from renewable resources. In particular, This company is specialized in the development of medium-chain-length polyhydroxyalkanoates (MCL-PHA), which is brand as “VersaMer”. The production of VersaMer PHA is a bio-based and sustainable process. Sugars and vegetable oil derived fatty acids are used as the substrates to grow naturally-selected microorganisms in bioreactors. Once the biomass is harvested, a combination of chemical/enzyme digestion and solvent extraction produces highly purified VersaMer PHAs suitable for a wide range of applications.
The European plastics waste generation nearly reached 25 million tonnes in 2008. Even though 51% of this amount has been recovered more effort is needed to fully use the potential laying in plastics waste. The recycling of post-consumer plastics waste is a challenging and multifaceted topic, for which many solutions exist such as mechanical recycling. Therefore, The European Plastics Recyclers (EuPR) trade association has published a strategy paper entitled “How to Increase Plastics Recycling”.
This paper first offers an analysis of the plastics industry profile, paying special attention to plastics recycling. Second, it provides an overview of the current post-consumer plastics recovery operation, underlining the benefits of mechanical recycling. Finally, with this paper, EuPR gives a recommendation of 10 fundamental actions to increase the recycling of post-consumer plastics waste such as to stop the use of unsustainable technologies (bioplastics and oxo-degradables) for plastics. Collection systems should create separate streams for these new materials.
Bioplastics and oxo-degradables jeopardise mechanical recycling:
Bioplastics (also known as organic plastics) are a form of plastics derived from renewable biomass sources, such as vegetable oil, corn starch, pea starch or microbiota, rather than fossil-fuel plastics which are derived from petroleum.
Oxo-degradable plastics are polyolefin plastics to which very small (catalytic) amounts of metal salts have been added. These catalyse the natural degradation process to speed it up, thus the Oxodegradable plastics degrade subject to environmental conditions to produce water, carbon dioxide and biomass.
These materials aim to substitute the conventional polymers in various applications, namely bags, spoons and cups. However, the different properties of the aforementioned materials render them to recycle simultaneously in the same process.
The joint efforts made by all stakeholders in order to achieve the European recycling targets are currently at risk. Bioplastics and Oxo-degradable plastics will jeopardise mechanical recycling, as they are likely pollute the existing waste streams. As a matter of fact, there is a high probability that consumers will not differentiate between the different types of plastics and will throw everything in the same bin.
A lack of accepted recyclability standards and an overkill in labelling are not presenting a clear message to consumers. Consequently, the presence of these new materials is expected to give rise to an uncontrolled quality of recycled material as they cannot be eliminated or detected.
EuPR demands that the industry be watchful so as not to obliterate the achievements of the past years in plastics recycling by using unsustainable technologies for plastics; and the collection systems create separated streams for these new materials.
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