Daily News

Rosenberger Optical Solutions & Infrastructure (Augsburg, Germany), an expert in fibre optic connections, cabling solutions, and infrastructure services, announces that its in-house plastic packaging for patch cords will be switched to biobased and biodegradable polymers in the coming year.

The Helsingborg-based greentech company GAIA BioMaterials AB (GAIA) has a world first ready just in time for the opening of Scanpack (October 4th), the largest packaging exhibition in northern Europe. After a long and challenging development process GAIA has finally cracked the code for a thermoformable version of their biomaterial Biodolomer®, that not only can withstand microwave heat, but also has the potential for passing the home composting requirements. The solution is to be found in a combination of the proprietary recipe, as well as the new, unique production equipment, which the company installed in its factory in Helsingborg during last year.

Neste, Idemitsu Kosan, CHIMEI and Mitsubishi Corporation have agreed to build a renewable plastics supply chain utilizing bio-based hydrocarbons (Neste RE™) for the production of styrene monomer (i.e. bio-SM), and its mass balanced renewable plastics derivatives including acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (i.e. bio-ABS*). The bio-SM production in Japan and the renewable plastics production in Taiwan will mark the first of such production in each country, and they are planned to take place in the first half of 2023.

A team of Texas A&M AgriLife Research (College Station, TX, USA) scientists has developed a system that uses carbon dioxide, CO2, to produce biodegradable plastics, or bioplastics, that could replace the nondegradable plastics used today.

Palsgaard (Juelsminde, Denmark), a leader in plant-based additives for the plastics industry, has announced that its Einar® 611 biobased anti-fog surfactant has been successfully specified by a major Korean supplier of food-grade polyethylene (PE) film solutions.

Plastic pollution is a problem that begins long before it reaches the environment, and so must be the solution. To this aim, the RevoluZion project will develop innovative biobased bioplastic material formulations using advanced enzyme engineering techniques.

Interzero (Cologne, Germany)and Eastman (Kingsport, TN, USA) recently announced a long-term supply agreement for Eastman’s previously announced molecular recycling facility in Normandy, France. Interzero will provide up to 20,000 tonnes per year of hard-to-recycle PET household packaging waste that would otherwise be incinerated.

Swiss sports brand On (Zurich)presents the first shoe made from carbon emissions, called Cloudprime.

This technology synergizes with recently developed proprietary bio-polymer technologies and provides a commercially referenced production of biobased succinic acid (bio-SAc) that serves as feedstock for the production of polybutylene succinate (PBS).

As a result of new research involving a cutting-edge facility at Montana State University (Bozeman, USA), agricultural biomass that would otherwise sit in farmers’ fields could instead be turned into plastic beverage bottles and food containers.

Our oceans have become the world's largest landfill, accumulating more than 13 million tonnes of plastic annually, according to Bioplastics International1 (Scottsdale, USA), an Arizona-based producer of the world's first sugar cane alcohol water soluble PVA (Polyvinyl Alcohol) as well as many bio resins from plant starches.

Materials manufacturer Covestro (Leverkusen, Germany) and SOL Kohlensäure (Burgbrohl, Germany) have concluded a framework agreement for a supply partnership for biogenic carbon dioxide (CO2).

Traceless (Hamburg, Germany) won the German Entrepreneur Award (Deutscher Gründerpreis) 2022 in the Startup category! Yesterday evening, the 13th of September 2022, the two founders Anne Lamp and Johanna Baare were live on stage in the ZDF Hauptstadtstudio, receiving this amazing recognition on behalf of their whole team.

Orthex (Espoo, Finland), a leading Nordic producer of household products, has selected a range of INEOS Styrolution’s sustainable Luran® ECO raw materials for its range of SmartStoreTM Compact storage products.

Dow (Midland, MI, USA), the world's leading materials science company, and Mura Technology (London, UK), the global pioneer of an advanced plastic recycling solution, today announce the next step in their ongoing collaboration to help solve the global plastics waste issue and advance circularity.

Anker (Changsha, China), the world's #1 mobile charging brand, recently announced its series of USB-C charging cables which incorporate a proprietary mixture of plant-based materials into the production process. Bearing a new "Anker Eco Product" logo, these biobased cables are part of Anker's eco-innovation effort aimed at reducing petroleum-based plastic in product development.

CropEnergies AG (Mannheim, Germany) has acquired a stake in the Dutch start-up for biobased chemicals Syclus BV (Maastricht). CropEnergies purchases 50 % of the company's share capital. The investment volume amounts to EUR 1.8 million.

Covestro (Leverkusen, Germany) will now be supplied with the two mass-balanced raw materials phenol and acetone from INEOS’ (London, UK) INVIRIDIS™ product range. Covestro uses these CO2-reduced products to manufacture its high-performance polycarbonate plastic.

The Board of BioBag International AS (Askim, Norway) has appointed Patrik Fogelström as new CEO of the BioBag Group and Managing Director of the parent company BioBag International AS, which have been acquired in 2021 by the Novamont Group (Novara, Italy), a world leader in the development and production of biochemicals and compostable bioplastics.

Mondi (Weybridge, UK), Essity (Stockholm, Sweden), and Dow (Midland, MI, USA) collaborated to create new, recyclable secondary packaging for Essity’s feminine care products, using renewable materials and post-consumer recycled content that reduces use of fossil-based materials.

Anellotech (Pearl River, NY, USA) is pleased to announce that it has, for the first time, continuously processed solid, post-consumer plastic waste into light olefins and aromatics using its Plas-TCat™ catalytic pyrolysis technology. The waste consisted of a mixture of all major plastic types, with the exception of polyvinyl chloride (PVC).

The Kunststoff-Institut Lüdenscheid (Germany) is planning a new joint project for autumn 2022 that will examine application possibilities of biopolymers.

Toray Industries, Inc. (Tokyo, Japan), announced last week that it has developed the world’s first 100% bio-based adipic acid, a raw material for nylon 66 (polyamide 66), from sugars derived from inedible biomass.

After four decades of thermal conversion technology development, VTT (Espoo, Finland) is spinning out Olefy technology in October – a process that can affordably convert most of the world’s waste plastics back to usable virgin grade materials an infinite number of times. VTT also announces eight patent applications for the process.

Earlier this week, the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation, Blade Nzimande, and the Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and Environment, Barbara Creecy, will officiate the hand-over of the biodegradation assessment laboratory equipment to the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in Pretoria (South Africa).

BASF and footwear design house Maddy Plant have collaborated to explore the possibilities of BASF’s innovative material solutions and use industry-leading technologies that enable energy-efficient production, for its concept athleisure shoe ‘MADGAMMA – Intertekk Saturn’.

A new University of Queensland-led training centre is set to become a hub for world-leading research in ‘green’ plastic.

Researchers from the Manchester Institute of Biotechnology (MIB) (UK) have developed a new enzyme engineering platform to improve plastic degrading enzymes through directed evolution.

With the new PLAYMOBIL product series Wiltopia, children discover our Earth, its special features and its inhabitants. Without dry facts, but with lots of play fun and sustainable material in proven Playmobil quality!

Continental (Hanover, Germany) is going to use BIOVYN™, bio-attributed PVC, from INOVYN (London, UK) in the production of its technical and decorative surface materials for its automotive customers.