Corn-based plastic additive makes bottles stronger
bottles more rigid and stronger than ever before, has been
developed, writes Anthony Fletcher.
The research, conducted by Iowa Corn Promotion Board (ICPB) and Battelle, which operates the US department of energy's Pacific Northwest national laboratory in Washington State, could help further strengthen the plastic industry's ability to counter high oil prices and develop more environmentally friendly packaging materials.
The ICPB claims that the compound, isosorbide, has been found to make plastic bottles more rigid and stronger than regular plastic bottles. According to the board, preliminary cost estimates show that isosorbide from this technology is competitive with petroleum based building blocks used to make plastics.
Commercialising this product could therefore provide benefits to both the consumer and the grower. "The use of renewable corn derived isosorbide will reduce the amount of petroleum necessary to make plastics," said PNNL programme manager for bioproducts Todd Werpy.
"Incorporating isosorbide into plastic will improve the properties of the plastic and reduce our dependence on foreign oil."
Indeed, the packaging materials industry is highly susceptible to fluctuations in the price of oil. Raw material costs increased dramatically after oil prices struck $50 a barrel for the first time since November last month, prompting traders to forecast a return of the record prices seen last autumn.
Steadily increasing costs over the past 12 months have been absorbed to the extent that general polystyrene prices increased by nearly 70 per cent last year.
ICPB entered into a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement with PNNL to develop this process for converting corn into isosorbide. ICPB funded its tasks under the CRADA with Iowa corn checkoff investment funds while PNNL's tasks were funded by the US Department of Energy through the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.
"The grower will benefit by creating new uses for corn and new jobs for rural economies," said ICPB director of research and regulatory affairs Rod Williamson. "Isosorbide could consume another 30 to 40 million bushels of corn annually."
"We have made a commitment to developing cost-effective processes for obtaining high-value chemicals from biomass," said Werpy. "The key is to make a low-cost product that will compete in a petroleum-based plastic market."
The past three years have seen the worldwide market introduction of renewable packaging, and the rapid growth in both range of products and number of users demonstrates the market potential. In Europe, such packaging is now to be found in numerous supermarkets.
Leading retail chains, particularly in France, Great Britain, Italy and the Netherlands are testing these types of products and have already converted sections of their product lines.
Indeed, many analysts believe that this sector of the packaging market has a bright future. Growing environmental awareness and consumer power coupled with the inexorable rise in pre-packaged disposable meals means that food manufacturers and packagers are increasingly being targeted to improve their environmental performances.
As far as isosorbide is concerned, the next step, according to Williamson, is to sublicense the new technology.
The Iowa Corn Promotion Board, a 17-member board of farmer-elected corn growers, directs the investment of Iowa corn checkoff funds in market development, education and research projects. PNNL is a DOE Office of Science laboratory that aims to solve complex problems in energy, national security, the environment and life sciences by advancing the understanding of physics, chemistry, biology and computation. PNNL employs more than 4,000, has a $650 million annual budget, and has been managed by Ohio-based Battelle since the lab's inception in 1965.
