Bioplastics

Due to their malleability or “plasticity”, plastics are currently one of the most produced chemical products in the world in terms of volume. Some 367 million tonnes of new plastic were produced annually in 2020, a figure that is set to increase to 515 million tonnes by 2030¹. This amount can be reduced through effective sorting and recycling, but there is no getting around the need to produce large quantities in an environmentally friendly and CO₂-neutral way.

Society will continue to demand convenient material properties. Non-biodegradable plastics previously produced from fossil raw materials (petroleum, gas), especially in those applications where recycling is difficult, must be replaced by bio-based and biodegradable plastics. New, inexpensive processes are therefore needed to produce plastics from bio-based raw materials. These could develop into a real competitor to mass-produced plastics made from petroleum, such as polyethylene, polypropylene or polyvinyl chloride. The consumer-oriented market for bioplastics made from starch, cellulose or lactic acid is already growing steadily, and new sources of bio-based raw materials are constantly being tapped. Here, a special focus is put on the use of raw materials that do not compete with food production, such as waste streams from agriculture. However, these bio-based plastics are currently still too expensive and more cost-effective processes need to be developed in order to compete with fossil-based plastics. The main advantage of bio-based plastics lies in avoiding fossil raw materials, such as petroleum and natural gas, as well as in minimising CO₂ emissions during the production process.

Particularly worthy of note is the recyclability (material recycling) of bio-based plastics, which differ from fossil-based plastics in terms of their composition but still meet or even exceed their performance requirements. As bioplastics are mostly based on polyesters and polyamides, they have considerable advantages when it comes to chemical/biotechnological recycling technologies.

Bio-based plastics can play a key role in moving away from conventional plastics, while complementing the range of specialty plastics products that offer new properties and application possibilities. For example, they are the optimal solution for organic waste bags, compostable fruit and vegetable bags, or agricultural films that can be ploughed under after the harvest. Used correctly, bioplastics can help to reduce food waste, return nutrients to the soil through increased compost volumes, and prevent the accumulation of plastic in the soil. Micro- and nanoparticles, such as those released by abrasion when washing polyester clothing or using plastic brushes in car washes, are currently not biodegradable and can be found in almost all living organisms, including the human body. Abrasion of biodegradable bioplastics, on the other hand, is degradable and therefore less harmful.

The use of bioplastics can contribute to achieving the following SDGs: