Sorona related
Thermoplastics based on petrochemical resources are widely used for production of films, coatings and food packaging. There are opportunities to replace these with biodegradable products based on starch. However, there is a need to match quality and performance of such novel products with those of the established plastics, at a competitive price. The objectives of this project are to obtain more background information concerning factors of relevance to production and use of thermoplastic starches. In particular, the project focuses on phase transitions and time-dependent changes in properties in relation to biodegradability, raw material composition and chemical structure, as well as mechanical and thermal history during manufacture. The participants are also making various products using starches and flours of varying origin and investigating novel applications.
OBJECTIVE
The objectives of the present project are to develop a scientific and technical expertise on thermoplastic starches (TS) and exploit this knowledge to create new market outlets for starches and starchy fractions. This is a low cost material suitable for production of biodegradable films, coatings and articles which could be used to replace petrochemical thermoplastics in short duration applications eg. coatings, packaging (food and non-food), materials for encapsulation and slow release of active agents such as agrochemicals. Development of applications for starch in non-food areas would considerably enlarge the quantitative demand for starch, and other feedstocks to be used as plasticizers or additives, and will greatly diversify the quantitative demand of these primary products. To achieve these purposes a collaborative research has been organized that integrates pre-industrial, industrial and scientific skills and expertise of the partners.
On a scientific point of view, this programme concerns phase transitions and the time-dependence of the properties of the processed materials, including biodegradability: relationships with raw material composition, structure and the mechanical and thermal history during manufacturing will be investigated. Production of TS from starches and flours from different origins will be scaled up to obtain appreciable amounts of TS. The processability and end-uses properties of such TS will be investigated up to the pilot plant scale, for industrial testing. The backbone of this proposal is to use modern concepts of polymer science in order to establish process-structure-property relationships and enable development of new processes for obtaining optimal material properties. Also the project aims at developing a number of new applications for a range of TS.
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