Biodegradable plastics (be they made from renewable resources such as PLA, PHA, TPS or others, or be they made from petroleum such as PBAT, PBS etc) can offer benefits for certain applications. Such applications can be in agriculture (mulch film etc), household (bio waste collection bags) and more. Whether such biodegradable plastics are a solution against littering is a different discussion.
However, there’s a big discussion going on worldwide about so-called oxo-degradable plastics. These products are traditional (non-degradable) plastics such as PE, PP, PET etc, mixed with a small percentage of an additive.
Companies bringing such products to market claim biodegradability, but some experts complain about missing scientifically based evidence from neutral, independent laboratories or certification bodies. As long as such evidence is missing, critics doubt the complete biodegradation and call these products oxo-fragmentable.
Now Belgium-based OWS (Organic Waste Systems) and German-based IKT (Institute of Polymer Technology, University Stuttgart) are planning a multi-client study on these so-called oxo-degradable plastics.
Building on a desk research by OWS for Plastics Europe (2013), a comprehensive laboratory testing programme is planned. The laboratory tests shall ultimately prove or disprove if such products are biodegradable or not.
In a first phase, a number of oxo-degradable plastic products available in the market will be abiotically treated. In a second phase, the fragmented parts will be used for further biodegradation testing according to internationally accepted ISO and ASTM standards.
It’s still possible to participate in this multi-client study. The contribution for this study is estimated at €10,000 to €20,000 per partner, depending on the number of interested companies.
Source: OWS/IKT
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