charge plate is a working , long - durable , adaptable , and various cloth , and so far , even cheap . In its petty more than a one C of history since it was first synthesized in 1907 by the Belgian chemist Leo Baekeland , it has spiel a role in the speedy societal , industrial , and technical development that has brought us to the present 24-hour interval . However , its meteoric expansion as a material in this period , which has come to be baptise as ' the years of plastic ' , has made it necessary to launch strategy for its management as dissipation , specially when it comes to exclusive - use of goods and services plastic objects or promotion .
The figures divvy up by the European Commission confirm this pauperization . Every year , Europeans generate 25 million tons of plastic waste , but less than 30 % is collected for recycling . 80 - 85 % of marine litter on European beaches is plastic and , of this , 50 % is individual - use plastic ( it is worth call back that there is a mass of 80,000 tons of plastic three times the size of France floating in the Pacific ) . This effect in massive collateral loss for European sectors as various as tourism and fishing .
For this ground , statute law is being adopt throughout Europe to face this majuscule challenge . In Spain , the regulations governing single - use credit card objects are already in position , and at the beginning of next yr the fresh Royal Decree on Packaging and Packaging Waste , which is presently being processed , will come into force-out , while research centre are working hard to acquire option to replace the stuff .
" In this gumption , legislation is moving quicker than the technical side , " says Luis Gil , packaging medical specialist at AINIA . " law set a pyramid of priorities for the management of packaging thriftlessness . The number one antecedency is to prevent the waste from being produced , but once we can not prevent it , we have to choose for reuse , recycling , and , eventually , recovery . The fruit and vegetable sphere has been working for a long time on sustainability in publicity and jumper lead by example when it make out to reuse , with the usance of wooden or mellow - density polyethylene crates for transport and even for the dispersion of fruit and vegetable . "
" Now other material , such as newspaper publisher and cardboard , will supersede plastic trays , and report base can be used again , although biopolymers ( compostable ) and bioplastics ( produced from renewable source ) will also issue forth into play . AINIA is also working on trying to make use of veg by - intersection to obtain or improve these Modern materials . "
Luis Gil
Why only from plant by - products?“The biorefinery construct aims to take advantage of these wastes in different ways , from the output of biogas through the anaerobiotic digestion of the material to the production of compound for the manufacture of publicity . Biodegradable biopolymers can be obtain by the action of bacteria through fermentation processes . Cellulose , which can be a textile in itself or be used as a filler for others , can also be obtained from the remains of rice straw , almond shells , fruit pit , or pruning waste , " says Luis . " At AINIA , we are working on several European projects to obtain biopolymers from succus and whey leftovers . "
" Although most biopolymers are obtained from vegetables , such as corn or cabbage cane , we must ensure that the biopolymers to be get do not come from free-enterprise source in the human food for thought sector that could cause provision issues . "
" For example , corn is used to produce PLA , the credit card used in 3D impression , and biodiesel . Mexico is a land that is highly drug-addicted on this cereal and the addition in the demand from the biorefinery industry register some clock time ago led to an increment in the cost of corn that was detrimental to the country ’s food supplying . "
Bioplastics , biodegradation , and compostability"Bioplastic can best be define by its electrical capacity to be biodegraded under sure conditions by the enzymatic natural action of microorganism over a specific period of time , " says Luis Gil . " Bioplastics are interchangeable in their properties to the plastic produced from oil , but they have a less jammed molecular bodily structure that allow 90 % of it to be degraded within 6 month , as establish by the UNE - EN-13432 standard . They are deal compostable by also meeting the conditions of biodisintegration , absence seizure of heavy metals , and compost quality . "
" For example , biodegradable promotion has a marketplace niche in the yield of compostable purse that can be disposed of together with organic waste in the brown garbage can , and whose implementation will be mandatory in Spain before 2023 . It can also be used for agricultural films or house mathematical product , for example . "
However , the advantage for the environment entailed in its quicker abasement is a barrier to its consumption as promotional material for certain food , " such as those that involve a very solid oxygen roadblock , or those that require pasteurisation or sterilisation treatments , " pronounce Luis , " because they do not have the property of the non - biodegradable material usable on the market . "
Up to 7 times more expensive than established plasticsBiopolymers have an interesting prospect forwards of them , although for now their consumption is recommend for specific applications , including the manufacturing of packaging , coating pic for newspaper and cardboard or agricultural films , as well as clips , rim , seedbeds or other element used in agriculture that are difficult to put away of once the harvest cycle is over .
" However , biopolymers have a major relative disadvantage . At the moment , their Mary Leontyne Price is up to 7 clip more expensive than that of conventional plastic . It should be noted that work on improving the performance of rock oil - based plastic has been on - going for 40 or 50 years , and great advance has been attain , while inquiry and development on biopolymers is very small in comparison , and for now the focussing is on very specific applications , with compatible solid food , and in state of affairs where it cause sense to utilize a fabric that is not intended to be recycled , but to be compostable , " says Luis Gil . " That is why the inquiry work of center like AINIA is so important . "
For more data : Luis GilDepartment of Packaging TechnologyAINIATel . : +34 610 791 217[email protected]www.ainia.es
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