Project
Plastic waste is a major environmental problem in Europe and worldwide, particularly due to its leakage into natural habitats. Of the more than 29 Mt of post-consumer plastic waste collected in the EU in 2020, the average recycling rate for packaging waste was less than 40%. Packaging is the largest end-user market for plastic demand (40.5%). In multilayer packaging (e.g., composite materials made of paper and plastic), which is widely used in the food and beverage industry, polyethylene (PE) film is typically used as the plastic coating.
In the agricultural sector, plastic is used to increase crop yields and conserve water and agricultural chemicals, but there is a risk that it will be lost during use. The market for agricultural plastic accounts for 3.2% of plastic demand, and the expected 50% increase in global food supply by 2050 will lead to significantly higher demand for plastic used in mulch films (which are currently made primarily of PE).
REBIOLUTION aims to design and synthesize new, fully biobased and biodegradable polyester blends based on 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA) and other biobased monomers, suitable for specific product and market applications selected in this project due to their widespread use and negative environmental impact: (1) plastic coatings for food packaging (e.g., for frozen/refrigerated foods or trays for ready-to-eat meals) and (2) mulch films for agricultural applications.
By carefully tailoring the polymer blends to each application, well-defined properties will be established to improve sustainability performance (use of non-toxic substances, reduced consumption of non-renewable energy, recyclable and, at the same time, home-compostable and biodegradable in soil and aquatic environments) and to optimize functionality, while ensuring the safety of products and processes. REBIOLUTION is committed to removing barriers to market penetration by offering a ready-to-use, bio-based polymer blend substitute that facilitates a seamless transition for the downstream value chain, thereby avoiding additional investments in industrial processing lines and extra costs for consumers
Coordinator
BASF SE (Germany)
Partners
BASF SE (Germany), NORMEC OWS (Belgium), HYDRA MARINE SCIENCES GMBH (Germany), CONTACTICA SL (Spain), AVANTIUM RENEWABLE POLYMERS BV (Netherlands), TAMPERE UNIVERSITY OF APPLIED SCIENCES SR (Finland), STORA ENSO OYJ (Finland), CENTRE TECHNIQUE DE L’INDUSTRIE
DESPAPIERS CARTONS ET CELLULOSES (France), EIDGENOESSISCHE TECHNISCHE
HOCHSCHULE ZÜRICH (Switzerland)
Responsibilities of Normec OWS
- Work Package 4 Leader: PERFORMANCE EVALUATION OF POLYMER BLENDS AND PLASTIC-BASED END PRODUCTS IN VARIOUS END-OF-LIFE SCENARIOS (BIODEGRADABILITY, RECYCLABILITY)
- Research into the biodegradability of the developed FDCA-containing polyesters under controlled composting conditions
- Evaluate the developed blends and plastic-coated paper for organic recycling via industrial composting and anaerobic digestion
- Conduct ecotoxicity tests (plants, worms, daphnia, radiaria, artemia, bacteria, algae) on degradation residues