Microsoft Word - Environmental benefits of recycling 2010 update.doc

3.4 Biopolymers

3.4.1 Presentation

Biopolymers are polymers produced from biomass and are therefore made of renewable resources. Biopolymers
can be:

 natural polymers directly formed from natural biomass, e.g. cellulose

 synthetic polymers made from biomass monomers, e.g. Polylactic Acid (PLA)

 synthetic polymers made from synthetic monomers derived from biomass, e.g. polythene derived

from bioethanol

In the end-of-life stage, the available options differ depending on the biopolymer properties. Some biopolymers
are biodegradable meaning that they can be broken down into CO 2 and water by microorganisms. However,
biopolymers such as polyethylene made from renewable resources will not biodegrade. Additionally, some
biopolymers are also compostable. In the EU, the criteria for compostability for packaging material are defined in
the standard EN 13432. The criteria used in the standard are linked to the performances of the material regarding
biodegradability and disintegration, the quality of the compost obtained and the absence of any negative effect
on the composting process.

Biopolymers should not be confused with degradable plastics such as UV or Oxo-degradable plastics that break
down when exposed to light or air respectively but that are still primarily oil-based.

Biopolymers can be divided into two main types:

 Pure biopolymers
Cellulose, the main component of plants, is the most common biopolymer. Polylactic acid (PLA) is also
commonly used. PLA is made from the polymerisation of lactic acid derived from starch.

 Biopolymer complexes

Biopolymers are often used as blends, either with other biopolymers or most commonly with fossil-based

polymers. It is for example the case of the biopolymer Biolice results from the association between

polyester and cereals. Biolice is produced by ULICE, a member of the Limagrain group. Another example

is Mater-Bi which is a blend between starch and polycaprolactone (based on crude oil) produced by

Novamont.

Figure 23 Overview of the different types of biopolymers (Source: European Bioplastics)

In order to compare the various end-of-life alternatives for biopolymers, a total of seven publications have been
selected and are presented in the Table 45. The biopolymers assessed are PLA [PLA], cellulose [CE], maize starch
[MAS], Mater-Bi [MB], Octopus [OCT] (blend between PLA and Ecofoil), Biolice [BIO] and Multi-bio [MUB] (blend
between starch with polycaprolactone (PCL) and PLA).