K 2019: NPD rife with circular economy inspiration

22 Oct 2019 --- Awareness of the circular economy is out in full force at K 2019, which is seeing 3,300 members of the plastics and rubber world come together in Dusseldorf, Germany, October 16 to 23. The notion of a “circular economy” has been a buzzword in recent years, with agile companies responding to the growing movement toward a model in which resources are kept in use for as long as possible, extracting the maximum value from them, and recovering and regenerating products and materials at the end of each service life. This is the opposite to the traditional linear economy that centers on making, using and disposing. PackagingInsights takes a look at some of the circular solutions on display at K 2019.

Sabic
Chemical industry player Sabic is launching a range of circular solutions to help manufacturers address one of the planet’s most urgent sustainability challenges – the reduction of mixed plastic waste. The TruCircle initiative encompasses circular materials and technologies to enable consumer product manufacturers to deliver greater sustainability. The company is highlighting its product made from chemical recycling of mixed plastic waste, its certified renewable polymers, its new polycarbonate (PC) based on certified renewable feedstock and its mechanical recycled polymers.

Sabic is launching a range of circular solutions.Additionally, Sabic will be showcasing its Design for Recyclability for the creation of packaging products at the event, which from their inception, aim to minimize waste and help to enable 100 percent recyclability. In particular, the company is introducing its new LLDPE polymer, designed for creating biaxially oriented polyethylene (BOPE) films.

Zotefoams
UK-based chemical manufacturer Zotefoams is launching ReZorce, a range of HDPE mono-materials with barrier properties that meet or exceed food industry standards. The products deliver good functional capability to replace current versions of potato chip packets, laminated paper, pouches and cartons, all of which face significant challenges in recycling. Touted as an alternative to composite packaging, ReZorce is compatible with float-sink sorting and HDPE post-consumer recycling stream Number Two. The company says the line’s multi-layer structure allows the incorporation of recycled material to provide further sustainability benefits.

The company will also continue to display its cross-linked polyolefin block foam Azote Adapt. The range of foams have a fine cell structure, excellent consistency and low odor. They are manufactured via an autoclave process. The product has been developed in response to growing concern around VOCs from the chemical blowing process and stricter emissions standards to limit workforce exposure levels. 

Clariant
A “symphony of collaboration” takes center stage for specialty chemical company Clariant, which is showcasing its concrete action for a circular plastics economy, dubbed EcoCircle. The initiative brings together Clariant’s business-wide competencies and technologies of relevance to mechanical and chemical recycling to screen and develop products with outstanding circular advantages. Importantly, in parallel, it provides a platform to facilitate knowledge exchange, customer collaboration and value chain co-creation of ideas on specific circular topics with external partners, from consumers to brand owners, recyclers, resin producers and academics. 

Neste’s renewable hydrocarbons are based on sustainably produced bio-based raw materials, such as waste and residue oils and are part of the Clariant collaboration.The company is also promoting 11 new additives based on renewable feedstock under the Exolit OP Terra and Licocene Terra brands, following its partnership with Neste. Additionally, it is introducing two natural-based waxes and dispersing agents for engineering plastics and biopolymers: Licocare RBW 360 TP Vita and Ceridust 1060 Vita. Meanwhile, black colorants that allow Near Infrared (NIR) sorting of black plastics are also on display. 

Kraiburg TPE
FC/CM1 and FC/CM2, Kraiburg TPE’s new compound series, could be used to meet consumers’ growing demand for reusable products, which is driven by their increasing awareness of environmental protection and sustainability. They are seeking food containers such as lunch boxes, shakers and bowls with lids, of which the seals are often made of thermoplastic elastomers. The use of these end products, however, requires reliable materials to ensure that they are physiologically harmless for a long-term period.

Kraiburg TPE’s products meet an important set of rules on applications with food contact: Commission Regulation (EU) No 10/2011 and Code of Federal Regulations Title 21 (21CFR) of the US Food and Drug Administration. These series have been specially developed for applications with food contact and additionally provide pleasant touch characteristics and enhanced organoleptic properties, the thermoplastic elastomers manufacturer says. The target applications include reusable packaging, dosing valves and food dispensers.

Milliken & Company
The DeltaMax Performance Modifiers line is gaining a new product, dubbed DeltaMax 5000a. It is designed to expand the use of the additive into all market segments, including food packaging. The technology allows injection molders to make stronger parts using more efficient manufacturing parameters and source a broader range of raw materials. 

DeltaMax 5000a is expected to drive polypropylene (PP) innovation at the resin producer level, according to Emily Blair, Milliken’s global product line manager. “DeltaMax 5000a will allow resin producers to expand the performances of their resin portfolios and to boost their productivity by increasing the throughput of their reactors,” she says.Milliken's DeltaMax 5000a is touted as having potential to drive polypropylene (PP) innovation at the resin producer level.

The technology is effective in modifying post-consumer and post-industrial recycled resins. It elevates the impact and melt flow to levels associated with virgin resins. This capability allows compounders and converters to incorporate up to 100 percent recycled PP without sacrificing performance or processing.

The company is also launching Millad NX 8000 ECO, a clarifying additive that produces the fully transparent material known as NX UltraClear PP, which yields durable end products with glass-like clarity. The release addresses the growing trend for greater sustainability among brand owners, converters and consumers.

Braskem
Thermoplastic resin producer Braksen is launching a new stretch film solution, which is aligned with the company’s commitment to promoting the circular economy. The launches of Braskem Flexus 3600 and PP RF70 are the result of the company’s efforts to develop new solutions in multi-layer stretch films. With good processability and high yields during application, the company says that the solutions have a major advantage in terms of sustainability. This is because they reduce the amount of raw material needed for their production. In addition to productivity gains, the stretch film also reduces waste during transport, offering benefits in all links of the company’s value chain.

“The combination of different products distributed in layers results in higher puncture strength, lower propagation of tear and increased capacity to compact unitized cargo,” says Américo Bartilotti, Head of Braskem’s Packaging & Consumer Goods Business. “We are improving safety during the transport, storage and distribution of cargo while reducing product waste due to faults in the palletization process and using less stretch film. This results in an excellent cost-benefit tradeoff.”

Edited by Katherine Durrell