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Teijin LTD has announced the world's first completely bioplastic eyeglasses frames.
Why is this cool?
"Although acetate is commonly used for the plastic parts of eyeglasses, contact with cosmetics or hair-styling products can result in bleaching. Acetate also tends to warp under high heat and can cause skin rashes. The bioplastic polylactide has been used for eyeglass nose pads because its antibacterial properties help to avoid rashes, but conventional polylactide has not been used for other parts such as frames and temples because of insufficient heat resistance."
The material produced by Teijin LTD, Biofront , isn't just any PLA. It is a stereocomplex PLA, meaning that it mixes the standard Poly-L-lacticacid polymer with their enantiomer poly-D-lacticacid polymer. This combination gives the resulting "stereocomplex" material different properties; specifically, and importantly, it has a melting point of 210 degrees, some 40 degrees higher than that of conventional PLA and putting it on par with PBT, a leading engineering plastic. BIOFRONT also is highly resistant to bleaching and bacteria, making it ideal for the plastic parts of eyeglasses.
Sprint's new Reclaim Phone (made by Samsung) is 80% recyclable! Made from 40% PLA bioplastic! Sent to you in packaging made from 70% recycled materials! And the manual is even online, so you don't have to waste paper!
Of course, this is hardly a first. One year ago, Samsung released it's first biophone, the Samsung E200 Eco Phone, which also tauted bioplastic materials. And years before that, Unitika announced its bioplastic phone (made by NEC) in Japan, which was made from 90% PLA.
But ever since then, the trend toward "greening cell phones" has taken off. earth2tech.com has a just hype and gimicks, but it seems to me that there might be a reason that the cell phone market is such a target. So, I did some research, and this is what I found out:
So it's actually a fairly large problem. Since re-training people to not throw things out when they are finished with them (i.e. to not be lazy) is much harder than changing the manufacturing habits of a few large companies, I welcome the "trend" toward making phones more green.
Toyota has been plugging its Ecological Plastic for a long time, for its use on the interior plastic molding and interior fabrics of cars.
Now, Ecological Plastic makes up 30% of the interior and upholstery of the new 2010 Lexus HS 250h hybrid. The articles says that they will use "Ecological Plastic for 30% of the interior upholstery and trunk compartment, resulting in a 20% decrease in carbon emissions over the life of the vehicle."
What exactly is Ecological Plastics? According to Plastics Today:
"Toyota originally applied Ecological Plastic in 2003 for the Raum vehicle marketed in Japan, which used polylactic acid (PLA) and other all-plant-based materials. Over a product’s entire cradle-to-grave lifecycle, Toyota says the materials are a net zero emitter of carbon dioxide." "Specifically, for the cuff plates, cowl side trim, floor finish plate, and toolbox, Toyota says it will use a compound of PLA and polyproplyene (PP). In the headliner, sun visors, and pillar covers, plant-derived polyester and petroleum-based polyethylene terephthalate (PET) will be used. In the trunk liner, PLA and PET will be applied, while door trim will be 100% plant-derived, using kenaf fiber and PLA."
"Toyota originally applied Ecological Plastic in 2003 for the Raum vehicle marketed in Japan, which used polylactic acid (PLA) and other all-plant-based materials. Over a product’s entire cradle-to-grave lifecycle, Toyota says the materials are a net zero emitter of carbon dioxide."
"Specifically, for the cuff plates, cowl side trim, floor finish plate, and toolbox, Toyota says it will use a compound of PLA and polyproplyene (PP). In the headliner, sun visors, and pillar covers, plant-derived polyester and petroleum-based polyethylene terephthalate (PET) will be used. In the trunk liner, PLA and PET will be applied, while door trim will be 100% plant-derived, using kenaf fiber and PLA."
Performance Materials (PDF) also has a blurb about Ecological Plastic:
"There are basically two types of Ecological Plastic: that produced completely from plantderived materials and that produced from a combination of plant- and petroleum-derived materials. Because plants play a role in both types, Ecological Plastic emits less carbon dioxide (CO2) during a product’s lifecycle (from manufacture to disposal) than plastic made solely from petroleum; it also helps reduce petroleum use."
"Ecological Plastic adequately meets the heat-resistance and shock-resistance demands of vehicle interiors through the use of various compounding technologies, such as those allowing molecular- level bonding and homogeneous mixing of plant-derived and petroleum- derived raw materials. And being equal to conventional plastics in terms of quality and productivity means that it can be used in production vehicles."
Meet www.dandelionforbaby.com.
This company is dedicated to creating toys, bags and feeding items, made of organic, natural and recycled materials... including PLA toddler tableware and toys.
You can also see a consumer review of this product here.
Biofront bioplastic is made by Teijin Limited, the Japanese textile company that recently split from NatureWorks, a bioplastic manufacturer, to set out on its own.
And recently they have announced that BioFront is new and improved. "Substantially improved resistance to hydrolytic degradation in hot and humid conditions." "Now offers virtually the same level of durability as polyethylene terephthalate (PET)."
What does that mean? It means it's hearty enough to be used in air conditioners. And in the internal working parts of cars. It means it can go where no PLA has gone before.
Details for the chem nerds:
Biofront, which was first developed in 2006 and launched in the following year, is the world's first mass-produced stereocomplex PLA, made with plant-based Poly-L-lacticacid polymer (conventional polylacticacid polymer) and their enantiomer poly-D-lacticacid polymer. This highly stable stereocomplex structure, based on Teijin's polymer technology, has made possible the melting point that is over 40 degrees C higher than that of poly-L-lacticacid polymer, putting Biofront's heat resistance on a par with oil-based polybutylene terephthalate (PBT). As with other bioplastics, however, its polymers were susceptible to hydrolytic degradation in hot or humid conditions, meaning that Biofront had limited applications in certain conditions compared to regular PET.
In response, Teijin developed new technology to control reactions against high heat and humidity. The result is the nearly complete elimination of such reactions without any impact on Biofront's intrinsic heat-resistance properties.
Bioplastic manufacturer Metabolix got proof that their plastic is compostable in Europe. The company's Mirel bioplastic resins received the Vincotte certification of "OK Compost" for compostability in an industrial composting unit and "OK Compost HOME" for compostability in home composting systems.
Coca-Cola announced its new plant-based plastic bottle, 30% of which is made from sugar cane and molasses. The rest of the plastic is petroleum-based polyethylene (PET).
The company said the 100% recyclable plastic bottle can be processed through existing manufacturing and recycling facilities without contaminating traditional PET. Coca-Cola North America will pilot the "PlantBottle" with Dasani and sparkling brands in select markets later this year and with VitaminWater in 2010.
I know some people on this site have asked about bioplastic made from non-food sources, and I even posted a question a while back asking about the rumor that bioplastics might make food more expensive.
So, I was happy to see some progress in making bioplastic from non-food sources: specifically, the Toyota 1/X plug-in hybrid concept car has body parts made from seaweed!
The U.K. based Ethical Superstore lets you have a party and still remain true to your ethical principles.
The pack contains: 20 x Bagasse compostable large plate, medium plates and bowls, 30 x mixed biodegradable cutlery, 20 x bioplastic compostable cups, 100 x bioplastic straws, 100 x recycled fibre napkins and 25 x fairtrade biodegradable balloons. All this for a very reasonable £19.95.
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