Ocalio cellulose acetate bioplastic has a plasticizer level of 30% and can be used in food packaging with properties such as hardness, heat resistance, surface glass and strength.
Solvay said it can be sealed with either film or card, so that the containers are rigid and tough, for transport and quality of appearance and feel.
With a bioplasticizer the biobased content of Ocalio compounds is 50% based on ASTM D6866 and the aim is to increase the content to 70%.
Replacement aims
It can replace applications made with engineering plastics such as polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) and polycarbonates (PC).
The material comes in 25kg bags and the firm recommends it is dried to a final moisture content of 0.05% with dehumidified air drying equipment at a maximum of 70 degrees Celsius.
Solvay said recommended moulding conditions are typical barrel temperatures of 180 for feed zone and compression zone, front zone from 160-180 and mould temperatures from 20-30 degrees.
Bioplastic benefits
“When compared with other bioplastics, Ocalio plasticized cellulose acetate displays an exceptional balance of properties providing better mechanical and heat resistance, enhanced transparency and outstanding processability,” said Louis Cozzari, business development manager Solvay Acetow.
“It can be easily moulded and is designed for a wide range of consumer goods end-use such as containers for cosmetics and personal care, food packaging, electronic devices, toys and mobile phones.”
Manufactured in Europe, Ocalio cellulose acetate compounds will be commercially available in Q1 2014.
The firm said it produces much less CO2 during production than fossil based plastics and does not compete with food resources such as other bioplastics made from sugar cane, wheat or maize.
Marc Michels, marketing director Solvay Acetow, said: “Our company’s renewable chemistry platform studies the potential of bio-based chemistry with the objective of identifying opportunities for improving, advancing, and expanding Solvay’s existing product offering to meet consumer’s demanding expectations in an evolving society.”
Solvay also announced an investment in Aonix Advanced Materials, based in Canada, to accelerate commercialization of mass-produced thermoplastic composites.