polymerguru

Discarded PET plastic bottles could become a source of high-quality graphite for lithium-ion batteries. A seemingly noteworthy advance in this direction has been announced by researchers at Penn State who have developed a process for converting the common waste plastic into highly ordered synthetic graphite suitable for battery anodes. The work, published in Diamond and Related Materials, addresses two growing challenges simultaneously: the accumulation of plastic waste and increasing demand for battery-grade graphite driven by electric vehicles, consumer electronics and grid-scale energy storage. Graphite is a critical component of lithium-ion batteries, where it serves as the anode material that stores and releases electrical charge. It is classified as a critical mineral by governments in the US, EU and elsewhere because of its importance to battery manufacturing and the energy transition. The Penn State team converted waste polyethylene terephthalate (PET) into synthetic graphite b...

BASF’s engineering plastics plant in Minhang, Shanghai, and at the Zhanjiang Verbund site in Guangdong Province have been certified under #ISCCPLUS (International Sustainability and Carbon Certification) . The certification covers renewable and recycled feedstocks and verifies their sustainable origin and allocation through a mass balance approach, offering independent traceability across the value chain. The certification expands the availability of BASF’s ISCC PLUS-certified #engineeringplastics in China, enabling customers to advance their sustainability targets with confidence. By using ISCC PLUS-certified materials, customers – particularly in the automotive and electrical & electronics (E&E) industries – can rely on credible and transparent sustainability claims without compromising product quality or performance. “The ISCC PLUS certification of our Shanghai and Zhanjiang operations reflects our commitment to delivering verified, low‑carbon material solutions at scale,”...

𝐓𝐨𝐝𝐚𝐲'𝐬 𝐊𝐍𝐎𝐖𝐋𝐄𝐃𝐆𝐄 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐀 𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐥𝐞 𝐏𝐕𝐂 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝟐𝟎 𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬. 𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐦. That is what makes PVC powerful. And difficult. The stabilizer wants thermal protection. The lubricant wants controlled flow. The processing aid wants faster fusion. The filler wants stiffness and cost control. The impact modifier wants toughness. The pigment wants color and opacity. The plasticizer wants flexibility. The UV package wants outdoor survival. But none of them works alone. Increase external lubricant too much, and fusion slows. Push filler too high, and impact strength can suffer. Change TiO₂ grade, and weathering or gloss may shift. Add more processing aid, and melt strength may improve, but plate-out risk can change. Switch stabilizer chemistry, and color hold, lubrication demand, and fusion behavior may move. PVC formulation is not ingredient selection. It is confl...

Every year, hundreds of millions of tonnes of petrochemical-based plastics are produced, much of which ends up in the environment or is incinerated. This exacerbates greenhouse gas emissions and the environmental crisis caused by plastic pollution. Now, a study led by the University of Barcelona has produced a biodegradable bioplastic of high industrial value — polyhydroxybutyrate or PHB — from unprocessed potato starch in a single 24-hour step, a strategic breakthrough that could help reduce dependence on oil and the volume of persistent plastic waste. The study thus establishes that the bacterium Bacillus subtilis is a robust platform of great industrial interest for producing PHB — a biodegradable biopolymer derived from renewable sources — from potato starch, an abundant and low-cost agricultural by-product. The paper, published in the journal Bioresource Technology, is led by Pere Picart, a professor at the UB’s Faculty of Pharmacy and Food Sciences, with significant contributions...

  𝐂𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐟𝐨𝐢𝐥® 𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐮𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐜 𝐟𝐢𝐥𝐦 𝐢𝐬 𝐚 𝐜𝐫𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫, 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐝𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐥𝐦 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐬𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐲 𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐩𝐮𝐥𝐩, 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐭 𝐚 𝐛𝐢𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐝𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐜𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐢𝐨-𝐛𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐢𝐥𝐦. It can be used in a variety of applications including: ✅ A clear window for products from baked goods to perfume and clothing to confectionary products ✅ A compostable liner for food trays ✅ A print-receptive layer for flexible food packaging ✅ A self-adhesive anti-fog film for supermarket freezers and deli windows With your choice of gloss or matte finishes, Clarifoil® is your sustainable film solution. Read more here about the sustainable applications 👉 https://lnkd.in/gFyk3hUs source : Celanese Engineered Materials