BIODEGRADABLE PACKAGING MATERIALS ADVANCING CIRCULARITY, SUSTAINABILITY & ECO-INNOVATION

ongoing

The design of biodegradable polymer materials (BDPM) is at the core of BioPackMan, aiming to explore an extended material design space of Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs), Poly(butylensuccinate) and its copolymers (PBS, PBSA) and Polylactic Acid (PLA) to develop tailored compounds that harness synergistic effects, leading to biodegradable, recyclable packaging with application-specific mechanical strength, thermal stability, chemical resistance and gas permeability. Biodegradable compounds will be developed with tailored morphology, to meet diverse flexible & rigid packaging requirements and also embrace a ‘biodegradation as a system property’ approach from initial material and packaging design, considering specific environmental conditions for intended and unintended disposal pathways. By establishing a complete value chain (material producers, compounders, packaging converters and end users), BioPackMan aims to provide a complete set of compounds, sustainable additives and innovative processing technologies for the production of sustainable packaging demonstrators for food, home care and personal care sectors. The target is to obtain benchmark fossil-based products quality, ensuring compliance and safe use in packaging, showcasing that BDPMs can be recycled. Circularity, safety, and sustainability are considered at all stages of development through SSbD framework, and liaise with society & industry, to assure interaction, knowledge exchange and adaptation of circular business models. To secure societal impact, stakeholders will be involved early in the project to identify barriers and facilitate the adoption of sustainable practices.