SBIR Phase II: BP 1 - Microwaveable Bioplastic Packaging

SBIR 第二阶段：BP 1 - 可微波生物塑料包装

• 批准号: 0822999
• 负责人: Laura Hollingsworth
• 金额: $ 50万
• 依托单位: PolyNew Incorporated
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2008
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2008-08-01 至 2012-01-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0822999&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: SBIR; Phase; II; BP; Microwaveable

This Phase II SBIR research develops innovative nanotechnology to allow the use of bioplastics for food packaging. Polylactic acid (PLA) is an environmentally beneficial bioplastic made from renewable resources; however, the properties of PLA are limited. This makes it unsuited for use in microwaveable food packaging. In Phase I, university expertise resulting from earlier NSF funding was used to formulate a bioplastic with suitable properties, including cost. In Phase II, a viable manufacturing route towards food packing trays will be demonstrated at the pilot plant level working in close collaboration with a large industrial manufacturing partner. The broader impacts of this Phase II SBIR research will be manifold. The new bioplastics are quantitatively more environmentally benign that petroplastics. Bioplastics are made form renewable resources and therefore simultaneously help decrease dependence on foreign oil while providing environmental benefits. Using a domestic biomass resource provides a competitive advantage against low labor cost manufacturers like China helping to stem job losses in the plastics industries. Presently, polystyrene is largely used for tray applications and foamed with 3-5 weight percent hydrocarbons. PLA can be foamed with carbon dioxide so the new technology has the additional benefit of displacing at least 1 million pounds per year of the pollutant volatile organic carbons (VOCs).

第二阶段SBIR研究开发了创新的纳米技术，允许将生物塑料用于食品包装。聚乳酸（PLA）是一种利用可再生资源制成的环保型生物塑料；然而，PLA的性能是有限的。这使得它不适合用于微波食品包装。在第一阶段，由美国国家科学基金会早期资助的大学专业知识被用于制定具有适当性能的生物塑料，包括成本。在第二阶段，将与大型工业制造伙伴密切合作，在试点工厂层面展示可行的食品包装托盘制造路线。第二阶段SBIR研究的广泛影响将是多方面的。新型生物塑料在数量上比石油塑料更环保。生物塑料是由可再生资源制成的，因此在提供环境效益的同时，有助于减少对外国石油的依赖。使用国内生物质资源提供了与中国等低劳动力成本制造商的竞争优势，有助于遏制塑料行业的失业。目前，聚苯乙烯主要用于托盘应用和泡沫与3-5重量百分比的碳氢化合物。聚乳酸可以用二氧化碳发泡，所以这项新技术还有额外的好处，每年至少可以取代100万磅的污染物挥发性有机碳（VOCs）。