Spanish research institute Aimplas has developed a new method to produce polylactic acid (PLA), as part of the European project InnoREX.
The institute has used an extruder as a reactor to produce PLA from lactide without using metallic catalysts and alternative energies.
The new PLA, which will replace polypropylene, can be used in food packaging manufacturing by injection and thermoforming.
The new method enables the synthesis of a new organic catalyst to catalyse the polymerisation of lactide to produce high molecular weight PLA with enhanced polydispersity and optimal optical purity.
Aimplas has produced PLA by ring-opening polymerization (ROP) through a reactive extrusion process, which unifies chemical and pellet synthesis.
Aimplas’s new technology allows to improve the reaction’s kinetics and measure in line with material viscosity during the process.
The new material is said to reduce the consumption of conventional plastics and eliminate metallic particles in the process.
In addition, the institute is also planning for the application of new biopolymers in new sectors such as biomedicine.
According to the institute, the use of alternative energies such as microwaves or ultrasounds decreased energy consumption up to 20 % when obtaining the final material.
Aimplas is working with other 11 European companies and technology centres under the European Project InnoREX. It is coordinated by the German centre Fraunhofer Institute for Chemical Technology.
With a duration of 42 months, the project has been funded by the Seventh Framework Programme.
