Biomass Plastic Materials Technology
Ricoh was quick to focus attention on a materials technology that is carbon-neutral, eco-friendly, and can also reduce the consumption of oil, an exhaustible resource. We aim to accumulate such technologies and practically apply them to product materials.
Ricoh takes on the biomass plastic challenge
Plant-based plastics are well known manifestation of biomass(*1) material technology. They are high-polymer materials whose raw materials are the starch, sugar, or cellulose contained in plants. An example is polylactic acid, chemically synthesized lactic acid fermented from starch. Advantageous characteristics of polylactic acid are reduced use of fossil resources and low CO2 emissions and low overall environmental impact in comparison with petroleum-based plastics. This material also has rigidity and strength equivalent to polystyrene. However, for use as a material for durable goods, polylactic acid entails issues with respect to heat resistance and impact resistance as well as assurance of flame retardancy, a measure of nonflammability of parts for electric and electronic devices. Furthermore, low injection molding processability is another issue. At Ricoh, with the aim of resolving these issues and paving the way for future full-scale adoption of polylactic acid, we are developing a materials technology for applying polylactic acid fermented from waste wood and other inedible materials for use in durable parts and a molding technique suitable for mass production that also achieves economic efficiency.
(*1)Biomass resources are organic resources that are biologically reproducible, excluding fossil resources.
Figure 1: Cycle of biomass plastics
Figure 2: Comparison of petroleum plastics and biomass plastics
Outstanding Aspects of the Technology
The heat resistance, impact resistance, flame retardancy, and injection molding processability issues associated with polylactic acid originate from the fact that polylactic acid is a crystalline polymer. Accordingly, these issues have been overcome by blending polylactic acid with petroleum plastics in a polymer alloy. However, this method makes it difficult to increase biomass content(*2), which is about 50% at most. Accordingly, Ricoh and a materials manufacturer jointly realized previously unattainable biomass content of about 70% by using polylactic acid modified with a new additive to control crystallinity instead of blending with petroleum plastics. Also, with regard to productivity, we have achieved molding process time equivalent to that for conventional petroleum plastics. We will continue to undertake environmental load reduction by engaging in technical development to further increase biomass content.
(*2) Biomass content: The percentage of biomass raw material in the raw material of plastic parts
(a) Conventional polylactic acid composite material(b) New modified polylactic acid material
Figure 3: Comparison of plant-based content of the new material and conventional material
Applications for the Technology
This material is used in parts for the imagio MP C1600, a current Ricoh model (also mounted on the imagio MP C1500) in Japan.
Figure 5: A part mounted on the imagio MP C2200
Figure 4: A part mounted on the imagio MP C1600
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| (a) The imagio MP C2200 manual pocket | (b) The manual pocket installation position |
