- Home
- Technology
- Ricoh's Technology
- PLAiR – A New Material Made from Plants and Air
PLAiR – A New Material Made from Plants and Air
Foamed PLA sheets of biomass plastic for a sustainable and circular economy
Background
The effects of global warming are visible as worldwide climate changes, and the industrial sector urgently needs to produce and spread alternatives to fossil-derived plastic. The Ricoh Group leads the industry with its commitment to corporate ecological management. To achieve a zero-carbon, recycling society, Ricoh has been designing its multi-function printers (MFPs) using biomass plastic components, primarily made of PLA (polylactic acid) produced from plant-derived starch and sugar. The plant-derived, compostable PLA is the foundation for developing a new material—the foamed PLA sheet.
Solution
PLA has excellent ecological benefits, including carbon neutrality and compostability. While it emits carbon dioxide when it is incinerated, its raw material, plant absorbs part of it during its growth process, which helps us to suppress the increase of carbon dioxide on the earth. PLA also degrades into water and CO2 in a particular environments, such as soil or compost. Despite these advantages, PLA has not gained market popularity because it is generally hard to shape and is more costly than fossil-derived plastics.
Ricoh's has developed a foamed PLA sheet that is flexible and strong using its proprietary technologies. The sheet has a wide range of applications, including cushioning and packing material or various container types.
*CO2 emitted by the factory is collected and used so there is no increase in atmospheric emissions.
The foamed PLA sheets will benefit branded product owners by freely using biomass plastic in various scenarios. Through environment business, brand owners will garner trust for ESG investments and contribute to society.
Ricoh's foamed PLA sheets are much more lightweight and stronger than conventional PLA and will give material processor owners a greater security sense as they expand their businesses.
PLA foam sheet, flexible and strong
Technical Highlight
The innovative material is flexible and strong. The PLA, a nearly 100% plant-derived, undergoes a foaming process utilizing Ricoh's “CO2 fine foam technology” to produce foam sheets.
Conventional foam methods cannot be used for manufacturing genuine PLA. Making PLA foam requires that it be blended with other materials, such as fossil-derived resins. The blending process is not the only challenge—bubble sizes are difficult to control and the results often are uneven. Conventional methods can only produce bubbles of large diameter on the order of hundreds of microns; the resulting sheets tend to break easily. Beyond that is an inevitable tradeoff, adding fossil-derived resins compromises the carbon-neutrality and biodegradability of PLA.
Ricoh's supercritical CO2 technology produces uniform bubbles only tens of microns in diameter. Through the kneading process, fillers (foam nucleating agents) are evenly distributed in PLA, and the foaming takes place with the fillers as nuclei. PLA can be made into very thin sheets while its lightweight and strength are maintained because of the bubble uniformity.
Supercriticality is attained when CO2 is pressurized at a high temperature. Gas as dense as liquid, the CO2 particles violently collide with each other and produce natural convection. As PLA and fillers are added, they are evenly kneaded using convection. The evenly distributed fillers work as foaming nuclei , resulting in even, minute bubbles.
Ricoh is producing PLA foam sheets on prototype machines to promote technological development and verify performance, including lightweight, strength, and compostablility, and demonstrate costs. Ricoh intends to deliver the PLA foam sheets in the near future.
| Intended purpose | Cushioning and packaging materials | Food containers | Various trays and containers | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Foam expansion rate | 15X | 5-15X | 2-5X | |
| Thickness | 2mm | 1-3mm | 0.5-1.5mm | |
| Piercing strength (N) JIS Z 1707* |
4.8 | 2.8 | — | |
| Tensile strength (MPa) JIS K 6767* |
MD | 0.5 | 1.4 | 35 |
| TD | 0.2 | 1.1 | — | |
| Compression set (％) JIS K 6767* |
56 | 10 | — | |
| Flexural strength (Mpa) JIS K 7171* |
— | — | 56 | |
| Biodegradation (Number of days reached） ISO 14855-2(JIS K 6953-2)* |
Degree of resolution 60%(JPN&USA） | 37 | 73 | — |
| Degree of resolution 90%(Europe) | 60 | 102 | — | |
- ※Heat resistance varies depending on molding method.(EX：Durability at 120℃ oven More than 10 minutes possible）
- *
- JIS: Japanese Industrial Standards
JIS Z 1707: General rules of plastic films for food pack
JIS K 6767: Cellular plastics−Polyethylene−Methods of test
- JIS K 7171:Plastics-Determination of flexural properties
- ISO 14855-2(JIS K6953-2):Determination of the ultimate aerobic biodegradability of plastic materials under controlled composting conditions
— Method by analysis of evolved carbon dioxide — Part 2: Gravimetric measurement of carbon dioxide evolved in a laboratory-scale test
Ricoh's Vision
A new material, made from plants and air, we call it “PLAiR.” In Ricoh's vision, tenderness is the bridge to the future. We are committed to making a zero-carbon, circular economy becomes a reality, where everyone feels secure in using any material around them. We will continue to deliver new environment-conscious materials.
Sorted by : field “Resource Conservation” “Pollution Prevention” “Materials”
Related Information
Information