2B-OLEFIN Film Development

As Pelsan Tekstil, in order to bring sustainable solutions to the use of polymers in the world, we have developed the world's first biodegradation technology that can provide full microbial conversion of polyolefins in open environment. This technology can provide full biodegradation on PP & PE materials. The advanced catalytic system converts PP and PE materials into wax. Unlike oxo-degradation, no microplastics or toxic substances are left behind in the post- degradation stage, thanks to a bio-available wax that naturally occurring microorganisms can easily assimilate.

According to research, polymer use in the world is over 311 million tons. While the demand for polymers is projected to increase by 5.1% between 2020 and 2030, the recycling rate is only 14%. The non-recyclable portion accumulates as waste in soil and oceans.

Biodegradable polymers are biodegraded by various microorganisms and enzymes in nature and broken down into their natural components. Thus, they can be recycled into the natural cycle without leaving microplastics. However, they are considerably more expensive than non- biodegradable polymers. In addition, biodegradable polymers are very vulnerable to heat and are damaged during extrusion.

Therefore, our project goal is to make our product biodegradable by using an optimum amount of additives with our standard polyethylene film production formulation without making any changes in the technologies we already use. The biodegradation process is dominated by different factors including polymer properties, the type of organism and the nature of the pretreatment. Polymer properties such as the mobility of the polymer chains, crystallinity, molecular weight, the type of functional groups and substituents present in the structure, the plasticizers or additives present, all play an important role during degradation.

 The additive has the ability to promote different chemical reactions upon the polymer structure simultaneously. Our individually formulated additive acts as an initial food-source for microbes to help boost the biodegradation in the early stages of decay. The technology is fully compatible with normal mechanical recycling processes. No adverse impact on the mechanical characteristics and optical aspect of recycled products when mixed into the standard recycled supply chain.