Sustainable Thermoplastics and Foamed Articles with Low GWP by Inclusion of Renewable Contents
Project Start Date: 09/12/2022
Project End Date: 28/02/2025
CRIBE Funding: $300,000
Project Total Value: $630,000
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Project Lead: Woodbridge Foam Corporation
Project Goal
This project intends to reduce the CO2 footprint in the production of automotive and packaging parts by sustainably commercializing the inclusion of forest-based feedstock in thermoplastics and foamed plastics. One of the targeted products is foamed articles at various densities that are molded into specific parts for cars. The inclusion of renewable content (e.g., biocarbon, etc.) will reduce the usage of petroleum-based material including carbon black in these products, which results in a significant reduction of the CO2 footprint.
This project is an eligible recipient of the 2022 Next Generation Forest-Based Biomaterials Funding Challenge.
Milestone 2 Update
In alignment with its sustainability roadmap strategy, Woodbridge Foam assessed the technical feasibility of incorporating biocarbon as a renewable biomass into their Expanded Polypropylene (EPP) products. This evaluation was conducted through close collaboration across the supply chain, including both biocarbon producers and foam suppliers. The integration of biocarbon into EPP products, although posed initial challenges, has demonstrated considerable success, as the addition of this additive did not adversely affect the foaming behavior of polypropylene in bead foam technology. Expanded Polypropylene (EPP) has been successfully developed at various densities, and small-scale molding trials have shown promising results. Precommercialization trials indicate that it is technically feasible to utilize EPP with biocarbon in certain products by optimizing processing conditions.
More investigation is likely needed to determine the most cost-effective methods of incorporating biocarbon in EPP foams along with understanding the demand of such products in an environment where products have significant price sensitivity.