ADDITIVES | FLEXIBLE FILMS
says. “We saw an opportunity to leverage our global and integrated production to be the first antioxidant supplier to offer these solutions to our customers. These new Irganox BMBcert offerings have a significantly lower product carbon footprint (PCF) than their conventional fossil-based grades. For brands with defined CO2
emission targets,
using lower PCF raw materials, even at low load- ings, will make a significant contribution to reduc- ing their overall Scope 3 emissions.” Taxes on carbon within the EU market are
Above: Growing use of recycled
content calls for improved additive packs to minimise polymer degradation
Right: Milliken’s Ultraguard additives can help improve barrier
performance
feedstock with renewable feedstock. Irganox 1010 BMBcert and Irganox 1076 BMBcert have been mass balance certified by TÜV Nord according to the International Sustainability and Carbon Certifi- cation (ISCC PLUS). In this approach, ISCC-certified bio-based feedstock is used at the beginning of the value chain and “a corresponding amount” is attributed to the product, BASF explains. The company says that the use of renewable feedstocks reduces the product’s cradle-to-gate carbon footprint by up to 60%, compared to the global average product carbon footprint of conventional grades. BMB products are identical to conventional grades in all other aspects. Initially, the two antioxidants will be produced at BASF’s Kaisten site in Switzerland. They are expected to also be available from the company’s McIntosh site in the US from early in 2024. “These two additives are
key antioxidants for the plastics industry. As we all move towards new innovations and more sustainable applications, particularly in the automotive and packaging sectors, we must also rethink the established chemis- tries that enable plastics to meet the demands and goals of the end markets,” says Dr Marina Leed, Senior Manager Global Sustainability, Plastic Additives at BASF.
Balanced offerings “Major resin producers have been systematically certifying their production sites for biomass balance offerings: it is clear that appropriate additive solutions are needed to achieve com- pletely non-fossil-based polymer formulations,” she
16 COMPOUNDING WORLD | January/February 2024
considered likely to raise interest in lower PCF materials. Leed says its recently implemented Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) taxes the amount of embedded carbon emissions of a product that is transported across EU borders. “While the initial list of impacted materials does not include plastics, it is expected that other industries and materials will be added before the final CBAM implementation in 2026,” she says. “The use of lower carbon raw materials, such as Irganox BMBcert, will reduce the carbon emissions calculated for plastic films and related tax burdens compared to traditional fossil-based alternatives.” The EU’s upcoming Packaging and Packaging
Waste Regulation (PPWR) is also likely to further drive the need for plastic films to be designed for recy- cling. “BMBcert additives are fully compatible with established recycling processes and in some cases can also improve the performance of recycled plastics. It remains to be seen whether renewable content (replacement of fossil raw materials) will contribute to the recycled content targets that are also proposed as part of the PPWR,” Leed says. The ongoing drive to
use more recycled content, particularly in films for single-use packaging applications, is driving demand for compounds with a ‘boost’ of additives to help prevent gels and
other problems that could result from loss
of antioxidant and subsequent polymer degrada- tion. Clariant’s Addworks PKG 906 Circle, for example, is a stabiliser designed to allow increased levels of recycled resin, such as in-house trim or off-spec, to be used in both cast and blown PE and PP film production processes without loss of quality or manufacturing efficiency. The company claims it is especially suited for biaxially oriented PP (BOPP) film production, and that it can reduce gels, black spots, and film breaks.
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