MATERIALS | AGRICULTURAL FILM
Recycling need There is increasing pressure to recycle and recover agricultural – if it is not biodegradable. This is largely done through mechanical recycling, but chemical recycling is now also an option. Mark Huber, VP of business development at
iSustain, said that techniques such as pyrolysis and methanolysis – converting polymers back into its constituent monomers – is an alternative to mechanical recycling. Its advantages include a higher tolerance to mixed polymers and the ability to create ‘virgin’ polymer again that can go back into high-value applications. Robert Wahlmueller, CEO of Erema North
Above: Recycling of waste agricul- tural film has become increasingly important
(55%) and wide diffusion angle without affecting the light transmission (89- 90%),” he said. “The film is already used in many countries and has advan- tages compared with standard diffusion film.” He said that the percentage of diffused light is
important, as is the way the light is diffused. These play a special role in how plants benefit from diffusion.
Its Diamond 15 film allows a wide diffusion angle and no light concentration points – as is seen in standard high diffusion film, he said. Films were tested on cucumber crops (in Spain) and blueberries (California, USA). The tests showed a 13-16% increase in yield when using the films.
Bimodal PE Susan Zhang, senior technical service and develop- ment advisor at Baystar, told delegates that the company uses bimodal LLDPE to make ‘diffused light’ film.
She said that using Borstar FB2230 can create
film that provides uniform light distribution, protection from external conditions and reduces pest and disease infestation. The film’s matte surface – with high haze – leads
to a ‘softer’ light. In addition, it allows more light into the greenhouse, as it is less reflective. For tomato crops, it showed a slight increase in stem height compared to a control film. There was also an increase in quality: overall, sugar content increased by 43%, lycopene by 20%, vitamin C by 11% and the sugar/acid ratio by 59%. A study with cucumbers showed a 20% increase in yield, she said.
In tests, the film also led to a 13% increase in
watermelon yields and up to 38% in grapes. “FB2230 provides a barrier function in the outer layer – and anti-drip performance is better than benchmark,” she said.
20 FILM & SHEET EXTRUSION | April 2024
America, talked about mechanical recycling techniques to improve recyclate pellet quality for film. Material fed back into the process needs to be of the highest possible quality, he said. He said that Erema’s Intarema TVEplus DuaFil machine could help to save money and boost throughput, compared with its earlier ‘double filtration’ technology. According to Wahlmueller, it can cut energy use by 10-12% and help raise throughput by as much as 10%. Neil Weisensel, marketing and strategy manager for industrial markets at Charter Next Generations (CNG), added that its Solar Shrink film is made with 30% post-consumer recyclate. The agricultural tarpaulin was made as part of a pilot project. “We collaborated with like-minded infrastructure
partners to validate the consumption, retrieval, conversion to PCR and next life application using Solar Shrink,” he said. n The next Agricultural Film conference is held in Tampa, Florida, USA on 23-24 July 2024. For more details, contact Angelina Ruocco on +1 610 478 0800 (
angelina.ruocco@
amiplastics.com).
CLICK ON THE LINKS FOR MORE INFORMATION: �
www.sigmastretchtools.com �
www.highlightindustries.com �
www.viaflex.com �
www.kuraray.com �
www.exxonmobil.com �
www.cjbio.net �
www.jungbunzlauer.com �
www.clariant.com �
www.basf.com �
www.chemours.com �
https://grupoplastilene.com �
www.politiv.com �
www.baystar.com �
www.isustainrecycling.com �
www.erema.com �
www.cnginc.com
www.filmandsheet.com
IMAGE: SHUTTERSTOCK
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