JessicaHardcastle
Bio-based polymers can displace incumbent petroleum-based polymers in a market exceeding $100 billion, says
Lux Research.
They face challenges, like inferior mechanical properties and processability, that limit their potential in some high-volume markets like automotive, but their biodegradability can make them a valuable choice in markets such as biomedical and agriculture, according to Comparing the Performance and Addressable Markets for Bio-based Polymers.
Lux Research analysts assessed four bio-based polymers, evaluating their performance parameters vis-à-vis the incumbent polymers — polyethylene (PE) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Among their findings:
- PLA shows promise in agriculture. Innovation in PLA synthesis can help boost the mechanical properties of PLA to enable promising application in agriculture, such as mulching films that benefit from biodegradability. It can also be ideal for food packaging for products that don’t require oxygen barriers.
- Biomedical apps beckon PHA. Pure PHA, like pure PLA, suffers from poor structural strength. But PHA’s biodegradability and low- to non-existent toxicity opens up many potential applications within the medical and pharmaceutical industries, such as sutures, bone plates, grafts and a wide variety of implants.
- Medicine, packaging appeal to PBS. PBS has properties comparable to incumbent polypropylene but costs twice as much. Still, it has important applications in the medical industry because it presents better processability and toxicity than PLA, and exhibits mechanical properties comparable to polypropylene and PE.
The global market for bio-succinic acid is expected to grow to $1.1 billion by 2020, according to an Allied Market Research report.
Succinic acid can be used to make a broad range of products including polyurethanes, paints and coatings, adhesives, sealants, artificial leathers, food and flavor additives, cosmetics and personal care products, biodegradable
plastics, nylons, industrial lubricants, phthalate-free plasticizers, dyes and pigments, and pharmaceutical compounds.