As a long–term green approach to its business strategy, IHHC’s products are produced using100% biodegradable plant-based materials. Because of the ever-increasing number of plastic wastes worldwide considerable research and development efforts have been devoted towards making a single-use, biodegradable substitute of conventional thermoplastics. Biodegradable polymers are classified as a family of polymers that will degrade completely – either into the corresponding monomers or into products, which are otherwise part of nature, through metabolic action of living organisms.
They should offer a possible alternative to traditional, non-degradable polymers as the recycling of the latter is impractical or hazardous to the environment or not economical. Headway is being made with a polymer called Polylactic Acid (PLA), an affordable, recyclable, innovative packaging material made from renewable resources.
The lactic acid used to make it is derived from corn. The process used to make it involves both biotechnology and chemistry. Poly(lactic acid) (PLA) belongs to the family of aliphatic polyesters commonly made from –hydroxyl acids, which include polyglycolic acid or polymandelic acid, and are considered biodegradable and compostable. PLA is a thermoplastic, high-strength, high-modulus polymer that can be made from annually renewable resources to yield articles for use in either the industrial packaging field or the bio-compatible/bio-absorbable medical device market.
Production of Polylactic Acid
Lactide the monomer of polylactic acid which is obtained from 100% naturally renewably resourced. It is mostly removed by using plant sugars from field corn as the source material for manufacturing. Monomer of polylactic acid uses less than 1/20th of 1% (0.05%) of the annual global corn crop today, and as such contributes little to no impact on international or local food chains. It doesn’t require corn, it only needs a sugar source. Alternative sugar sources for lactic acids are Sugar beet, Tapioca, Sugar cane and wheat are 100% renewable resources and available in plenty and cheaply. Then preparation of lactic acid is done by fermentation broth of sugar and starch using different lactic acid bacteria (LAB), exists almost exclusively as the dextrorotatory (D or L(+)) form for producing i.e polymerization of PLA which is carried out in three different methods (i) Condensation of Lactic acid (ii) Solid state polymerization and (iii) Ring opening polymerization.