Sustainable Plastics

Dear Colleagues,

Sustainable plastics comprise a whole family of biopolymers and additives. Biopolymers are materials that are either partly or fully derived from biomass, are biodegradable, or feature both properties. Bioplastics offer advantages compared to conventional petrochemical plastics in that they save fossil resources by using natural resources that regenerate annually and provide the unique potential of carbon neutrality. Furthermore, biodegradability is an add-on property of certain types of bioplastics that offers a sustainable means of recovery at the end of a product’s life. Moreover, the use of natural additives has been currently envisioned as a safe and environmentally friendly alternative to replace synthetic ones. As a result, by now, a large number of different sustainable plastics have been developed and have entered different markets, particularly in food packaging and disposable applications. Nevertheless, market shares of these bioplastics are in most areas still negligible since high production costs impair price competitiveness in relation to their fossil-derived counterparts. Therefore, to compensate for current disadvantages in pricing, it is essential that bio-based materials are superior with respect to sustainability considerations. This requires detailed and deep environmental analyses, from polymerization to end-of-life options, that also include the whole value chains.

Under the prevailing technologies, feedstock cultivation is one of the critical factors due to its various and potentially significant ecological impacts. Based on their development status, bioplastics feedstocks have generally been divided into first, second, and third generations according to their development stage. First-generation feedstocks are usually carbohydrate-rich plants that are also suitable as food or animal feed, e.g., corn and sugarcane. Although these feedstocks currently offer the highest yields, their cultivation is a critical factor due to intensive agriculture and the resulting negative competitiveness with human feeding. Against this background, second- and third-generation feedstocks have been proposed in recent years. The second generation includes feedstocks that are not suitable for food or animal feed, which can be either nonfood crops (e.g., cellulose) or by-products from first-generation feedstocks (e.g., corn stover or sugarcane bagasse). The third generation includes the currently most innovative feedstocks, which are still at an early stage of development. It comprises the most novel forms of feedstock extractions from a range of substrates like whey, industrial and municipal waste, or algae. However, all these feedstocks thus require specific forms of treatment and imply highly heterogeneous production chains. As a consequence, one cannot instantly classify them as more or less sustainable than the currently dominating first generation. Instead, an evaluation of their environmental performances requires careful analysis.

This collection covers all topics related to the science and technology of bioplastics, including the novel feedstocks, polymerization processes, characterization, and final applications, as well as life cycle analysis. Research articles and reviews on biopolymers and natural additives will be considered for this collection with the main aim of sharing a collection of cutting-edge technology research related to sustainable plastics.

Dr. Luis Cabedo Mas
Prof. Dr. Sergio Torres-Giner
Collection Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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