Bio plastics: market prospects still need to be improved

n today's world, many kinds of plastic products can be seen everywhere. Plastic brings many conveniences to our life, but it also creates a heavy burden on the environment. However, the emergence of bio plastics has alleviated the problem of environmental pollution. Nowadays, the stents, computer frames, small plastic bottles, kitchen garbage bags and so on are almost everywhere.

Bio plastics refer to plastics based on natural substances such as starch and under the action of microorganisms. It has the advantages of renewable and environmental protection. Therefore, it has become the new favorite of competing countries. It is understood that the "P4SB" project funded by the European Union mainly focuses on the biodegradation of bacteria, and "P4SB" has achieved a stage of success on the scale of the experiment. In addition, the biologically based biodegradable film special materials developed by the Shanghai Petrochemical Research Institute have attracted the attention of many exhibitors at the recent thirty-second China International Plastics and rubber industry exhibition.

According to relevant reports, the annual growth rate of bio plastics market in the world is 8%-10%. As of 2025, thanks to the rapid development of the automotive and electronic industries, Asia will occupy a large proportion of the global bio plastic market, with 32% market share, followed by 31% in Europe and 28% in the United States.

Nowadays, bioplastics play an important role in the field of medicine, besides being widely used in daily life. For example, in fracture surgery, it can act as a bone support. With the healing of bones, it gradually decomposes itself. Linear bioplastics can replace traditional medical surgical lines to stitch wounds. This plastic surgical line can be gradually absorbed by the body, thereby relieving the trouble of removing stitches. In addition, the medical capsule made of bioplastics will slowly dissolve in the body and control the speed of the drug entering the blood vessels.

Although the research and development of bio plastics is the focus of attention, countries have invested a lot of money and manpower in the process of research. However, bioplastics have not yet reached the stage of universal application in society, and there are still many problems in cost, management and technology.

1. the cost is high. The price of bio plastics at present is two to three times higher than that of ordinary plastics. The high cost of construction has hindered the popularization of these materials to a certain extent.

2. technology is not yet mature. The degradable plastic products made of bio plastics can not meet the needs of all kinds of consumption. For example, the food and beverage appliances made of biodegradable plastics are far from the traditional plastic products in terms of heat resistance, water resistance and mechanical strength. At the same time, although there are many biodegradable plastics in the market, the comprehensive properties of each material need to be improved.

The 3. standard system has not yet been perfected. As bio plastic is a new industry, many materials and products have been developed, and there is not a unified standard in the industry. Therefore, it has brought many inconvenience and disputes to trade. In the long run, it will not be conducive to the development of bio plastics industry.

4. intensifying global warming. Although bioplastics can be biodegraded to different degrees, carbon dioxide will be generated during the degradation process, which will aggravate global warming.

5. the rate of degradation is different. The degradation rate of different bioplastics is different. Some can be degraded in a few days, some for several years, and others even for decades. To some extent, plastics, which need decades of degradation, will inevitably create a burden on the environment.