Development of Bio-Based Plastics for Injection Molding

Technological development of materials derived from plants (e.g., polylactic acid (PLA), and the like) is required to break dependence on fossil fuels and reduce CO 2 . PLA has inferior hydrolysis resistance, impact resistance, and molding ability than polypropylene (PP), and in order to overcome these disadvantages, a novel PP/PLA alloy has been conceived where PLA is incorporated into a PP matrix. By optimizing compatibilizer and elastomer addition, PLA has been successfully dispersed into a PP matrix at a sub-micron order, and interior parts have been successfully developed that fulfill the performance, appearance, and mass-production capability requirements for practical application.Cross Reference: