HEMP PLASTICS...

Hemp Plastics – a solution to our environmental problem

Widely used in many industries, plastics have become the source of white pollution. While the world is struggling to deal with this problem a new hemp plastic technology that replaces glass fibres with natural materials is being ardently advocated. Natural fibre reinforced polymers, with qualities that rival traditional plastics, is paving a new path to a better environment...


Global environmental pollution has reached a very serious stage. Land, air and sea pollution is everywhere, with plastic pollution topping the list. Its seriousness is visible in a plastic rubbish island the size as big as Spain or Texas or larger (ref:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Pacific_Garbage_Patch). Every year, Americans make enough plastic film to shrink-wrap the state of Texas.
In 2002, 4.5 trillion plastic bags were used. 13 billion plastic carrier bags are used in the UK each year. Just 8.7 plastic checkout bags contain enough embodied petroleum energy to drive a car 1 kilometre. (ref: http://www.cleanup.org.au/au/Campaigns/plastic-bag-facts.html) Australians use 3.92 billion bags per year with 20,700 tones of plastic disposed in landfill every year. That is 429,000 bags every hour. And in Australia, things are not getting better. Household waste generation in Perth, for example, grew by approximately 30 per cent between 1998 and 2002. The USA is the worst per capita creator of waste, with Australia second producing 690kg of landfill waste per year. And plastic litter lasts from 20-1000 years, this problem is not going away fast. In the UK, a total of approximately 4.7 million tones of plastic products were used in various economic sectors in 2001 (ref: http://www.wasteonline.org.uk/resources/InformationSheets/Plastics.htm)
Every year, the average dustbin contains enough unrealised energy for 500 baths, 3500 showers or 5,000 hours of television. (ref: http://www.greenboxday.co.uk/Information/Recycling_Waste_Did_You_Know.asp) 275,000 tones of plastic are used each year in the UK, that's about 15 million bottles per day.
The use of plastic in Western Europe is growing about 4% each year. Americans use 2,500,000 plastic bottles every hour! Most of them are thrown away! Plastic bags and other plastic garbage thrown into the ocean kill as many as 1,000,000 sea creatures every year! Recycling plastic saves twice as much energy as burning it in an incinerator. In South Africa plastic has been dubbed the national flower as plastic is seen flapping on fences and bushes everywhere. Kenya & Tanzania have a war against plastics. Plastic bags are now banned in some states in India. Since 2005 you now face imprisonment for use of some plastics. Bangladesh has an outright ban. Belgium taxes single use plastic bags. Canada has pledged 50% reduction in 5 years. China has a term for their waste ‘white pollution’ as it is seen everywhere. Denmark added taxes in 2003, and Hong Kong asks for no plastic bags please. Irelands ‘plastax’ on plastic bags goes in a green fund and seems to have reduced use by 95%. Switzerland continue to be leaders in recycling while Taiwan banned single use plastic bags from 2003-7. UK has done very little to legislate yet, though strong consumer support grows. In the USA, San Francisco banned plastic bags – hurrah! (ref: http://www.reuseit.com/learn-more/top-facts/trends-from-around-the-world)


In Hong Kong, according to the 2008 Hong Kong solid waste monitoring report by the Environmental Protection Department, solid wastes dumped into landfills last year mounted to 13,503 tones per day in which plastic wastes reached 1,702 tones. In other words, Hong Kong produces plastic wastes at an alarming rate of 620,000 tones per year.

So, what can we do? Start to use bio based plastics using renewable and sustainable fibre crops such as hemp.

Plastics have all the characteristics of durability – malleable, mouldable, insulating, incorrosive against acidity and alkalinity and low air and liquid permeability. Its durable feature has sped up its popularity since the 1950s, but also makes it extremely difficult to naturally decompose. Degradation takes a few hundred years + while incineration releases toxic substances that cause immeasurable pollution problems. Recyling plastic meanwhile has low efficiency which is the major reason for the low response in plastic waste collection. In recent years, scientists have been looking for materials that reduce the consumption of plastic and petroleum products. They found that “natural fibre reinforced polymers” (hemp plastic for short!) have the greatest potential for development.

Glass Fibre Reinforced Plastic Substitute
In the 90s European countries began to focus on recovering, reusing and recycling automobile materials and spare parts, especially on glass fibre reinforced plastic (GFRP) parts which are widely used by difficult to recycle. This led to EU and UN supported research for this hemp plastic, the result of which is a material that was patented in the late 90s.

Hemp Plastic Strength
Using sustainable and renewable plant fibres and through industrial production techniques that distribute them into plastics. Hemp Plastics are made from the combination of hemp and polyproyplene, thus reducing the use of petroleum products. Five times stiffer and 2.5 times stronger than its raw material polypropylene, it will not cause wear and tear to the screw and the mould like GFRP do, and unlike GFRP, it does not pose safety and health risks. Its recoverable component comes from the use of industrial hemp and can occupy over half of its weight, up to 80 percent. All of these features make it suitable for the production of durable products.

Hemp Plastic Advantages
Paul Benhaim listed out the many advantages of natural fibre reinforced polymers: good insulation, dimensional stability at high temperatures, high thermal deformation temperatures, flame retardants, impermeability, possessing a stiffness and strength similar to tradition GFRP, can withstand long machine resistance time, low water absorption rate, high resistance to ultraviolet radiation and demonstrates normal flow behavior, making it the best substitute for glass-reinforced plastic.

Cradle-to-Cradle life cycle

For a material to be genuinely environmentally friendly, its entire production process should be a closed system. The waste released by each production process should be usable in the next process, forming a cradle to cradle production cycle. In addition, as the raw materials of Hemp Plastic come from industrial hemp and petrochemicals, the whole product can be collected and reused. The lab figures show that hemp plastic reinforced polymer products can be reused as many as seven times. Even when the product has reached the end of its life cycle, it can be collected and made into energy pellets for electricity generation, during which only water and carbon dioxide will be released when combusted.


Wide Applications
To promote hemp plastic reinforced polymers a recent partnership with a large and established manufacturing firm moved production from Europe to China. Intending uses include for automobiles, construction materials, toys and electronic products. Examples are fuse holders, battery tray and underlay of automobiles structural parts for wood plastic composites and injection moulded accessories in construction, green toys and housings for electrical appliances. Custom made orders are also available to tailor for clients products. The type and amount of hemp fibres can be adjusted to manufacture products of different features and appearances. Last year the EU automotive industry decided to shift from press moulded parts to injection moulded parts, replacing GFRP that have been used for years with plastics reinforced by natural fibers. This has set off a trend which guarantees hemp plastic a bright future.

Protecting dams and rebuilding coral reefs.
Apart from conventional industrial uses, Hemp Plastic has been researched for its applications in innovative applications. Among them is a partnership with the government of Netherlands in which 35,000 protective blocks made from hemp plastic natural fibre reinforced polymers are placed on riverbanks and dams to prevent riverbank erosion. Experiments have shown great results. As hemp plastic can be made of biodegradable plastic, they will decompose in a specified time period during which no harmful substances will be released, making it ideal for different areas of application.
Coral reefs around the world are dying in massive numbers due to various reasons. The traditional method of reviving the coral colony is by sinking a shop that acts as a new home for corals. But the ship’s paint and other substances will pollute the sea. On the other hand, as Hemp Plastic is made from natural materials that decompose naturally, we can expect that after a few years, the hemp plastic will disappear and be replaced by the coral reefs. This meets the purpose of coral reef rebuilding.
Although some scientists describe the global environmental situation as ‘minutes to midnight’ if all countries can actively implement measures to save the environment, there can be a chance to reverse the situation. After all, the key to environmental protection lies on the user.

We use a lot of products which will end up in the landfills. The only way to alleviate this situation is to change our habits: use less disposable products and more recyclable products. This is what we can do today to protect the environment.


Summary:
Using sustainable and renewable natural plant fibres (such as hemp, flax, jute, and kenaf) and through industrial production techniques that mix them into plastics, a new award winning (Biomaterial of the year 2010) granule has been made from a combination of hemp with polypropylene, thus reducing the use of petroleum products. Five times stiffer and 2.5 times stronger than polypropylene, they will not cause wear and tear to the screw and the mould as glass fibres do, and unlike glass fibres, they do not pose safety and health risks and generally show a better energy and CO2-balance. Their recoverable component comes from these natural plants and can make up over half of their weight, up to 80 percent. All these features make them suitable for the production of durable products. Hemp Plastic granules offer many advantages like good insulation, dimensional stability at high temperatures, a high thermal deformation temperature, and impermeability. They are flame retardant and they possess a stiffness and strength similar to traditional glass fibre filled polypropylene. They can withstand long machine resistance time, have a low water absorption rate, high resistance to UV radiation and demonstrate normal flow behaviour, making them the best substitute for glass-reinforced plastic. The granules are currently produced for a range of applications in automobiles, construction materials, packaging, toys and electronic products and launched onto the market in 2010. Custom made orders are also available to cater for clients’ products. The type and amount of natural fibres can be adjusted to manufacture products with different features and appearances. These include UL94 FR V0, V1 & V2 grades (flammability standards).

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