Yizheng's PBAT-based agricultrual & mulch film in test application
On May 9, 2022, the Research Institute of Sinopec Yizheng Chemical Fiber announced that the agricultural mulch film made by Sinopec Yizheng Chemical Fiber, using the biodegradable plastic-polybutylene terephthalate-copolybutylene adipate (PBAT) as feedstock, has been tested in many crop planting places of China.
At present, China's output and coverage of agricultural film ranks first in the world. Agricultural film has become the third largest agricultural production material after chemical fertilizers and pesticides, and is known as the third agricultural technology revolution after improved seeds and chemical fertilizers. However, the vast majority of agricultural films are non-degradable plastics. The residual film accumulated in the farmland for many years pollutes the agricultural environment, resulting in the decline of soil quality, inhibiting the growth and development of crops, and reducing production by 15% to 30%, which has caused "white pollution". The development of degradable and environmentally friendly ecological agricultural film is of great significance to the sustainable development of agriculture.
Through years of joint research and development of production, education and research, Yizheng Chemical Fiber has developed independent intellectual property rights and achieved industrial production of three kinds of biodegradable materials, PBST, PBAT and PBSA, annual capacity of each at tens of thousands tons level.
According to Dai Junming, a senior expert in Yizheng chemical fiber chemical technology, Yizheng chemical fiber biodegradable material research and development team has done physical planting experiments in Liaoning rice, Shandong Shouguang vegetables, and Guizhou corn experimental base in the development of the agricultural mulch market. Biodegradable tourism items such as ropes and toothbrushes and combs are also in the experimental stage.
Yizheng's PBAT-based plastic bags applied widely in many large supermarkets
The biodegradable PBAT made by Yizheng chemical fiber has been widely used in large supermarket plastic bags. In September 2021, Sinopec donated 100,000 degradable plastic bags to Zhangshanying Town, where the Winter Olympics is located, for services and civic life needs. The plastic bag has good thermal stability and mechanical properties, and can be completely degraded into water and carbon dioxide under composting conditions, thereby effectively reducing white pollution.
About Yizheng and its PBAT material development
The melt flow rate (MFR) of PBAT is a key indicator that downstream users care about. The lower the MFR, the more stable the modification and film production process will be, and the higher the strength and durability of the finished products. After several breakthroughs and improvements, in mid to late April 202, Yizheng Chemical Fiber successfully developed and produced high-quality biodegradable PBAT with low MFR, and can be freely adjusted to meet the needs of different users.
Yizheng Chemical Fiber focuses on accelerating the construction of new biodegradable materials project, strengthens technical research, improves production capacity, and strives to expand agricultural plastic film and other markets to achieve higher quality and more efficient sustainable development. At the same time, it actively explores to cultivate a brand of Sinopec's biodegradable material elements with technological innovation characteristics and industry influence - "Ecorigin", further promote the leap from "product" to "brand" of biodegradable materials, and create Sinopec's green and clean New business card.
