Bachelor
Sustainable Packaging Technology
part-time
Due to the improper discharge of food packaging into the environment and the associated consequences, there is growing global interest in more sustainable packaging solutions. In particular, the pollution of the oceans and the associated habitats are severely jeopardised and urgently require a solution.
One obvious material for replacing conventional plastics is the group of biopolymers known as polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA for short). These are characterised by their sustainable production and biodegradability, even under marine conditions. PHAs also have good processability for biopolymers.
The use of PHAs for food packaging is currently only possible to a limited extent due to their lack of barrier properties with regard to oxygen, grease, moisture (etc.). Petrochemical plastics generally have better properties here and are otherwise reinforced by coatings.
The barriers applied as coatings prevent or slow down the biodegradability of the packaging, depending on the application. For this reason, the Frauenhofer ISC has developed a new barrier coating made of Ormocer, an inorganic-organic hybrid polymer. This barrier coating fulfils all the requirements for biodegradability and food protection.
As part of this project, a proof-of-concept for a biodegradable test specimen for food packaging is to be realised for the first time. This consists of PHA as the packaging material and an Ormocer barrier coating. The test specimens will then be tested and evaluated using developed test procedures. Based on the knowledge gained, the test specimens will be optimised in a cascading process in order to achieve the required packaging properties.