The Dutch company GreenGran is starting full production of its injection mouldable 30-70% natural fibre reinforced polypropylene compounds in southern Germany this month. The spin-off from the University of Wageningen in the Netherlands will commence production through specialist compounding company Walter Zink. Initiated back in July, Zink will provide the initial production capacity of 4,000 tpa for the GreenGran compounds.
The news was revealed by nova-Institut at the Composites fair in Stuttgart at the beginning of November. The institute was providing a showcase for a number of companies making natural fibre reinforced plastics materials as part of its campaign to promote injection moulding of natural fibre reinforced compounds.
GreenGran’s products result from a 12-year research programme and the company says that although the products are presently restricted to a PP polymer matrix, it has also already gained experience with polylactide acid (PLA) as a polymer derived from naturally re-occurring resources. According to GreenGran’s managing director Martin Snijder, the company’s compounds have capability to substitute PC/ABS and to compete both technically and commercially, in a price range of 1.65-2.00 €/kg, with glass fibre reinforced thermoplastic materials.
Markets for the GreenGran PP-based compounds are foreseen mainly in packaging and automotive applications, with comparative trials in an existing automotive interior door trim tool having already shown positive results.
(Cf. news of 2007-10-15 and 2006-07-05.)
Source
PRW.com, 2007-11-16.
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