BASF (Ludwigshafen / Germany; www.basf.com) has developed an online software tool to evaluate the potential ecological benefits that can be achieved from using biodegradable plastics. Previously, producers relied on eco-efficiency analyses or other life cycle assessments (LCAs) that scrutinise the consumption of resources during the manufacture, use and disposal phases of a plastic product. BASF says its “Ecovio Eco-Efficiency Compass” software will make this decision much easier in the future.

The software brings together in a single interface relevant data that has been gathered through many eco-efficiency analyses, for the production and disposal of selected products. Parameters that are used in the ecological evaluation of a given product then can be quickly checked, the German group says, assessing their impact on the product’s eco-efficiency. The comparison of the ecological benefits of various approaches helps the user decide whether a biodegradable plastic is actually more environmentally friendly. However, biodegradable plastics do not automatically solve environmental problems simply because they can be composted, the company says, as their use only makes sense if they are more sustainable than non-biodegradable materials in the same role.

The new software allows users to combine numerous parameters that are of relevance for the ecological profile of their planned product. In case of a shopping bag, for example, these parameters include not only the selection of the packaging material – if necessary all the way down to the monomer level – but also the weight of the bag and the type of disposal technology. The environmental impact of the product’s entire life cycle, from the selection of the raw material through application to disposal, can therefore be assessed.

Users first receive the analysis results in the form of a diagram that clearly and logically shows the eco-efficiency of the approaches being compared, BASF says. This already indicates where a product variant has advantages or disadvantages, for example, in terms of its consumption of resources or its emissions. Users can receive assistance from BASF experts who will provide them with individual diagrams showing valid and reproducible estimates of the energy and material streams involved in the production, transportation, use and final disposal. The environmentally relevant effects of the material selection and the costs of the chosen approach are provided.

For example, comparing the environmental impact of a shopping bag made of paper and one made of BASF’s “Ecovio” film, both of which can be used for shopping and for bio waste disposal, shows that under the selected boundaries the “Ecovio” bag is more eco-efficient than the paper bag, because the latter has to be considerably thicker in order to perform equally well. Generally speaking, this parameter plays a crucial role, BASF says, and together with trained BASF employees, users can experiment with these parameters.

At present, the software is tailored to estimating the eco-efficiency of shopping bags and foam trays. Other product groups, however, can be added. Major developments on the market can be incorporated, for example polyethylene made of bio-ethanol.

BASF will be demonstrating its Ecovio Eco-Efficiency Compass at “K 2010” (www.k-online.de) in Düsseldorf / Germany in late October – see Plasteurope.com of 22.06.2010.