PRINTPACK INDIA 2019 IPAMA BULLETIN
become an industrialist.” It is clear
that in its time of trouble plastics will
have to be driven by sustainability.
This is well understood by Bhadauria
and he is articulate about it, “On
plastic waste – there are three pillars
to this: industry, government and
society.” Right now there is a bit of
noise around the issues and when
the situation evolves Bhadauria
expects the discussion to become
more scientific. zOxo-biodegradable
plastics Ironically the government has
banned only plastic use less than 50
microns, which is generally a single
plastic structure and which should
be easy to recycle. The real challenge
is to produce multi-layer plastics of
multi-polymers that do not have to
be merely down-cycled into inferior
products. The rules of a circular
economy dictate that materials after
use and re-use are recycled into
products of equivalent or greater value
first and only then down-cycled. He
adds that even with many regular oxo-
biodegradable plastics there is still a
question mark, because with these one
piece of plastic merely breaks down
into a million pieces. Plastic, which
has a molecular weight of 500,000
Dalton (Da), takes about 70 to 80
years to degrade and the body cannot
digest it. Bhadauria tells us about
ATIC’s successful partnership with
Willow Ridge, a leading manufacturer
of oxo-biodegradable additives.
Willow Ridge has a very unique
oxo-biodegradable technology that
transforms plastic films into mulch in
6 to 8 months, which is appropriate for
many applications. The Willow Ridge
technology reduces the molecular
weight of plastic from 500,000 Da to
below 4,000 Da. Anything organic,
and plastic is organic, that is below
4,000 Da becomes bio-digestable – if a
fish eats it, an animal or human eats
it, it is digested and thrown out. The
enzymes attack it. Willow Ridge has
developed a technology that makes
sure the degradation goes beyond
4,000 Da. zTaking on the multilayer
plastic recycling challenge Bhadauria
also tells us about how ATIC is
working with three technologies –
one for making oxo-biodegradable
plastics and the other with which we
can recycle a multi-layer structure.
This is a 5-layer multi-layer structure
that is recyclable – that will be
laterally recyclable. It could be used
The masterbatch and pigment mixing lab at the Alok Technology Incubation Centre (ATIC) in Delhi-NCR
We were approached by a partner and we have
developed a product for which we have filed a patent
and which will be recyclable. A third product is
anti-static additive for films used for explosives or
electrical and electronics. “Our additive makes the
plastic permanently anti-static. This product can be
used for the packaging of electronics.
for instant noodle or biscuit pouches,
by adding an additive masterbatch to
help recycle multi-layer structures.
“We were approached by a partner
and we have developed a product
for which we have filed a patent and
which will be recyclable. A third
product is anti-static additive for films
used for explosives or electrical and
electronics. “Our additive makes the
plastic permanently anti-static. This
product can be used for the packaging
of electronics,” says Bhadauria. We
ask him about some of the cost issues
and as in all his calm and articulate
responses, he says, “The customer will
pay, especially when the government
comes in with multi-layer legislation.
This happened in the white goods
industry when self-regulation and not
legislation was needed for eliminating
heavy metals in any plastic that they
use. The self-regulation came from
Samsung, LG and others. The inputs
are available; it is up to the industry
and society and the government to get
their act together but it is obvious that
the industry can lead; all it takes is
one leader. “If Patanjali says tomorrow
that their packaging is laterally or
upwardly recyclable, everyone will
jump on the bandwagon. For the past
20 years the plastic industry has been
saying that plastics don’t pollute,
people do. This is so similar to the
National Rifle Associations slogan that
says ‘Guns don’t kill people, people
kill people.’ Our blaming the public is
being associated with such a negative
slogan that it has set the plastic
industry back.” It is clear Bhadauria
has some but may be not all the
answers, but he has built something
that can contribute to our curiosity,
our science and our ability to take on
the future..
SEP-OCT 2018 | SUPPORTED BY IPP & PSA | 9