Contact Information
Tel: + 1.505.999.1160
Fax: + 1.505.999.1019
Email: sales@bio-tec.biz
Corporate Office
Bio-Tec Environmental, LLC
7009 Prospect Ave NE #202
Albuquerque, New Mexico
87110 USA
Please click on the following link to download a detailed PowerPoint presentation about the Bio-Batch process
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- EcoPure Biodegradable Plastics Additives -
Almost everyone knows that plastics are called “synthetic” and that they don’t break down easily in the environment, but why? Plastics are made from organic compounds called monomers. What makes them special and useful is that scientists found a way to combine monomers into long molecular chains, called polymers. Polymers do not exist in nature, and this is what makes plastic so useful. But it also creates a problem. As a result, regular plastic is not easily biodegradable and will last in the environment for centuries, maybe forever.
Until now. EcoPure is a biodegradable plastics additive that changes all that. When mixed into raw plastic at less than 1%, it allows that plastic to break down—but only when placed in a microbe rich environment, such as a landfill or compost facility. It provides the best of both worlds. The biodegradable plastic product is still as useful as it ever was. Consumers like it because they still get all the safety and convenience that plastic brings, while at the same time knowing they are not leaving a nightmare for our children’s children. Manufacturers like it because they don’t have to change their raw material or manufacturing process. And EcoPure is manufactured right here in the United States.
For manufacturers, EcoPure is simple to use. It is mixed in with the primary resin, just like color concentrates are, at the time the final product is made. And after the product has completed its useful life, it can be put into a landfill or a compost facility(depending on resin type and thickness). There, EcoPure begins its work. It allows microbes to break down those “synthetic” polymer chains into organic monomers that they can feast on. It does this by expanding the molecular structure of the plastic, scissoring the polymer chain, and adding in nutrients that attracts the microbes to colonize in and around the plastic. These microbes secrete acids which further break down the long molecules. Like any organic material that is biodegraded, the plastic will create byproducts, most of which are useful, including humus (which can be used to make soil richer) and methane (which can be used as fuel). In fact, landfills all over the country are beginning to tap the methane from the natural breakdown of organic materials to reduce our dependence on foreign energy sources. This biodegradation process can take place aerobically (where there is oxygen, such as in a compost facility) or anaerobically (where there is no oxygen, such as in a sealed landfill). It can take place with or without the presence of light, heat or moisture.
Bio-Tec Environmental uses many testing laboratories to test the biodegradable plastics for their 3rd party test results. These tests are not our own design, but are created by an organization known as the American Society of Testing and Materials (ASTM) and ISO, and are the most recognized type of commercial and industrial tests and standards available. These tests show that under anaerobic and aerobic conditions, EcoPure biodegradable additive works in most major polymers.
EcoPure is a cost effective, easy to use solution for design engineers, manufacturers and end users. The addition of EcoPure does not change the manufacturing process except for the simple step of adding in EcoPure. The physical properties of plastic products remain the same during their useful life. Only when disposed of does the difference manifest itself as biodegradability.
Bio-Tec's technology differs from other "degradable plastics" emerging in the market today. Many of these products use catalysts which are heated up at variable rates. These products do not attract microbial communities to the plastic in order to break down the polymer's molecular structure, but rather are broken down by light, heat, mechanical stress and moisture. This can take ages depending on the polymer's weight and mass. Other products are starch based plastic substitutes that simply do not have the same superior characteristics of plastics, and some depend on raw materials that must be grown on farm land which could be used for food production.
Most companies that make or use plastic products share our environmental concerns. They are looking for a solution that has the benefits of traditional plastic products but the advantages of organic substitutes. EcoPure biodegradable plastics are the answer to those concerns. It is a simple, easy and effective solution for virtually all biodegradable plastics needs. With the addition of less than 1% (by weight), manufacturers can make products with the same physical properties, tensile strength and in some cases improved performance of their current products. These attributes will last until the product is discarded into an active microbial environment (landfill), and will then break down into inert humus, Co2 and methane.
Please read our powerpoint presentation on "How Does this Work?" for more information.
Feel free to contact us with all of your inquiries.
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