Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • Sustainable Plastics
  • Rubber News
Subscribe
  • Sign Up Free
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Processor News
    • Suppliers
    • More News
    • Digital Edition
    • End Markets
    • Special Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Videos
    • Podcasts
    • Injection Molding
    • Blow Molding
    • Film & Sheet
    • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
    • Rotomolding
    • Thermoforming
    • Recycling
    • Machinery
    • Materials
    • Molds/Tooling
    • Product news
    • Design
    • K Show
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Sustainability
    • Public Policy
    • Material Insights Videos
    • Numbers that Matter
    • Automotive
    • Packaging
    • Medical
    • Consumer Products
    • Construction
    • Notable Leaders in Sustainability
    • Processor of the Year
    • Best Places to Work
    • Women Breaking the Mold
    • Rising Stars
    • Diversity
    • Most Interesting Social Media Accounts in Plastics
  • Opinion
    • The Plastics Blog
    • Kickstart
    • One Good Resin
    • Pellets and Politics
    • All Things Data
    • Viewpoint
    • From Pillar to Post
    • Perspective
    • Mailbag
    • Fake Plastic Trees
  • Shop Floor
    • Blending
    • Compounding
    • Drying
    • Injection Molding
    • Purging
    • Robotics
    • Size Reduction
    • Structural Foam
    • Tooling
    • Training
  • Events
    • Plastics News Events
    • Industry Events
    • Injection Molding & Design Expo
    • Livestreams/Webinars
    • Editorial Livestreams
    • Ask the Expert
    • Plastics News Events Library
    • Plastics News Executive Forum
    • Injection Molding & Design Expo
    • Plastics Caps + Closures: A Global Online Event
    • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum
    • Bioplastics Live
    • Numbers that Matter Live
    • PFAS Live
    • Plastics in Politics Live
    • PN Live: Mergers and Acquisitions
    • Polymer Points Live
    • Sustainable Plastics Live
    • Plastics Caps & Closures Library
    • Plastics in Healthcare Library
    • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum Library
  • Rankings & Data
    • Injection Molders
    • Blow Molders
    • Film Sheet
    • Thermoformers
    • Pipe Profile Tubing
    • Rotomolders
    • Mold/Toolmakers
    • LSR Processors
    • Recyclers
    • Compounders - List
    • Association - List
    • Plastic Lumber - List
    • All
  • Directory
  • Resin Prices
    • Resin Prices Overview
    • Commodity Thermoplastics
    • High Temperature Thermoplastics
    • Engineering Thermoplastics
    • Recycled Plastics
    • Thermosets
    • Europe - Virgin
    • Europe - Recycled
    • Europe - Feedstock
  • Custom
    • Sponsored Content
    • LS Mtron Sponsored Content
    • Conair Sponsored Content
    • KraussMaffei Sponsored Content
    • ENGEL Sponsored Content
    • White Papers
    • Classifieds
    • Place an Ad
    • Sign up for Early Classified
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. News
July 04, 2013 02:00 AM

Heritage: Life-cyle analysis proves calcium carbonate's film benefits

  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Reprints Print

    NORWALK, CALIF. — Thermoplastics compounder Heritage Plastics Inc. has long believed in the processing and environmental benefits of using calcium carbonate as a filler in high density polyethylene film. Now, it says, it has the hard data to prove it.

    The characteristics of calcium carbonate – the main mineral found in limestone, marble and chalk — allow polymers to heat and cool faster, resulting in significant energy savings through improved productivity, higher outputs and faster film conversion. Now, Heritage says, independent research confirms that use of the filler in HDPE film reduces petrochemical and energy usage during the manufacturing process, and minimizes the carbon footprint and greenhouse gas impact of finished plastic products.

    Frank Ruiz, vice president of research and development of the Picayune, Miss.-based Heritage, revealed the results of life-cycle assessment tests of its HM10-brand calcium carbonate concentrate at a June 18 evening meeting of the Western Plastics Association in the Los Angeles suburb of Norwalk. Ruiz, a 27-year veteran of Heritage, said his firm contracted with Boustead Consulting & Associates LLC to conduct the LCA tests over the past three years.

    The study analyzed the energy consumption and environmental impacts of using 100 percent pure polyethylene resin compared to displacing 20 percent of the PE resin with its HM10 additive, in both pre-film plastic pellet production and in film production scenarios. Boustead based its calculations on a database built over 25 years, and the LCA considered both the manufacturing process of Heritage's additive and its use in HDPE film production.

    Some of the test findings, assuming the displacement of about 20 percent of the petrochemical-based components in film with the HM10 additive:

    • 15-20 percent overall energy savings
    • 16-20 percent reductions in the use of crude oil
    • 15-19 percent reductions in the use of natural gas
    • 12-17 percent reductions in the use of coal
    • 12-16 percent reductions in the use of electricity
    • 13-17 percent reductions of greenhouse gases
    • 15-20 percent reductions of oxides of sulfur
    • 13-17 percent reductions of oxides of nitrogen
    • 11-15 percent reductions of particulates

    Heritage said that producing one ton of its HM10 concentrate uses 72 percent less energy than producing one ton of HDPE. It further claims that replacing 20 percent of the HDPE in film with the additive reduces the amount of electrical energy needed to convert the film by 23 percent.

    As such, the use of the additive can significantly reduce the end product's carbon footprint — an increasingly important consideration for some major customers and retailers such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc. that aggressively apply sustainability scorecards to their sourcing and purchasing processes.

    And this benefit can be especially important to California film processors given that California Assembly Bill 32 dictates that any company that emits more than 25,000 tons per year of greenhouse gasses will be required to pay to participate in the state's cap-and-trade program. The allowable limits are due to become even stricter in 2015.

    Still, there are side effects to consider. The introduction of calcium carbonate does negatively impact the optics of the film, acknowledged Ruiz. It makes the film appear “milky,” which rules it out for high-clarity applications, but which is not important for other applications.

    Recyclers also have a concern, at least when it comes to the reprocessing of bottles and rigid containers made with a calcium carbonate filler. The high density of additive means that bottles made with it will be heavier than those made with the usual additive alternatives. This could complicate the float process that recyclers use to separate scrap HDPE flakes from other ground-up scrap resins such as PET. Ruiz said that Heritage currently believes that a 7 percent loading of calcium carbonate (to include any existing pigments or other additives) into the resin is the limit to keep the end product's density below the vital 1 percent level, which would avoid the problem feared by recyclers.

    This is more of an issue for bottles than for film, which was the focus of the LCA study. Clean film scrap usually is recycled using a dry process, Ruiz said, which makes the density a moot point. The issue comes when the film is dirty and needs to be washed or when the HDPE is mixed with other types of resin scrap and needs to be separated.

    He said Heritage has been working for the past three years with the Association of Post-Consumer Recyclers and the recycling community to ensure there is no contamination of the recycling stream.

    Calcium carbonate concentrates can be found in a variety of applications, Heritage notes, including injection molding, blow molding, sheet extrusion, thermoforming and extrusion coating, but this LCA research focused on the HDPE used to make film and bags, which accounts for about half the PE market. Roughly 1 billion pounds of HDPE is converted into bags a year, Ruiz said. Still, he noted, Heritage has seen similar benefits of using HM10 in low-density PE resin, and in cast film as well as blown film.

    Heritage produces the HM10 concentrate at its Sylacaugua, Ala., plant, which is near one of the world's largest limestone mines.

    Ruiz, who lives in the Dallas area, began his career as chemical engineer with Union Carbide Corp., and worked a year for Monsanto before joining Heritage in 1986. In recent years, he also served concurrently as president of Carrollton, Texas-based Plastimin LLC, a supplier of polymer concentrates and bioplastic-based compounds.

    Plastimin opened its doors in 2005 as a minority enterprise that was majority owned by Ruiz, who is of Puerto Rican descent. But Plastimin, which was primarily a distributor, shut down in 2011, Ruiz said, when the accounting rules governing minority enterprises changed and eliminated most of the benefits associated with such arrangements.

    RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
    Play Mart expanding in Kentucky, adding jobs
    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Do you have an opinion about this story? Do you have some thoughts you'd like to share with our readers? Plastics News would love to hear from you. Email your letter to Editor at [email protected]

    Most Popular
    1
    Superior Die Set seeks sale of Wisconsin plant, may be forced to close
    2
    Numbers That Matter Live September 2023: Plastics recession: Short-term blip or intermediate-term problem?
    3
    An 8,000-ton dream for Milacron, 20/20 Custom Molded Plastics
    4
    Flexible packaging firms highlight changing views on sustainability
    5
    Nova declares force majeure for PE resin at second Ontario site
    SIGN UP FOR OUR FREE NEWSLETTERS
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    Find more newsletters at plasticsnews.com/newsletters.

    You can unsubscribe at any time through links in these emails. For more information, see our Privacy Policy.

    Get our newsletters

    Staying current is easy with Plastics News delivered straight to your inbox, free of charge.

    Subscribe today

    Subscribe to Plastics News

    Subscribe now
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram

    Plastics News covers the business of the global plastics industry. We report news, gather data and deliver timely information that provides our readers with a competitive advantage.

    Contact Us

    1155 Gratiot Avenue
    Detroit MI 48207-2997

    Customer Service:
    877-320-1723

    Resources
    • About
    • Staff
    • Editorial Calendar
    • Media Kit
    • Data Store
    • Digital Edition
    • Custom Content
    • People
    • Contact
    • Careers
    • Sitemap
    Related Crain Publications
    • Sustainable Plastics
    • Rubber News
    • Tire Business
    • Urethanes Technology
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Copyright © 1996-2023. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Processor News
        • Injection Molding
        • Blow Molding
        • Film & Sheet
        • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
        • Rotomolding
        • Thermoforming
        • Recycling
      • Suppliers
        • Machinery
        • Materials
        • Molds/Tooling
        • Product news
        • Design
      • More News
        • K Show
        • Mergers & Acquisitions
        • Sustainability
        • Public Policy
        • Material Insights Videos
        • Numbers that Matter
      • Digital Edition
      • End Markets
        • Automotive
        • Packaging
        • Medical
        • Consumer Products
        • Construction
      • Special Reports
        • Notable Leaders in Sustainability
        • Processor of the Year
        • Best Places to Work
        • Women Breaking the Mold
        • Rising Stars
        • Diversity
        • Most Interesting Social Media Accounts in Plastics
      • Newsletters
      • Videos
      • Podcasts
    • Opinion
      • The Plastics Blog
      • Kickstart
      • One Good Resin
      • Pellets and Politics
      • All Things Data
      • Viewpoint
      • From Pillar to Post
      • Perspective
      • Mailbag
      • Fake Plastic Trees
    • Shop Floor
      • Blending
      • Compounding
      • Drying
      • Injection Molding
      • Purging
      • Robotics
      • Size Reduction
      • Structural Foam
      • Tooling
      • Training
    • Events
      • Plastics News Events
        • Plastics News Executive Forum
        • Injection Molding & Design Expo
        • Plastics Caps + Closures: A Global Online Event
        • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum
      • Industry Events
      • Injection Molding & Design Expo
      • Livestreams/Webinars
      • Editorial Livestreams
        • Bioplastics Live
        • Numbers that Matter Live
        • PFAS Live
        • Plastics in Politics Live
        • PN Live: Mergers and Acquisitions
        • Polymer Points Live
        • Sustainable Plastics Live
      • Ask the Expert
      • Plastics News Events Library
        • Plastics Caps & Closures Library
        • Plastics in Healthcare Library
        • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum Library
    • Rankings & Data
      • Injection Molders
      • Blow Molders
      • Film Sheet
      • Thermoformers
      • Pipe Profile Tubing
      • Rotomolders
      • Mold/Toolmakers
      • LSR Processors
      • Recyclers
      • Compounders - List
      • Association - List
      • Plastic Lumber - List
      • All
    • Directory
    • Resin Prices
      • Resin Prices Overview
      • Commodity Thermoplastics
      • High Temperature Thermoplastics
      • Engineering Thermoplastics
      • Recycled Plastics
      • Thermosets
      • Europe - Virgin
      • Europe - Recycled
      • Europe - Feedstock
    • Custom
      • Sponsored Content
      • LS Mtron Sponsored Content
      • Conair Sponsored Content
      • KraussMaffei Sponsored Content
      • ENGEL Sponsored Content
      • White Papers
      • Classifieds
        • Place an Ad
        • Sign up for Early Classified