We agree that Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle are important parts of the road to a more sustainable future, but there’s a lot more that we should do, and NuPlastiQ is already innovating it’s way to solid solutions.

Innovation

Advantages & Differentiation

BioLogiQ’s Invention

Starch and starch-blended plastics have been available for years and are commonly known as Thermoplastic Starch (TPS) and TPS blends. However, these TPS plastic products have been expensive to produce and have not achieved the level of quality that is required to make high-quality thin films for plastic bags.

BioLogiQ invented a new kind of TPS that it calls iQ (NuPlastiQ BioPolymer.

Using its proprietary process, BioLogiQ’s makes a low moisture content plasticized starch resin pellet called NuPlastiQ. We make NuPlastiQ in pellet form so plastic product manufacturers can use them like other traditional plastic resin pellets using their standard production equipment.

BioLogiQ’s iQ (NuPlastiQ®) pellets are designed to be blended with various plastics to make BioBlends that increase the sustainability of the final product.

Most companies that make starch blends today start by blending conventional fossil-fuel plastic resin pellets with starch powder using twin screw compounding machines. The resulting blended pellets are usually not very well mixed and cannot be used to make the same high-quality and high-performance thin films as can be made by using BioLogiQ’s NuPlastiQ pellets. NuPlastiQ can be blended with every type of conventional plastic and also with other bioplastic resins.

At BioLogiQ, we have invented iQ Technology, a process that allows us to make blends of NuPlastiQ with traditional low-density polyethylene in such a unique way that the resulting thin films are significantly stronger than the PE-only film structures. This significant breakthrough makes it possible to reduce the thickness of the thin films.

Adding BioLogiQ’s NuPlastiQ to LLDPE or LDPE increases the bubble stability and makes it possible to blow films as thin as .1 mil (2.5 microns)

Bags made with 25% NuPlastiQ and 75% PE that are downgauged by 30% result in 50% less fossil fuel being used to make the bags. This, in turn, reduces the amount of conventional non-biodegradable PE that ends up in landfills and the ocean.

Thinner bags results in lower costs and the adoption of iQ (NuPlastiQ) reduces global warming potential of the blend by up to 50%. 


1.

Decouple plastics from fossil-fuel feedstocks



2.

Create an Effective After-use Plastics Economy



3.

Drastically reduce “leakage” of plastics into the environment – Increase use of biodegradable plastics


Do you want to get serious about sustainability?

By blending BioLogiQ’s NuPlastiQ with polyethylene to make thin films, we can often achieve an affordable, durable product that is more compatible with nature’s biodegradation* systems, therefore leading to reduced microplastics potential without compromise to performance. 

Compostability & Biodegradability

BioBlend BC Resins

NuPlastiQ may be blended with other compostable resins such as PBS, PHA, PBAT or PLA to meet Industrial or Home composting requirements. In its pure form, NuPlastiQ has biodegraded at the same pace of cellulose. 

NuPlastiQ and several BioBlend BC grades have passed standardized tests for compostability and are certified by TUV to meet the criteria specified in ASTM D6400 and EN 13432. Some BioBlend BC grades have also passed the China Standard Biodegradability Test GB/T 19277.1-2011.

Compostable

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*All tests we performed by independent third-party laboratories. Copies of the reports are available for review. These results may not be applied to all products made using iQ (NuPlastiQ).

Marine

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iQ (NuPlastiQ) CG is certified as ‘OK Biodegradable Marine’ by TUV. We have also designed some thin films that biodegrade within one year in ocean water when tested according to ASTM-D6691.

Working towards making plastics sustainable

BioLogiQ’s NuPlastiQ® BioPolymer is made from annually renewable agricultural resources.

A good way to increase sustainability is to look for ways to reduce the amount of plastic and to reuse and recycle plastic products. The 3 R’s “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle” have been the focus of the plastic industry for the past decade, but that process hasn’t been successful enough, with more than an estimated 11 million tons (by PEW) of plastic estimated to reach the ocean every year. 

Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle are important parts of the road to a more sustainable future, and BioLogiQ is already innovating its way to solid solutions.

Plant-powered
NuPlastiQ® & its BioBlends®

BioLogiQ is working to improve the path to true circularity through its revolutionary plant-based 100% natural renewably sourced biopolymer called NuPlastiQ.

NuPlastiQ is the natural ally to solving the man-made problem of plastic pollution. NuPlastiQ reduces the accumulation of plastic pollution* in our environment and ocean. 

NuPlastiQ is the natural ally to solving the man-made problem of plastic pollution.

Introducing the 4th “R”

Remediation, or Bioremediation

NuPlastiQ® has been designed to help reduce the accumulation of plastic pollution* in our environment and ocean. 

We are all familiar with the 3 “R’s” of the environment—Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. NuPlastiQ paves the way for a critical fourth “R” —Remediate—”The process of improving something or correcting something that is wrong, especially changing or stopping damage to the environment.” Applying remediation increases the chance that leaked plastic doesn’t persist. How?

Nature has developed a way to biodegrade durable polymers such as cellulose and lignin. Like wood, plastics may aspire to be durable and compatible with nature’s biodegradation systems. NuPlastiQ seems to enable nature to use its biodegradation* toolbox in blends with PE, PP and PS. A possibility demonstrated in dozens of studies and that does not seem to be accelerating fragmentation. The addition of NuPlastiQ in PE, PP and PS can only reduce the potential for persistent microplastics accumulation in the environment. 

Taking A Page From Nature

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Copyright © 2021 BioLogiQ, Inc. All rights reserved. Although BioLogiQ, Inc. and its affiliates (“BioLogiQ”) have taken reasonable steps to ensure the accuracy of the information presented in this infographic, BioLogiQ makes no representations or warranties with respect to the information provided herein.

NuPlastiQ® seems to be acting as a bioremediation trigger that enable naturally–occurring microbes to bioremediate plastics lost in the environment. 

Biodegradability and Compostability

Products made with BioLogiQ’s NuPlastiQ® are durable and shelf-stable. They will not accelerate fragmentation simply because of the presence of oxygen or UV light. 

BioBlend BC Resins:
NuPlastiQ will typically accelerate biodegradability of compostable resins such as PBS, PHA, PBAT or PLA, expanding the envelope of certifiable applications. In its pure form, NuPlastiQ has biodegraded as fast as cellulose under ASTM D5338 and D6691. 

NuPlastiQ and several BioBlend BC grades have passed standardized tests for compostability and are certified by TUV to meet the criteria specified in ASTM D6400 and EN 13432. Some BioBlend BC grades have also passed the China Standard Biodegradability Test GB/T 19277.1-2011.

Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Savings

At BioLogiQ we are committed to preserving the quality of life we all enjoy here on the planet. Excessive reliance on fossil fuels over the past 100 years has created worldwide concerns about changes in climate, long-lived pollution, and the fact that fossil fuel, in general, is a finite resource.

We make plastic from annually renewable starch (NuPlastiQ resin) rather than petroleum to address the many valid concerns. 

Mixing BioLogiQ’s NuPlastiQ BioPolymers resins with any of the petroleum-based plastic resins has dramatic and immediate effects on the carbon emissions (CO2) that ultimately affect the growing “greenhouse gas” problem. Our resins can be used as a “drop-in” replacement for a portion of polyethylene, polypropylene or polystyrene, etc. No special equipment is required for manufacturers to use our resins and there is no increase in labor costs. It simply works.

GHG Savings at a glance:

NuPlastiQ® offers significant GHG savings when blended with fossil-based resins.

  • Thanks to plant-based content and efficient conversion, NuPlastiQ is basically carbon neutral:
    • Study carried out by thinkstep, Inc. concluded that NuPlastiQ has a cradle-to-gate carbon footprint of approximately -0.2 kg of CO2-eq. per kg of resin. That includes energy that is required to compound NuPlastiQ with a partner resin.
  • Example of a product containing 25% NuPlastiQ (figure to the left)
    •   Baseline LDPE structure: 1 kg of LDPE with a GWP of 1.87 kg CO2-eq.
    • New structure with NuPlastiQ :
      • 0.25 kg of NuPlastiQ with a GWP of -0.05 kg CO2-eq. [0.25 x -0.2]
      • 0.75 kg of LDPE with a GWP of 1.40 kg CO2-eq. [0.75 x 1.87]
      • Total GWP of 1.35 kg CO2-eq. [-0.05 + 1.40]
  • Quick way to estimate GHG savings from including NuPlastiQ in a blend:
    • For practical purposes, the resin related, cradle-to-gate GHG saving in a blend of NuPlastiQ with a fossil-based material (e.g. LDPE) will be roughly equal to the percentage of NuPlastiQ in the blend

Please recognize the limitations of such simplified calculations. While useful to estimate the resin related benefit, they are not inclusive of all factors when a final product is considered: printing inks, label, resin processing energy (e.g. injection molding), etc. Consult an LCA expert prior to LCA-related claims.

For a more detailed explanation of NuPlastiQ’s GHG profile, please continue to the next “In depth” section.

In Depth:

A Story Worth Telling

ASTM organizational member
WPO World Packaging Organization
JBPA Japan BioPlastics Association
Japan Clean Ocean Material Alliance
Plastics Industry Association
Vincotte
APR The association of Plastic Recyclers
Tater Made Sustainable bags
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