A new polymer made from exhaust gas containing CO₂ holds promise as a “green” substitute for ABS, says German E&E giant Siemens (Munich; www.siemens.com). In an ongoing project funded by the German federal research ministry, BMBF (www.bmbf.de/en), to find industrial applications for CO₂, Siemens is cooperating with academic and industrial partners such as universities in Hamburg and Munich as well as chemical and plastics giant BASF (Ludwigshafen / Germany; www.basf.com).

The new composite material is being touted as a “competitive” ecological alternative to ABS, for example in household appliances. The polymer mixture contains polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) made from renewable raw materials such as palm oil and starch. As PHB is brittle, polypropylene carbonate (PCC) manufactured by BASF is used in the process to make the mixture softer. The PPC input, consisting of 43% of CO₂ by weight, is being obtained from power plant emissions. Along with being transparent, biodegradable and resistant to light, the polymer is easily processed, the researchers say.

Renewable raw materials producer Cognis (Monheim / Germany: www.cognis.com), a leading supplier of palm oil and starch and now part of BASF, could also come into play in the new product, claimed to consist of up to more than 70% of green polymers. Siemens affiliate Bosch-Siemens-Hausgeräte (BSH, Munich; www.bsh-group.com) has already produced a vacuum cleaner cover from the new material under series-production conditions. The next related project to be tackled by the research team of Siemens, BSH and BASF will explore the replacement of other types of plastics with CO₂-based composites.