Page 42 - Plastics News June - 2020

Tamil Nadu bans plastic packaging of goods, Chamber objects

The Tamil Nadu government has banned plastic
packaging of items even at the manufacturing stage.
This means even items like biscuits and chips can no
longer be packed in plastic covers. So far such items
were exempted even as the state government banned
since January 2019 on a range of single-use plastic
items, like carry bags. The Environment and Forest
department had on June 5 issued an order to this effect.
However, the order came to light only on Tuesday June 9.
Officials said it has to be enforced with immediate
effect, but it is unclear as to how authorities will
proceed with the enforcement when Tamil Nadu,
especially Chennai and neighboring districts are
registering a record number of Covid-19 cases each
passing day. According to a notification, plastic bags,
and Technology. The alternative packaging material has
which constitute or form an “integral part of packaging”
in which goods are sealed prior to use at manufacturing to be "compostable plastics". Such alternatives should
or processing units, are not exempted any more from the also get sanctioned by the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control
plastic ban. The decision comes in the backdrop of the Board. However, Tamil Nadu chamber of commerce and
Madras high court's repeated observations that the state industry has strongly objected GO (MS) No. 37 issued by
the Tamil Nadu government on June 5 that bans all usage
government must take steps to ban single use plastics
that are used for packaging at the manufacturing stage. of plastics for primary packaging. Its senior president S
The government order says that alternatives will be Rethinavelu said no viable and cost-effective alternative
explored by the Central Institute of Plastic Engineering has been found for plastic for packaging.

IIT Madras researchers use agri waste, plastic to make biofuel
Team develops microwave-assisted pyrolysis process to competitive with fossil fuels, their oxygenate content
achieve the goal. Researchers at the Indian Institute of must be reduced and hydrogen content increased.
Technology Madras have developed a microwave process “Mixing biomass with hydrogen-rich materials during
to produce biofuel from plastic waste, rice straw and pyrolysis can conceivably make biomass derived bio-oil
sugarcane bagasse. A comparable to fossil-derived fuels in calorific value and
t e a m o f t h r e e chemical/physical properties,” Mr. Vinu explained.
researchers led by R.
When plastics, rich in hydrogen, are added to biomass
V i n u , a s s o c i a t e
professor in Chemical they enable conversion to low-oxygenate bio-oils.
e n g i n e e r i n g Plastics also help to produce bio-oils with better
properties besides tackling the waste. Bio-oils not only
d e p a r t m e n t ,
published its research yield high energy and fuel but also reduce char
formation. The team microwaved a variety of biomass
work in peer-reviewed
journal 'Bioresource including rice straw, sugarcane bagasse, groundnut
Technology and Fuel shells, wood sawdust and wood from Seemai karuvelam
tree (Angaraji babul in Hindi, scientific name Prosopis
P r o c e s s i n g
Technology'. Biomass, juliflora) with two synthetic plastics, polypropylene and
as a renewable source polystyrene.“We believe that microwave-assisted
o f c a r b o n w i t h pyrolysis process is a sustainable and energy efficient
immense potential, leaves no carbon footprint. approach for resource recovery from a wide variety of
wastes such as biomass agri residues, plastic wastes
“Agricultural waste products such as rice straw,
sugarcane bagasse and wood chips can potentially serve including disposed single-use plastics and non-reusable
as bio-oil producing biomass,” he said. To make bio-oils face masks, and a mixture of these,” Mr. Vinu added.
GAIL (India) funded the research.

June 2020 42 Plastics News