Using a graphene masterbatch in plastic packaging films improves mechanical properties and spares resources

Plastics are crucial materials in many innovations that are helping to reduce greenhouse emissions. However, there is no denying that plastic waste causes considerable damage to the environment. That makes it all the more important to be careful and environmentally responsible in our use of plastics. The addition of graphene can not only improve the mechanical properties of packaging films and spare resources, and thus lower production costs, but can also make a valuable contribution by improving the recyclability of PE and PP.

The key here is the effective use of graphene and the importance of it being uniformly distributed throughout the polymer matrix. This can be achieved with the Poly-G products from Gerdau Graphene, which are the first graphene masterbatches based on PP and PE to be produced on an industrial scale.

Costs are reduced while the tensile strength of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) packaging films is increased

Gerdau, the largest Brazilian steel producer, is conscious of its necessity to reduce the impacts of plastic production, and has made it its goal to research sustainable materials such as graphene. Graphene is known for its extraordinary mechanical properties and is good for greatly improving processes and the performance of the final products in which it is used.  

The incentive to conduct research in this field came from the challenge of preventing nails from puncturing their own packaging while being filled into it. At the end of 2022, Gerdau merged with Gerdau Graphene to work on improving puncture resistance using Poly-G. This groundbreaking graphene masterbatch of an industrial scale was specially developed to achieve effective transport and uniform distribution of graphene in the polymer matrix of packaging materials.

The result is that packaging suffers 39% less damage, the packaging material has obtained better mechanical properties, and plastic production has increased by 33% per kilogram of polymer. This has resulted in a 9.8% reduction of costs per packaging unit.

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Material savings and improvements in mechanical properties of packaging films are already significant at low application concentrations

Adding just 1% of the Poly-G graphene masterbatch to LDPE can already achieve significant improvements in films.  Especially worth noting here is that the layer thickness is reduced by 25% while stretchability is even increased. This means a considerable amount of unprocessed polymer can be saved each year, and thereby less plastic waste needs to be disposed of at dumps or in recycling centres.

Great attention was given to ensuring the masterbatch would not affect the recycling process, since the aim is also to offer a solution that fits seamlessly into different products and industrial processes without requiring significant capital investments or extensive process revisions. This ready-to-use approach has always been an important aspect in the development.

An important contribution to sustainability and securing future competitiveness

The efficiency of the graphene masterbatch goes a long way towards achieving the goals of the environmental programme of the United Nations. By reducing plastic wastes, promoting reuse and improving recyclability, this masterbatch is in tune with the SDG (Sustainable Development Goals) of the United Nations for 2030.  Thus, the Poly-G graphene masterbatch is an important contribution in the circular economy and in sustainability, and thus towards securing long-term competitiveness in terms of the ever growing importance of protecting the environment and conserving resources.