The challenges and opportunities within the South African plastics industry topped the agenda at the third annual Innovation Forum that took place in Johannesburg recently.

The event, which was organised by Plastics SA, in partnership with the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), sought to encourage innovation in the plastics industry.

Kirtida Bhana, Plastics SA’s Training Executive, says that through the event they hoped to encourage collaboration between industries in the plastics sector and research entities such as CSIR in order to find new and innovative solutions to the challenges that are currently being faced.

Enhancing plastic material capabilities

According to Dr Vincent Ojijo, Senior Researcher and Facility Manager at the DST-CSIR Nanomaterials Industrial Development Facility (NIDF) and the first speaker on the day, the CSIR is getting more involved in recyclate.

The CSIR is able to compound 10-20 kg/h of polypropylene (PP) at its facility where it also does modifications and grafting to produce a material that is more rigid and tougher, called Polyzimo. Patent application for Polyzimo has been made in four countries, including, China, India, South Africa and USA.

“We want to partner with industry members to commercialise this material which allows for beneficiation of the homo-PP to expand its applications,” Dr Ojijo said.

Developing bio-based and bio-compostable polymers

In another interesting development, the CSIR is currently also investigating the value-added use of agricultural biomass residues, from for instance the sugarcane and wood industries, for the development of sustainable bio-based polymers and chemicals.

Dr Manfred Scriba, Programme Manager at the DST-CSIR National Centre for Nano-Structured Materials, invited the recycling industry and brand owners to further interaction towards finding solutions, as bio-degradable materials are understandably a sensitive topic in this industry.

Facing the challenges in the plastics industry with innovative solutions

Various aspects of the local plastics industry were explained and highlighted by presentations that were delivered by industry experts.

These speakers highlighted challenges that they were facing, such as pressure from global imports, plastic packaging that was not recyclable or designed with recycling in mind, improving the recovery of waste and ensuring access to good quality, uncontaminated materials for recycling.

Despite these obstacles, however, it was clear that the plastics industry is committed to succeeding, growing new markets and ensuring that it remains globally competitive through adhering to international standards of quality