Biodegradable

Biodegradation is a chemical process during which microorganisms that are available in the environment convert materials into natural substances such as water, carbon dioxide (CO2), and compost (no artificial additives needed). The process (e.g. time) of biodegradation depends on the surrounding environmental conditions (e.g. location or temperature), on the material and on the application itself.

Biodegradable in soil/sea-water

Biodegradation in soil refers to degradation to CO2 corresponding or exceeding 90 w.-% within 2 years in soil. Spectabio B / T grades and Bioblend B / T grades can be considered as biodegradable in soil/sea-water.

Compostable (according to EN 13432)

Compostable addresses the following characteristics: biodegradability (namely the capability of the compostable material to be converted into CO2 under the action of microorganisms; the standard contains a mandatory threshold of at least 90 % biodegradation that must be reached in less than 6 months), disintegration during biological treatment (namely fragmentation and loss of visibility in the final compost), effect on the biological treatment process (namely no negative effects on the composting process) and effect on the quality of the resulting compost (amount of heavy metals has to be below given maximum values, and the final compost must not be affected negatively). All materials labelled with “Made to Degrade” are compostable according to EN 13432 (Spectabio and Bioblend line).

Compostable plastics can be completely decomposed by micro-organisms, enzymes produced by special bacteria can break down the flexible polymeric chains of materials into small molecules. These small molecules and other organic materials such as organic waste, are then digested by micro-organisms, which eventually allow water, carbon dioxide, and biomass to remain. For example, polylactic acid (PLA) can be decomposed into water and carbon dioxide in soil, sewage, rivers, and oceans under the action of micro-organisms such as bacteria in just 3-6 months. Throughout this cycle, there is no need to recycle or compost, the total amount of water and carbon dioxide is balanced. The greenhouse effect in the atmosphere is not increased and no pollution is caused to the environment.