VATIS UPDATE Article

BASF, Germany, is expanding its range of high performance foam products with the innovative, certified compostable particle foam ecovio® EA. The product is predominantly biobased and, like all of the grades under the ecovio® brand, it supports the biological cycle through its certified compostability. The excellent properties of the patented particle foam make it particularly suitable for transport packaging for high-value or delicate goods where a high level of impact resistance and robustness is vital.

The product properties are similar to those of EPS and boast outstanding energy absorption and very good resilience even when subjected to multiple impact loads. The high biobased content and the certified compostability make ecovio EA particularly attractive wherever a fossil packaging solution no longer meets customers’ requirements for a biobased and biodegradable transport solution.

ecovio EA is the first expandable, closed-cell foam material which is biobased and certified compostable. It consists of the biodegradable BASF polymer ecoflex® and polylactic acid (PLA), which is derived from corn or other sugar-generating plants like manioc. To produce ecovio EA, expandable granules are charged with the blowing agent pentane in an innovative process. This step enables trouble-free pre-expansion of the material on conventional EPS pre-expanders and subsequent molding.