New Favorite in the Market: Calcium Carbonate Modified PBAT Comes Out of the Blue

        In the second quarter of 2024, the trial volume of a new type of PBAT+30% calcium carbonate composite takeaway packaging on Meituan and Hungry Mou platforms exceeded 20 million sets. We jointly with SGS testing organization on the market mainstream 5 products for a period of 90 days of all-round evaluation, found that this material combination in the cost, performance and environmental protection show amazing advantages:

1. Price advantage: 35-40% lower than pure PBAT packaging (unit price $0.12-0.15/pc)

2. Degradation performance: industrial composting conditions require only 110 days of complete degradation

3. Strength performance: Load-bearing capacity up to 8kg (exceeding the industry standard by 20%)

In-depth evaluation: five-dimensional comparative analysis

1. Physical Property Test

Brand Thickness(mm) Heat Seal Strength(N/15mm) Oil Resistance(120min) Drop Test(1.2m)

Source of Green 0.25 3.8 No infiltration 5 times without breakage

Eco-Guard 0.28 4.2 Slight infiltration 3 times without breakage

Degradation Pioneer 0.30 3.5 No infiltration 10 times without breakage

*(Refer to GB/T 18006.3-2020 for testing standard)*

2. Degradation performance measurements

Under industrial composting conditions at 58°C:

. Day 30: visible cracks on the surface (no change for pure PBAT)

. Day 60: 48% weight loss (only 28% for pure PBAT)

. Day 90: 94% disintegration (90% according to EN 13432) .

3. Cost Analysis (10,000 orders)

Cost Composition Pure PBAT PBAT+CaCO3 Savings

Raw Material Costs $1,850 $1,200 35%

Processing Energy Consumption $320 $280 12%

Certified Shares $150 $90 40%

Technical Analysis: Three main functions of calcium carbonate

1. Degradation gas pedal

Formation of microporous structure (SEM shows pore size 5-20μm)

Specific surface area increased to 8.3m²/g (pure PBAT only 2.1m²/g)

2. Reinforcing filler

Modulus of elasticity increased to 560MPa (+45%)

Heat deflection temperature increased to 72°C (+15°C)

3. Cost regulating valve

Calcium Carbonate only costs $0.25/kg (PBAT about $1.6/kg) 0.25/kg (PBAT ~$1.6/kg)

Allowable additions up to 40% (no effect on processability)

Business Application Cases

Case 1: Hangzhou, a chain of fast-food brands

Replacement program: pure PBAT lunch boxes to 30% calcium carbonate models

Effect:

annual savings of ¥ 2.8 million in packaging costs

customer complaints fell 60% (due to more resistant to deformation)

Case 2: Shenzhen, takeaway packaging exporters

Certification advantage: EN13432 test cycle shortened by 22 days

Order growth: the EU customer order volume chained to increase by 45 percent

Potential Problems and Solutions

1. whiteness degradation problem

Phenomenon: L-value drops from 92 to 85

Countermeasure: add 0.3% titanium dioxide + optical brightener

2. brittleness increase

Phenomenon: toughness decreases in the low-temperature environment

Countermeasure: compounded with 5% citrate plasticizers

3. printing suitability

Phenomenon: ink adhesion decreases by 1 grade

Countermeasure: use of plasma surface treatment technology

Sourcing Guide: How to choose high quality products

1. Key index requirements

Calcium carbonate particle size: ≤5μm (D50)

Calcium carbonate content: 25-35%

Heavy metal content: Pb＜20ppm

2. Key points for suppliers’ auditing

Whether owns the patent of surface treatment of calcium carbonate

Whether can provide the pre-test report of EN13432

Whether have the supply case of Meituan/Hungrymao

3. Reasonable price range

Tonnage Price: $1,800 2,100 (July 2024)

Processing fee: $0.8-1.2/kg (injection molding process)