As many of you avid soccer (also known as “football” outside of the U.S.) fans know, the 2010 FIFA World Cup kicks off on June 11, 2010 in South Africa and will end on July 11. This event is an international competition that is held every four years by members of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the sport’s global governing body. The current format of the tournament involves 32 teams competing for the title. Overall the World Cup is the most widely-viewed sporting event in the world, with an estimated 715.1 million people watching the 2006 final on television. By way of comparison, “only” an estimated 153.4 million viewers watched all or part of this year’s Super Bowl.

This year many of the world’s top soccer players, including Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal, will be wearing shirts made of old plastic bottles at the World Cup. Nike said shirts for the nine national teams wearing its gear (which includes Portugal, Holland, the U.S. and one of the favorites Brazil) would be made from polyester recycled from used bottles. Each shirt uses up to eight plastic bottles retrieved from Japanese and Taiwanese landfill sites. Nike’s fabric suppliers were able to take the plastic bottles and melt them down to produce new yarn that was ultimately converted to fabric for jerseys. The shirts will keep players drier and cooler than previous kits while reducing energy consumption in manufacture by 30% compared to normal polyester. Manufacture of the shirts, which will also be sold to fans, used 13 million plastic bottles – enough to fill 29 football pitches.

Nike isn’t the only company to manufacture shirts out of plastic bottles. Coca-Cola’s Drink2Wear shirts are also made out of recycled bottles, and Patagonia started manufacturing fleece out of post-consumer bottles in 1993 with little fanfare. (Previously we have blogged about Wyndham Hotels’ initiative to institute polyester employee uniforms derived from post-consumer products.) By featuring this technology at a major sporting event watched by millions, Nike is letting the world know that the technology is worth our attention. I couldn’t agree more

Recently I was talking with a contact from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA’s) Marine Debris Program (MDP).  The MDP serves as a centralized marine debris capability within NOAA in order to coordinate, strengthen and increase the visibility of marine debris issues and efforts within the agency, its partners and the public.  This program is undertaking a national and international effort focusing on identifying, reducing and preventing debris in the marine environment. (Of course, SPI’s own marine debris initiative, Operation Clean Sweep, includes approximately 200 companies that have pledged to take necessary management steps to ensure that spilled resin pellets do not make their way to local waterways or the ocean.)  

Through the years, SPI has worked with MDP staff on an educational front including last year’s pre-NPE2009 event entitled “Polymers and the Environment: Emerging Technologies and Science” co-sponsored by SPI and the BioEnvironmental Polymer Society (BEPS).  Dr. Holly Bamford, Marine Debris Program Director and Division Chief, spoke at the conference regarding marine debris issues and the plastics industry.

In talking with my contact, I was interested to hear about a recent program the MDP has undertaken to turn derelict fishing nets (one of the larger contributors to marine debris) into energy.  The Nets-to-Energy Program has taken the fishing net situation and used it as an opportunity to turn the waste into something beneficial: usable electricity.

The whole concept of “waste-to-energy” is not new to the plastics industry.  As SPI President Bill Carteaux has blogged about, plastics are derived from petroleum or natural gas giving them a stored energy value higher than any other material commonly found in the waste stream.  According to one source:

“…plastics have a high calorific value, equivalent to or higher than that of coal, so can provide a very useful source of energy after serving their useful life as a plastics product. Plastics left in municipal waste incinerators (energy-from-waste plants) help generate useful power and heat, while using separated fractions such as paper/plastic mixtures as alternative fuels in power stations offer the prospect of replacing coal and reducing the emission of greenhouse gases.”

In Europe more than 380 waste-to-energy plants exist to deliver energy (heat and electricity) to citizens and industry.  According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), there are only about 90 waste-to-energy plants in the U.S.  However these plants generate enough electricity to supply almost 3 million households.  Imagine what more plants could do.  The idea of recovering energy from plastic is one that should continue to be explored.  As the nation seeks to increase its energy security and looks to sources of new and alternative energy, energy recovery through plastics should be part of the mix.

Life-cycle assessments (LCAs) have become a hot topic in the plastics industry.  According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), a LCA…

 “…is a ‘cradle-to-grave’ approach for assessing industrial systems. “Cradle-to-grave” begins with the gathering of raw materials from the earth to create the product and ends at the point when all materials are returned to the earth… a LCA provides a comprehensive view of the environmental aspects of the product or process and a more accurate picture of the true environmental trade-offs in product and process selection.”

Several years ago, EPA’s Design for the Environment (DfE) program worked with representatives of the wire and cable industry to evaluate the environmental impacts of the current standard material formulations and alternative formulations used in insulation and jacketing for selected wire and cable products. The final LCA report was issued in 2008.

Members of SPI’s Wire and Cable Section of the Fluoropolymers Committee, many of whom were part of the EPA project, decided to build off of the DfE report.  The recently released peer-reviewed SPI report compares the life-cycle environmental impacts of fluorinated ethylene propylene (FEP)-insulated plenum-rated communication wire (CMP) cable to a polyethylene (PE)-insulated rise-rated communication cable (CMR) encased in a metal conduit in plenum space. 

Ok, so what does that actually mean? From a basic building standpoint, “plenum space” typically refers to the space between the structural ceiling and dropped ceiling and is used to house communication cables for a building’s computer and telephone network.  Because plenum spaces are typically rich in oxygen, they pose a potential risk to a building in the event of a fire.  As a result, fluoropolymer resins, which have excellent durability in fire situations to meet and exceed safety codes and outstanding chemical and thermal resistance, are often used in the plenum space.  However building codes in Chicago and Las Vegas make the use of CMR in metal conduit more prevalent.  In addition, the use of CMR cable in conduit in Europe is common given the lack of built in plenum space.

This project scientifically evaluated the complete life-cycle impacts of functionally equivalent cable installation alternatives (i.e., FEP cable versus a PE-insulated cable in metal conduit) to quantify the differences between these alternatives so that so that electrical engineers, architects and building owners can make environmentally informed decisions.  The findings of the report were fascinating and provided detailed information about both options.  In order to make an educated decision when evaluating which option to use, you need to check this free report out.

As I was wandering the toy aisles shopping for my niece, I looked up and saw one of my favorite toys from years past – Shrinky Dinks (“the incredible shrinking plastic.”)  In case you haven’t heard of Shrinky Dinks, the base material consists of thin, flexible polystyrene plastic sheets.  Before you heat them, the plastic sheets (which are often in cool shapes and designs) can be colored with felt-tip pens, acrylic paint and colored pencils.  Once you are done with the design, then you place the Shrinky Dinks piece you created into a home oven or toaster oven for two magic minutes and watch as they shrink to approximately 1/3rd their original size and become nine times thicker.  The whole process is a great mini-science experiment – plus you can tap into your creative side as well. (By the way, this is the same process used to “shrink wrap” meats or other grocery items that have protective plastic wraps.)

Then I got thinking of my younger years and all of my favorite toys that never would have been without plastics…first off, the Rubik’s Cube – mainly made of acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) and nylon —  is a 3-D mechanical puzzle that I spent many hours trying to solve (I’m still trying).  The Cube was invented in 1974. As of January 2009, 350 million cubes have sold worldwide, making it the world’s top-selling puzzle game.

The engineer in me also loved Legos (see the basic red Lego brick above). Originally designed in the 1940s in Europe, Legos also are made of ABS and consist of colorful interlocking plastic bricks and an accompanying array of gears, mini figures and various other parts. Lego bricks can be assembled and connected in many ways, to construct objects such as vehicles, buildings, and even working robots. Anything constructed can then be taken apart again, and the pieces used to make other objects. This toy provides endless hours of fun and imagination.

And who could forget the Wacky WallWalker toy?  Molded out of a sticky elastomer and found in conjunction with classic 1980s cereals, the Wacky WallWalker was shaped similar to an octopus. When thrown against a wall it would “walk” its way down, which made it a hugely popular toy.

Moving on to characters, I was always partial to the Smurfs, a group of small blue creatures who lived in a village somewhere in the woods. The Belgian cartoonist Peyo introduced Smurfs to the world in a series of comic strips. But in the U.S. toy Smurfs (made out of vinyl) for kids to play with didn’t become big in the 1980s until an animated series hit the TVs.

Lastly what about the Cabbage Patch Kids?  A doll brand originally created in the late 1970s, Cabbage Patch Kids had large, round vinyl heads and soft fabric bodies and were all the rage.  I remember that parents camped out a toy stores when they heard a new shipment of Cabbage Patch Kids were arriving. This TIME magazine article discusses the Cabbage Patch riots and hysteria of 1983.

Plastics made these great toys possible. Lite Brite and Barrel of Monkeys are other plastic-based old favorites that come to mind. Ah, the joys of childhood and toy nostalgia. The walk down memory lane brings a smile to my face and makes me thankful for plastics and the role they played in my youth.

As someone who is considering buying a new car, I wanted to do some research as to the latest makes and models. During my research I happened to stumble upon the recent unveilings at the IAA (Internationale Automobil Ausstellung) show in Frankfurt a few weeks ago. I found it really impressive and indicative of the future of plastics and automobiles.

We all are aware of the important role that plastics play in the world of automobiles.  Plastics are used in a wide range of parts – including batteries, body panels, bumpers, dashboard, fuel systems, lighting systems, airbags and upholstery. In addition, plastics offer a bevy of benefits, including:

• Weight savings to support reduction of fuel consumption and carbon dioxide emissions
• No corrosion allowing longer life vehicles
• Substantial design freedom allowing advanced creativity and innovation
• Flexibility in integrating components
• Safety, comfort and economy

So what new and futuristic uses of plastics were exhibited?  For one, BMW showed off a hybrid two-seater as part of its Vision EfficientDynamics program.  The car uses a roof and outer door skins made of what the company calls a “special polycarbonate glass” that automatically darkens as light shines on the car. In addition, the window panes are covered with a polycarbonate laminate on the inside in order to prevent shattered glass particles from penetrating the interior (which could be very important if one got in an accident).

Design consultancy EDAG presented its 150km (93 mile) range all-electric drive light car concept for the first time. The concept design uses “Composite Solar Modules” that feature highly flexible solar panels. These panels are embedded in transparent plastics such as poly(methyl methacrylate) and polycarbonate.

Volkswagen continues to refine its plans for a hyper-efficient car and unveiled the L1 prototype car which is capable of driving 158 mpg.  (See the cool video of this car above.)  To achieve such high levels of efficiency, Volkswagen engineers focused on making the L1 as light and aerodynamic as possible. Carbon fiber skin keeps the body weight to just 273 pounds, while the whole car weighs less than 850 pounds.  Drag has also been reduced by replacing the side mirrors with cameras and enclosing the entire underbody.  If it weren’t for the plastics, this car could not have been created.

Yes, I know that many of the cars unveiled at the show are still in prototype phases.  However,  I’m excited to see cool new uses of plastics in the next generation automobile. Now, if only I could find that 100+ mpg car at my local dealer today.