Industrial Composting: What It Is and How It Works

image comparing how long it takes for conventional plastic to decompose compared to bioplastics

The world is awash in traditional, petroleum-based plastics that are choking our waterways and filling up our landfills. Here at UrthPact, we’re committed to compostable plastic products, providing manufacturers and consumers with the plastics they want and need, but created using environmentally-friendly, biodegradable raw materials that can be safely composted to nourish the earth.

Today, in addition to the conventional backyard compost pile or bin that can efficiently handle small amounts of waste materials from lawns, gardens and kitchens there are industrial composting facilities designed to effectively process large volumes of municipal and commercial waste.

There are basically three techniques used in industrial composting: windrow, in-vessel, and aerated static pile composting. Windrow composting is an open-air process that places the composting material into long piles approximately 5 feet high called “windrows.” These windrows are turned regularly to ensure that all the composting materials spends some time in the warm, moist center of the pile where bacterial activity produces heat that encourages further breakdown. Because windrow composting is on open air process, it is used primarily for yard and garden waste to help control odor.

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Bioplastic Manufacturing

bioplastic manufacturingWhat is Bioplastic Manufacturing?

Bioplastic manufacturing is the next-generation solution for manufacturing inexpensive, durable, attractive plastic products that are more earth-friendly and environmentally-safe than traditional petrochemical-based plastics.

Bioplastic manufacturing uses renewable biomass sources such as plant-based feedstocks including corn, rice, palm fiber, potatoes, wood cellulose and other plants. Unlike bioplastic manufacturing, traditional manufacturing of conventional plastic products utilizes non-renewable petroleum and natural gas resources. Their manufacturing processes are wasteful and not very environmentally-friendly. And while most plastics can be recycled, very few are. In fact, plastic is one of the fastest growing components of the general waste stream and one of the most expensive discarded materials for municipalities to manage.

Bioplastic Manufacturing at Urthpact

Traditional injection molding processes do not work very well for bioplastic manufacturing and making compostable, plant-based bioplastics. In order to develop an efficient, cost-effective means of bioplastic manufacturing , we had to rethink everything – from raw stock processing to mold-making to finishing.

We have spent a lot of time and effort closely examining various ways to develop processes for bioplastic manufacturing and utilize plastics made from plants, not petroleum. We discovered that bioplastics such as those produced here at UrthPact share many of the same properties of traditional plastics, just none of the environmentally-unfriendly ones. Bioplastic manufacturing can provide products with the same look, feel, and functionality of conventional petroleum-based plastics, but utilizing attractive, durable bioplastic that can be composted and safely converted into soil components within as little as three months.

Here at UrthPact, we’re committed to developing next-gen bioplastic technology and materials for bioplastic manufacturing to help consumer products companies produce better plastic products in a renewable, ecological way that doesn’t harm the environment.

To find out more about how UrthPact can help you make the change to eco-friendly bioplastics, contact us today.

From Zero to Hero: Zero Waste Initiatives

image of the grandstands and field at Fenway Park

Zero waste initiatives are gathering steam, especially, in large sporting venues and airports which historically have generated considerable solid waste from vendors and thousands of fans and travelers. Major ballparks such as Boston’s beloved Fenway Park and the Los Angeles Coliseum, as well as international airports such as Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson are all getting on board with zero waste initiatives designed to drive down the cost of waste processing and removal as well as promote greener, more conscientious treatment of the environment.

Fenway Park, home of the Boston Red Sox, is the oldest ballpark in the country, but it’s also one of the most advanced when it comes to recycling and composting. Fenway Park is now a single-stream recycling facility, meaning all recyclable materials can be co-mingled, including plastic, cardboard, and paper – encouraging fans to recycle their food containers and programs instead of just tossing them in a trash can.

Even Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport is getting in on the recycling action. As one of the busiest airports in the world, it was ripe for adopting an aggressive approach to recycling and began planning for a first-of-its-kind recycling and composting facility on airport grounds. While the project is still in the planning and proposal stage, the city is looking to have the program up and running by 2020.

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