ARF24 - Sustainable Biodegradable Green Composites from Distillers'
Dried Grains with Solubles (DDGS) and Bioplastics

| Alternative Renewable Fuels - Project Summaries 2007-08|

Researcher:

Dr. Amar Mohanty, Dept. of Plant Agriculture and School of Engineering, University of Guelph

Objectives:

To find sustainable development of alternative fuel industries through value-added engineering uses of a downstream product of the corn ethanol industry. The target is to engineer a new class of biodegradable composites by the combination of Distillers' Dried Grains with Solubles (DDGS), a major coproduct of the corn ethanol industry and corn-derived polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA)-based bioplastics. The developed green composites are targeted to substitute a class of petroleum-based composites for applications in the (i) automotive interiors (instrument panel and packaging tray) and (ii) indoor construction panels.

Specific Objectives:

1. To develop sustainable and affordable biobased composite materials that can substitute for certain petroleum-based composite materials with added advantages of eco-friendliness and reduced green house gas emission.

2. To divert huge amount of a downstream product, DDGS from inexpensive animal feeds applications to value-added industrial products.

3. To co-relate the value-added industrial products with bioethanol energy economically in a total biorefinery concept on the principle of "cradle-to grave".
   

Expected Benefits:

The innovative and synergistic integration of engineered DDGS and bioplastics will result in sustainable biocomposites that can replace synthetic petroleum-based composites on a cost-performance basis with the added benefit of being an eco-friendly "green" product. The proposed activity will develop the science and engineering knowledge for a new generation of biocomposites that will provide an intellectual platform for the sustainable development of biofuel industry.

Summary of Research Results:

Not currently available