Corn spindles asfoamed packaging material

Corn harvesting of grains of combine harvester can be upgraded can be harvested the corn spindles, so the corn on the cob of the grains, in addition to the corn. Corn spindles are thermally previously used or processed into corn spindle granules. Corn spindle granules in turn is used as bedding – or adsorption materials.

Loick organic value fabric GmbH and the Fraunhofer Institute for wood research (WKI) in sight have a new way of usage. You want to use corn spindles as raw material for the manufacture of pressure-resistant foamed packaging material. This is used in the furniture industry in large quantities as edge and corner protectors. The market volume is approximately 100,000 tons per year in Europe. Moreover, similar material that is used in the packaging of electronic and IT products. So far, especially packaging material made of polystyrene is used.

To the spindles of the corn is processed with water and mechanical crushing to a highly viscous suspension. Wood fibres are mixed with this suspension. The mixture is foamed initiated gases or propellants. A porous, stable foam body is formed while drying. This foam is made 100% from lignocellulose, additional binders are not necessary. He is resistant to pressure and should have between 40 kg / m³ densities and 300 kg / m. The previously produced specimens are promising.