MERI P LAST ®

A novel protein-based bioplastic

Revealing the potential of wheat proteins

Wheat gluten is unique amongst vegetable proteins
due to its specific visco-elastic properties, which
are notably essential for quality in bread making.
SYRAL has developed a process which enables to
maintain the visco-elasticity of wheat gluten into
a novel flexible and elastic biomaterial.

A n o v e l f l e x i b l e a n d e l a s t i c b i o m at e r i a l

MERIPLAST® is a novel bioplastic entirely made from raw materials derived from agriculture and is fully
biodegradable. This material has specific flexibility and elasticity properties, which makes it unique amongst
the biodegradable and renewable materials currently available. MERIPLAST® is fully bio-based, it is both
renewable and biodegradable.

Applications The range

The targeted applications of MERIPLAST® are moulded Different grades that vary in extensibility and tensile
objects for interior such as toys, leather imitation for strength can be produced. The material’s natural colour
office products (covers), design articles, pieces of furniture. is light brown but it can be coloured into a wide variety
Applications are still in the development phase. of tints.
Processability
MERIPLAST® can be processed on standard rubber
processing machinery (injection moulding, calandering).
W h y u s e MERI P LAST® ? Figure 1: The natural colour
of MERIPLAST® is light brown.

›› Sustainability
MERIPLAST® is 100% based on renewable raw materials
(wheat and oilseeds such as rapeseed or sunflower) and
100% biodegradable. The production process is very
mild and fully complies with the principles of green
chemistry.
›› Mechanical and physical properties
MERIPLAST® has unique flexibility & elasticity properties.
It shows a good resistance to torsion and folding. It is not
soluble in water but a prolonged immersion in water will
affect the materials’ mechanical properties.
›› Sensory
MERIPLAST® displays outstanding sensory properties. It
has a very good touch, a good grip without stickiness, it is
permeable and absorbs water. It has a pleasant cereal smell.
›› Safety
MERIPLAST® is not toxic when degraded in farmland soil.
It does not burn in normal atmospheric conditions: it has
a limited oxygen index (LOI) above 21% (22 and 26% for
MERIPLAST® N60 and N50 respectively).

MERIPLAST® life cycle

Agricultural production

wheat oilseeds

coproduct coproduct

SYRAL
p at e n t e d
process
Bio-ethanol Bio-diesel

MERIPLAST®
b i o d e g r a d at i o n
100%

Figure 2: Prototypes of finished products made of MERIPLAST®

Pac k ag i n g a n d s to r ag e
MERIPLAST® is available in 15 kg
reels with endless strands of 13-14
mm diameter (Figure 3). Different
packaging is available on request. The
product should be stored in a cool,
dry place with good ventilation.
Figure 3:
MERIPLAST® packaging
Processing conditions
MERIPLAST® is thermosetting and
has a processing viscosity similar to
uncured rubbers. Consequently, it can
be shaped using traditional rubber
injection technology, for example
Conical frustum on REP machinery (REP International,
69960 Corbas, France) (Figure 4).
Two plates obtained with one injection: one being
injected in parallel and the other one by one point
Figure 5: Examples of moulded articles Conical frustum
P r o d u c t s ta b i l i t y a n d d e g r a d at i o n
Similarly to other natural materials such as leather or
wood, MERIPLAST® adsorbs water but it is not soluble
in water. Prolonged contact with water (e.g. dishwasher)
should be avoided.
MERIPLAST® shows full degradation after 36 days in
aerobic fermentation (according to ISO 14852 based on
Figure 4: Equipment used for testing MERIPLAST® processing
Recommended temperature settings are 60°C in the
extrusion section, 70°C in the injection chamber and 140-
150°C in the mould. Examples of moulded articles such as
plates (120 x 120 x 2 mm) or conical frustums (60 and 47
mm for the diameters, 25 mm height) are shown in Figure
5. Typical mould shrinkage is 2.5%, as determined with a
calibrated plate mould.
Table 1: Optimal processing conditions for two moulded objects
Moulding temperature (°C) Moulding time (min)
140 6
Plate
150 2
140 10
the modified Sturm test) and 50 days in farmland soil.
MERIPLAST® and its degradation metabolites are not toxic
as tested by microbial inhibition tests.
ISO 14852: Determination of the ultimate aerobic biodegradability of plastic
materials in an aqueous medium - Method by analysis of evolved carbon dioxide
Domenek S., Feuilloley P., Gratraud J., Morel M.H., Guilbert S. (2004) Biodegradability
of wheat gluten based bioplastics Chemosphere 54: 551–559
 m e c h a n i c a l p ro p e rt i e s

The mechanical properties of MERIPLAST® are similar to elastic materials such as natural rubber or thermoplastic
elastomers up to 100% elongation. Ultimate tensile strength and elongation are however lower (Table 2).

Table 2: Physical and mechanical properties of MERIPLAST®

Physical and Hardness Strength at 100% Strength at break Elongation at break

Density
mechanical properties (Shore A-15’’)d elongationa (MPa)a (%)a
MERIPLAST® N60 1.30 69 2.3 4.5 350
(#<"'.
MERIPLAST® N50 1.32 75 2.6 4.8 320
Natural rubber (thread) b
- 70 3 30 500
K\ej`c\df[lclj<GX 

API (TPE from APINAT)c - 65-83 2 – 4.5 10-14 700-800

a
According to ISO 527-2 type 5A, b Rubber Technology, Compounding and Testing for performance By John S. Dick Hanser, c Technical data sheet from API, d ASTM D 2240
(#<"'-

Figure 6: Relaxation testki\e[c`e\1jcfg\4$'%(*

for MERIPLAST® N60 at extension ratio of 100%
(#<"',
›› A visco-elastic behaviour
(#<"'.
( (' ('' (''' ('''' MERIPLAST® exhibits a complex visco-elastic behaviour
k`d\j  with dominant elastic features, as demonstrated by
K\ej`c\df[lclj<GX 

relaxation tests (Figure 6). The figure shows changes in

- the tensile modulus over time under a constant extension
,
(#<"'- ratio of 100 %. The behaviour of the material is in between
Jki\jjXkYi\XbDGX 

a purely elastic and a purely viscous material: the linear

+
decrease on a double logarithmic plot has a slope of -0.13,
* ki\e[c`e\1jcfg\4$'%(* compared to 0 for a purely elastic material and 1 for a
) (#<"', purely viscous material.
( (' ('' (''' ('''' Moreover, MERIPLAST® displays a unique, slow elasticity
(
k`d\j 
'
as shown by measures of residual elongation of the
' )' +' -' /' samples after removal from the testing machine (Figure 7).
-
I\cXk`m\_ld`[`kp
Figure 7: Residual elongation  N60 after relaxation test
of MERIPLAST®
For example, after stretching the material to an elongation
, of 100% for 1h, the material retracts to 30% of its initial
Jki\jjXkYi\XbDGX 

(''
+
length after 30 minutes and to 4% after 7 days.
I\j`[lXc\cfe^Xk`fe 

*

)
('
(

'
' )' +' -' /'

( I\cXk`m\_ld`[`kp 
( (' ('' (''' ('''' ('''''
(''
I\c\Xj\k`d\d`e 
I\j`[lXc\cfe^Xk`fe 

('
Slow relaxation and resilience of MERIPLAST® also to 10% for natural rubber and 30% for SBR rubber. However,
influence response to compression, which is different after a prolonged release time of 7 days, the material
from that of rubber. MERIPLAST® N50 has a compression almost retrieves its original shape (Table 3).
set value of 65% after a release time of 30 min, compared

Table 3: Compression set value (%) (ASTM D395 Method B type 1 for 24hr at 25°C)

MERIPLAST® N50 MERIPLAST® N60

compression time at 25°C
after 30 min release after 7 days(#<"'.
release after 30 min release after 7 days release
1 hour 31 1 25 <1
1 day 65 8 62 <1

K\ej`c\df[lclj<GX 
2 days 67 10 59 3
1 week 77 32 (#<"'- 80 37

›› Mechanical response to variations of humidity and ki\e[c`e\1jcfg\4$'%(*

temperature (#<"',
( (' ('' (''' (''''
Increasing temperature or humidity causes plastification k`d\j 
of MERIPLAST®, hence decreasing elastic modulus. Figure 8: Influence of relative humidity on stress at break

Under standard ambient conditions (50% relative -

humidity and 25°C), the material has a moisture content ,
Jki\jjXkYi\XbDGX 

of approximately 11% and a stress at break of 4.3 MPa. At

+
a relative humidity of 70%, moisture content increases to
24% and stress at break decreases to 1.6 MPa (Figure  8). *
This is reversible when the material is put back to the )
initial conditions.
(
MERIPLAST® is not designed for prolonged immersion in
water. As an example, after a 24-hour immersion in water, '
' )' +' -' /'
the material adsorbs up to 1.5 times its own weight. Drying
I\cXk`m\_ld`[`kp 
of the swollen material will result in the loss of mechanical
properties in terms of flexibility and elasticity. (''

Temperature affects mechanical properties of

I\j`[lXc\cfe^Xk`fe 

MERIPLAST® in a steady way, with no sharp transitions. (#''<"(' '#*,

JkfiX^\Df[lclj
Dynamic mechanical thermal analysis shows that the
(' '#*'
material has a transition from glassy state (at -100°C) (#''<"'0
towards a rubbery state plateau (at 100°C), which occurs CfjjDf[lclj
'#),
over a very broad range of about 200°C (Figure 9). For (#''<"'/
natural rubber, this transition typically occurs over 40 to
Df[lcljGX

'#)'
KXe;\ckX

(
60°C. That makes MERIPLAST® unique amongst elastic (#''<"'. ( (' ('' (''' ('''' ('''''
materials. '#(,
I\c\Xj\k`d\d`e 
(#''<"'-
'#('
KXe[\ckX
(#''<"',
'#',

Figure 9: Dynamic moduli (Storage Modulus, Loss Modulus and (#''<"'+ '#''
Tan Delta) as a function of the temperature for MERIPLAST® N60 $(,' $('' $,' ' ,' ('' (,'
K\dg\iXkli\—:
 • Pictures credits: Patrick Bogner, shutterstock • September 2010 • The information mentioned herein remain the property of SYRAL or its contactors. Although SYRAL uses reasonable endeavours to ensure the accuracy and completeness of said information, SYRAL waives all liability in relation to their use by the addressee.
SYRAL received the special award of R&D for MERIPLAST®
at the Biowerkstoff-Kongress in Stuttgart in October 2009.

T h e c o m pa n y

SYRAL is the 3rd European starch producer and represent

the starch activity of the international cooperative group
Tereos. SYRAL transforms 3 million tons of corn and wheat
in its 6 factories into 1,800,000 tons of starch and starch-
based products, 180,000 m3 of alcohol and bioethanol,
200,000 tons of vegetable proteins, and by-products for
animal feed. The firm has 1,200 employees and has a pro
forma yearly turnover of 1.2 billion €.

The success of starch products is linked to their versatility

and to their renewable as well as biodegradable nature.
Current starch manufactures can already be described as
bio-refineries. Fibre, protein and starch from the cereals
are separated by mostly mechanical means and further
transformed in specific lines combining a wide range
of technologies: enzymatic or chemical hydrolysis and
modifications, hydrogenation, refining, fermentation,
drying, crystallisation.

SYRAL
Z. I. et Portuaire • BP 32 • F-67390 Marckolsheim • Tel: +33 (0)3 88 58 60 60
technical.support@syral.com • www.syral.com