Yleinen – ValueBioMat

Reduction of plastics consumption through extending product lifetime and recycling

Authors: Kirsi Immonen (VTT), Jukka Niskanen, Kirsi Kukko, Jessica Nieminen, and Jouni Partanen (Aalto University) Extending the lifetime of consumer goods through repair and technological upgrades is an essential practice for promoting sustainability and reducing waste. Modern consumer goods such as phones and appliances pose significant challenges due to their complexity and multimaterial nature. Many …

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Are we collaborating to make plastics more sustainable?

Yleinen / By katri

Authors (in alphabetical order): Rosa Ballardini (University of Lapland), Corinna Casi (University of Lapland), Esko Hakanen (Aalto University), Anna Leinonen (VTT), Jaakko Siltaloppi (Tampere University) and Katri Valkokari (VTT) The development and effective implementation of innovations that enable more sustainable solutions often require collaboration among multiple partners. These new forms of knowledge co-production create a …

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Transition pathways towards sustainable plastics value chains

Yleinen / By katri

Authors: Kirsi Immonen, Anna Leinonen & Katri Valkokari VTT To foster a more sustainable and resilient plastics ecosystem, the ValueBioMat project defined three transformation pathways to describe the necessary transformation from the current plastic system towards the desired target state. Our previous blog post entitled Evolution of problem framing: How to enhance transition towards sustainable …

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Evolution of problem framing: How to enhance transition towards sustainable plastics?

Yleinen / By katri

Author: Anna Leinonen, VTT Transitional processes are complex, and people often have different opinions on problems and solutions regarding them. This ambiguity makes it hard to coordinate efforts towards sustainability goals. Therefore, we need tools to help set common goals, align interests, and create shared plans for future transitions. This writing tells the story of …

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Can Plastics Be a Solution to Climate Change?

Yleinen / By katri

Authors: Esko Hakanena, Jan Holmströma, Teemu Mikolaa, Kirsi Immonenb, Jukka Niskanenc, Hannu Ilvesniemid, Corinna Casie, Kirsi Kukkof, Jouni Partanenf Plastics are often portrayed as a problem when tackling climate change. Plastic products made from fossil raw materials also deplete non-renewable resources. Moreover, plastics are commonly incinerated at the end of their life, to avoid microplastics …

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Biocomposites – solution for sustainable plastics or a reason to redesign plastics recycling?

Yleinen / By katri

Author: Teemu Mikola In recent years, the environmental problems related to plastic materials have been gaining increasing attention. Although plastic materials deliver many benefits, such as durability, light weight, and low cost, they depend on fossil resources and create emissions and harmful waste in many stages of their value chain. To address these challenges, the …

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European policy framework for biobased, biodegradable and compostable plastics – what are the key aspects?

Yleinen / By katri

Authors: Jukka Seppälä & Arun Teotia (Aalto University) and Katri Valkokari (VTT) European Commission has published a policy framework for biobased, biodegradable and compostable plastics on 30.11.2022. Here the authors aim to share our elaboration on essential key statements and conclusions related to the EU framework. COM(2022) 682 final (1) In Europe and internationally, biobased, …

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Making sense of sustainability of plastics – insights from the first episodes of Talking Plastics podcast

Yleinen / By katri

Katri Valkokari The researchers of the ValueBioMat project are eager to find new ways to disseminate the research results in order to actively support the transition towards more sustainable plastic ecosystems. A good example of this work is the Talking Plastics podcast hosted by our researchers. Listening to the podcast series, it is nice to …

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A dive into the multifaceted sustainability of plant-based oils for plastics

Yleinen / By kasper

Photo by Nguyen TP Hai on Unsplash Authors: Laura Äkräs and Marjatta Vahvaselkä No alternative is perfect, yet advantageous in the right context You already know this, but let’s recapitulate! Nowadays, the role of biomass-derived, bio-based feedstock has increased as a raw material for a myriad of end applications as one approach to reduce some of the negative …

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Reflections on the first stage of the ValueBioMat project: A researcher experience based on a narrative research approach

Yleinen / By katri

Author: Corinna Casi The beginning of a new journey: The ValueBioMat project Two years and half have passed since the beginning of the ValueBioMat (VBM) project funded by the Strategic Research Council of the Academy of Finland. Since then, my role as Doctoral researcher has evolved immensely: I got more and more responsibilities internally within …

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