Changsuk Seo, Vice President of Hanwha Chemical, speaks about how Hanwha Chemical is working to reduce the environmental impact of plastic production and usage. Courtesy of Hanwha Chemical

Hanwha works on environmentally-friendly materials

Have you ever heard of “green plastic?” Most people would say that it is an oxymoron that contains contradictory words just like “deafening silence” or “original copy.”

But a Korean company actually works on developing environmentally friendly plastic as Hanwha Chemical Vice President Seo Chang-suk notes.

In a recent interview, he envisioned a world of green plastic based on the firm’s advanced technologies designed to reduce the environmental impact of plastic.

At Hanwha, we’re trying very hard to make plastic safer for people and the environment. We’re constantly refining our production processes to reduce our emissions and eliminate waste,” Kang said.

We’re also actively developing environmentally-friendly chemical products. For example, our patented plasticizer is safer for humans.”

Plasticizers are additives, which make materials more flexible. The compounds can cause long-term health issues, which prompted many governments to ban their use in toys and baby products.

But Hanwha’s product is an eco-friendly alternative, which does not produce any negative health effects, according to Kang.

As far as the commercial potential is concerned, Kang said the product called ECO-DEHCH is next to none.

In terms of region, the United States and China have the highest interest in products like ECO-DEHCH,” he said.

As for industries, companies that manufacture medical equipment, products for infants and children, and home goods are all looking for safer plastics.”

As ECO-DEHCH gets a positive response from the plastics markets, Hanwha Chemical plans to jack up its daily production capacity from today’s 65,000 tons to 15,000 tons by next year.

Kang said that Hanwha is developing more fundamental technologies to deal with concerns related to plastic.

In other words, the chemical giant is researching to develop plastics, which can break down when disposed of.

We’re studying technology to produce plastics from raw materials created through microbial fermentation as well as biodegradable plastic, which will break down into water, carbon dioxide and organic waste,” he said.