COMPOSTABLE, BIODEGRADABLE FOAM CORE BOARD

摘要

A compostable, biodegradable foam core board has a facing sheet adhered to a foam core sheet made of a foamable biodegradable material selected from a polyvinyl alcohol polymer, a starch-based thermoplastic polymer, a polylactic acid polymer, and other foamable, biodegradable polymers having structural rigidity when foamed. The foam core sheet has selected structural properties including a foam core weight in a preferred range of 30 to 50 lbs/msf, a foam density in a preferred range of 1.5 to 9 lbs/ft3, and a foam cell size in a preferred range of 0.30 to 0.70 mm. In one example, the foam core material is composed of a mixture of a polyvinyl alcohol polymer and high-melt-index polystyrene as a structural polymer additive. In another preferred example, the foam core material contains a blend of destructurized starch, polyethylene, polyvinyl alcohol, polyvinyl acetate, and glycerol as a plasticizer.