Eco-Design Tool to support the Use of Renewable Polymers within Packaging Applications

Bioplastics derived from renewable polymers such as sugars, starches and cellulose, have attracted significant interest from companies looking to reduce their environmental footprint. New production capacity and improved materials have resulted in their increasing adoption for mainstream consumer products packaging. However questions remain regarding their overall environmental benefits and how the maximum environmental gain can be achieved. These uncertainties highlight the need for a decision support tool to aid the packaging design process. This paper examines the issues surrounding bio-derived polymer use and discusses the development of an eco-design tool to assist in their rapid and efficient adoption

alpha,omega-diferrocenyl cumulene molecular wires. Synthesis, spectroscopy, structure, and electrochemistry

8Cumulene sp-carbon molecular wires C2 [Fc(Ph)CC(Ph)Fc] up to C7 [Fc(Ph)CCCCCCC(Ph)Fc] endcapped by two electroactive ferrocenyl groups are presented in this report. Synthetically, ferrocenyl cumulenes can be built-up by a modular strategy using C1 synthon ferrocenyl(phenyl)ketone as starting material with various acetylenic/propargylic/homopropargylic C2−C5 reagents, taking into account and exploiting the efficient stabilization of an electron-deficient carbenium center by an adjacent ferrocenyl moiety. With increasing cumulene chain length the reactivity of cumulenes increases considerably, indicating steric protection as the main requirement for bulk stability. Even cumulenes C2, C4, and C6 are conjugated “molecular wires” effecting electronic communication between the terminal ferrocenyl substituents, whereas odd cumulenes C3, C5, and C7 are nonconjugated and electronically decoupled due to their orthogonal terminal π-systems. Electrochemically, separate redox waves can be detected up to a C6 cumulene spacer, but the electronic communication between the endcapping redox-active ferrocenyl substituents decreases with increasing cumulene length.nonenoneSkibar, W.; Kopacka, H.; Wurst, K.; Salzmann, C.; Ongania, K. H.; FABRIZI DE BIANI, Fabrizia; Zanello, Piero; Bildstein, B.Skibar, W.; Kopacka, H.; Wurst, K.; Salzmann, C.; Ongania, K. H.; FABRIZI DE BIANI, Fabrizia; Zanello, Piero; Bildstein, B