The performance of polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) continues to improve, and its application fields are expected to expand.

Polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) is a short-chain homopolymer with 3HB as the monomer, which is a crystalline material. Polyhydroxybutyrate is one of the main types of polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA). Compared with other PHA types such as PHBV, polyhydroxybutyrate has higher strength, but its processing performance and toughness are poor. The melting point of polyhydroxybutyrate is close to the thermal decomposition temperature, so the thermal processing window is narrow, and it is mainly used for injection molding, fiber, etc.

According to the “2022-2026 Polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) Industry In-depth Market Research and Investment Strategy Suggestions Report released by the Industrial Research Center >》shows that polyhydroxybutyrate has high crystallinity, regular structure, hardness and brittleness. At this stage, the global companies engaged in the research and production of polyhydroxybutyrate include New Light Company of the United States, Tianan Biotechnology, and Bio-on of Italy. , COFCO Biochemical, Biomers, Zhuhai Medefa Biotechnology, Beijing Microstructure Factory, etc.

Polyhydroxybutyrate has good biocompatibility and biodegradability, and has broad application prospects in medical materials, degradable plastics, disposable tableware, spectacle frames, packaging, sewage treatment, toys and other fields. In the field of medical materials, polyhydroxybutyrate can be used to prepare drug sustained-release carrier materials, tissue engineering materials, etc.; in the field of packaging, the degradation products of polyhydroxybutyrate are mainly carbon dioxide and water, which is in line with the current concept of green and environmentally friendly development. In the future The application potential is huge.

Globally, Japan, the United States, South Korea and other countries have relatively advanced polyhydroxybutyrate technology and a wide range of application scenarios. In terms of production, microbial fermentation is the main production process of polyhydroxybutyrate. Polyhydroxybutyrate has good biocompatibility, but the material is brittle and has poor thermal stability. In recent years, in order to expand its application scenarios, domestic and foreign companies have begun to improve polyhydroxybutyrate materials, such as adding PSPH polymer, adding a third Two monomer forms, etc.

Polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) is an aliphatic copolyester with different structures synthesized by microorganisms through fermentation of various carbon sources. PHA began industrial production at the end of the last century. However, due to high production costs, the industrialization process of PHA was slow. However, based on the broad application prospects of PHA, global enthusiasm for PHA research and development is high. At present, PHA has been upgraded to the fourth generation, namely PHB, PHBV, PHBHHx, and P34HB. With the advancement of relevant technologies, the scale of the PHA industry continues to expand. It is expected that during the 14th Five-Year Plan period, my country’s planned PHA production capacity will reach about 450,000 tons.

Industry analysts said that polyhydroxybutyrate is the earliest type of PHA commercialized. It has good biocompatibility and biodegradability. With characteristics such as degradation, polyhydroxybutyrate shows good application prospects in packaging, medical materials and other fields. Polyhydroxybutyrate has poor thermal stability, which limits its market application. However, with the deepening of modification research, the performance of polyhydroxybutyrate is constantly improving, and the scope of application is expected to be further expanded in the future.