Green Composites for Application in Antistatic Packaging

The antistatic packaging industries have been facing a challenge when it comes to producing packages to protect sensitive electronic devices from electrostatic charges caused by friction during transport and storage that can cause defects and even destruction of the electronic device. One solution is to use antistatic packaging that is made of a polymeric matrix with the addition of an antistatic agent. The problem is that most of the polymeric matrices used are not biodegradable or from renewable resources, contributing to the increase of waste. An answer can be the production of eco-friendly biodegradable and recyclable antistatic packages. The production of green composites by using biodegradable and recyclable polymeric matrix and antistatic agents of a renewable resource is our object of study. Green low-density polyethylene (green LDPE), biodegradable matrices, as polycaprolactone (PCL), poly(lactic acid) (PLA), and poly(hydroxybutyrate-co-hydroxyvalerate) (PHBV) from renewable resources can be highlighted. A promising conductor-sustainable antistatic agent is the carbon material named as glassy carbon (GC), which has origin in renewable resources and presents good electrical properties and low density. Green composites of eco-friendly polymeric matrices and glassy carbon are showing good antistatic properties for the production of packaging. Thus, this chapter elucidates plenty of ways to produce antistatic packaging and disclose about the innovative way to produce eco-friendly antistatic packaging that presents the same properties as the fossil-based ones.