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Polymer Engineers honoured with award by the Trade Association of the Engineering Offices Print
Water-resistant paper which can be composted after its use – this is, according to a public vote commissioned by the Trade Association of the Engineering Offices, the “SuperdING” 2010. The award was presented at the “plannING day 10” at the Casineum in Velden.


The Chinese agriculture minister Tsai-Lun is generally credited with the invention of paper around 105 A.D. – and his creation has coined human civilisation. The University of Leoben now presents an innovation which opens up an entire new dimension in the field of paper production. Researchers have successfully developed paper on the basis of bioplastics which is degradable and resistant to water.

According to the participants of an online competition by the Trade Association of the Engineering Offices, the paper novelty is the “SuperdING” 2010. “SuperdING” can be translated with “super thing” and is a combination of “super” and the German word for “engineering”.
Head of Department Univ. Prof. Clemens Holzer and Stephan Laske from the Department of Plastics Processing at the University of Leoben received the award during the “plannING day 10” organized by the Trade Association of the Engineering Offices on Friday, June 25th, 2010, in Velden/Wörthersee.

„The paper developed by scientists of the University of Leoben receives this award for a good reason. It demonstrates the creativity and the practical relevance of Austrian research“, Christian Pelzl, head of the Trade Association of the Engineering Offices, said.

The basis for this new type of copy paper are the so-called bioplastics which are commonly renewable polymer raw materials. The award winners specifically used polylactic acid deriving from corn starch which is a renewable resource.

As in many regions of the globe, there is not enough wood and cellulose available which can be used for the production of conventional paper, the scientists from the Department of Plastics Processing at the University of Leoben recognize the market potential of their synthetic copy paper. The product fulfils all the required technical demands – for instance, it features brief temperature stability up to 200 degrees, and the criterion of a good ecological balance.



Univ.Prof. Clemens Holzer, Dr. Stefan Laske, Christian Pelzl