Castor Oil
Castor oil is a viscous liquid extracted from castor beans and has long been considered to be of important commercial value primarily for the manufacturing of soaps, lubricants, coatings and vegetable oils. Plastics may be derived from castor oil as the world looks beyond petrochemicals to create plastic products.
-
Global castor oil production is concentrated primarily in a small geographic region of Gujarat in Western India
-
Easy to process using conventional thermoplastic techniques, including injection moulding, blow moulding, rotational moulding and extrusions.
It can be enhanced with countless fillers, such as glass and various colorants.
Smith Optics uses Rilsan® Clear Renew – a high-performance, optical grade plastic made entirely from biodegradable and renewable castor oil. Ford uses castor oil foam in instrument panels and castor-oil based fuel lines.
-
Versatile production, can be environmentally hazardous to grow and manufacture, drought resistant, easy to grow
-
Strong, good resistance to wear and tear, low friction, similar to nylon and tough with good impact resistance.
Resources
Lefteri, C. (2014). Materials for design. Laurence King
https://sustainablechemicalprocesses.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s40508-016-0055-8
https://www.britannica.com/topic/castor-oil