03 December 2009
Ricoh says it has developed the world’s first biomass toner as a genuine manufacturer’s supply item, and released machines that utilize this toner in the Japanese market.
Read reaction from West Point Products, who earlier this year launched cartridges containing bio-based toner, and Greg Walters, MPS consultant.
About 80% of conventional toner is petroleum-based resin. Ricoh’s new “for E toner” however, has a biomass content of 25% of the entire mass including the resin.
The “for E toner” will help reduce environmental impact in the following two ways:
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1)
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Suppressing CO2 emissions from burning the toner printed on used paper.
(Including toner elements separated from the paper in the paper recycling process.)
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2)
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Reducing the use of depletable petroleum resources
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Earlier this year, West Point Products launched AgriTone replacement toner cartridges, a series of remanufactured laser toner cartridges containing bio-based toner.
Scott MacKenzie, Director of Marketing and Market Analysis, told Recycler “While West Point Products can not specifically comment on the relative merits of Ricoh’s bio-based toner as it compares to AgriTone™ as we have not yet had a chance to test the product, we applaud Ricoh’s efforts in this regard. Ricoh’s announcement of a toner with bio-content lends even more legitimacy and credibility to a product category that we believe has a great deal of benefit for dealers and end-users alike, as well as great potential in the marketplace. We also appreciate the fact that Ricoh has readily admitted that theirs is the first OEM product of its kind, as BioBlack™ and AgriTone™ were first launched as aftermarket products in August. We wish Ricoh a great deal of success with their new bio-based toner products.”
Greg Walters, MPS consultant and blogger, commented “I have been to the Ricoh plant here in Costa Mesa, Southern California. At the time, the plant had a "zero to landfill" designation. This was years ago, and impressive. Ricoh is another company that walks the walk as well as talks the talk when it comes to green. The Green Movement may be more puff than fact, but if you believe, you should live by those beliefs.”
Ricoh is actively converting the materials it uses from non-renewable petroleum resources to reproducible biomass as well as recycling its products. Biomass plastic is already being used in some Ricoh products.
Ricoh got an early start in using biomass toner in actual products and says it will continue accumulating technologies and know-how on the biomass toner, with the goal of preserving the environment.
More information is available in Biomass Toner Technology and Development of alternative materials using biomass resins .