ASTM D6400

This specification covers plastics and products made from plastics that are designed to be composted in municipal and industrial aerobic composting facilities. The properties in this specification are those required to determine if plastics and products made from plastics will compost satisfactorily, including biodegrading at a rate comparable to known compostable materials. The purpose of this specification is to establish standards for identifying products and materials that will compost satisfactorily in commercial and municipal composting facilities.

This abstract is a brief summary of the referenced standard. It is informational only and not an official part of the standard; the full text of the standard itself must be referred to for its use and application. ASTM does not give any warranty express or implied or make any representation that the contents of this abstract are accurate, complete or up to date.

1. Scope

1.1 This specification covers plastics and products made from plastics that are designed to be composted in municipal and industrial aerobic composting facilities.

1.2 This specification is intended to establish the requirements for labeling of materials and products, including packaging made from plastics, as "compostable in municipal and industrial composting facilities."

1.3 The properties in this specification are those required to determine if plastics and products made from plastics will compost satisfactorily, including biodegrading at a rate comparable to known compostable materials. Further, the properties in the specification are required to assure that the degradation of these materials will not diminish the value or utility of the compost resulting from the composting process.

1.4 The following safety hazards caveat pertains to the test methods portion of this standard: This standard does not purport to address all of the safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appropriate health and safety practices and to determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use.

Note 1—No equivalent ISO specifications exist for this standard.

2. Referenced Documents

U.S. Government Standard
40 CFR Part 503.13 Standards for the Use or Disposal of Sewage Sludge
ASTM Standards
D5338 Test Method for Determining Aerobic Biodegradation of Plastic Materials Under Controlled Composting Conditions
D6002 Guide for Assessing the Compostability of Environmentally Degradable Plastics
D883 Terminology Relating to Plastics
Comite Europeen de Normalisation (CEN)
EN 13432 Requirements for Packaging Recoverable through Composting and Biodegradation--Test Scheme and Evaluation Criteria for the Final Acceptance of Packaging
ISO Standard
ISO 16929 Plastics--Determination of the Degree of Disintegration of Plastic Materials under Defined Composting Conditions in a Pilot-Scale Test
Organization for Economic Development (OECD) Standard
OECD Guideline 208 Terrestrial Plants, Growth Test
Canadian Government Standard
Trade Memorandum T-4-93 Standards for Metals in Fertilizers and Supplements

Index Terms

biodegradable; compostable plastic; composting; degradable plastics; labeling; ICS Number Code 83.080.01 (Plastics in general)

Citing ASTM Standards

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