Abstract: The present invention relates to water-resistant, thermoplastic starch materials processable into environmentally safe, thermoplastically produced products and cast sheets, which consist of starch acyl compounds, obtainable from high amylose starches and the derivatives thereof and being sparingly soluble in water, and of plasticizers which like ethyl citrate, glycerol acetate and lactic acid ester have a gelatinizing effect and preferably a dissolution property resulting in brilliant transparence and, as can be proved, are biodegradable.

Abstract: The invention relates to special amyloses for producing biodegradable, clear, transparent and flexible plastic, in particular sheets and films, whicha) are swellable, but not soluble, in cold water;b) yield homogenous, flowable quasi-solutions without formation of gels if they are heated, with stirring, to temperatures above 80.degree. C., at atmospheric pressure; during cooling to a temperature of 50.degree. C., this state is maintained for at least five minutes, without gel formation or retrogradation, and the solution in a concentration between 5 and 25% is applicable to knife coating onto a plane surface with a gap width between 100 and 700 .mu.m.

Abstract: Water-resistant, thermoplastic starch materials which are processable into environmentally safe, thermoplastically produced products and cast sheets. They consist of starch acyl compounds, obtainable from high amylose starches and their derivatives (being sparingly soluble in water), and of plasticizers (like citric acid ethyl ester, glycerol acetate and lactic acid ester), which have a gelatinizing effect, and preferably, a dissolution property resulting in brilliant transparence and, as can be proved, are biodegradable.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a process of producing symmetrically structured difatty acid diamines by reacting mixtures of fatty acids or their esters with diamines, isolating the symmetrical difatty acid diamides from the reaction mixture by making use of their different solubilities and concentrating them by recrystallisation if necessary. The invention also provides for a process of isolating a fatty acid from a mixture of fatty acids wherein the difatty acid diamides produced in the process of the invention are saponified to yield the corresponding free fatty acid.

Abstract: The present invention relates to plastics that can be obtained by reacting unsaturated and/or hydroxyl-group-containing fatty acids or their esters or mixtures of various such fatty acids and esters with bifunctional ester-forming and/or amide-forming compounds and, if necessary, subsequently converting ethylenic double bonds, to give difatty acid diamides, difatty acid diesters, difatty acid amide esters, monofatty acid amide amines or monofatty acid amide alcohols as monomer components which contain at least two reactive groups suited for linkage to give polymers, in particular ethylenic double bonds, hydroxyl groups, epoxy groups or amino groups, and by linking the said compounds in the known way via a second group of bifunctional compounds that are capable of reacting with these free reactive groups to give the desired plastics.

Abstract: The invention describes a method of producing a molding compound on the basis of starch and a plasticizer starting product, characterized in that the starch and the plasticizer starting product are simultaneously reacted with ethylene oxide in one and the same reaction vessel.