DESCA evaluates green chemistry incubator
The Delaware Sustainable Chemistry Alliance (DESCA) has formally begun the evaluation process for establishing a regional green chemistry incubator. DESCA is concurrently benchmarking and developing several business models, sources of financing, external resources for outsourced services, and evaluating and comparing real estate options. DESCA anticipates completion of the formal evaluation process for a green chemistry incubator by August 2013.
SES develops waste-based chemicals tech
Synthesis Energy Systems (SES), a global energy and gasification technology company, has developed a novel technology for integrating its gasification technology with renewable waste resources and natural gas technology to cleanly and cost-effectively produce high-value green chemicals on a large scale. The company believes this new approach has primary applicability near large metropolitan areas where it can enable economical production of chemicals such as methanol and methanol derivatives, at normal quantities of 500 ktpy. It potentially offers a long-term solution for the use of ever-increasing amounts of municipal waste generated worldwide.
Akermin demonstrates CO2 capture tech
Clean technology company Akermin has successfully commissioned and tested its Biocatalyst Delivery System at the National Carbon Capture Center in Wilsonville, Alabama. The pilot unit has operated continuously for several weeks capturing close to 90% CO2 from flue gas with significant rate enhancement and no degradation in performance. The pilot will continue operations for several months with no replenishment of enzyme.
GlyEco expands glycol recycling in textiles
GlyEco has completed initial plant upgrades at its South Carolina plant and successfully processed and sold several thousand gallons of waste glycol sourced from the textile industry, which is the largest consumer of monoethylene glycol with demand exceeding 3.8bn gallons/year worldwide.
Roquette resumes Disorbene production
Roquette has restarted its production unit for Disorbene sorbitol-based clarifiers in Lestrem, France. The company has also launched its third generation sorbitol-based clarifier Disorbene 3, enabling a new source and additional capacity of bis-DMBS clarifier to meet the growing needs of the polymer industry.
Cardia Bioplastics, University of Sydney partnership
Biomolecular engineers at the University of Sydney are designing a process for creating purified biodegradable and CO2-based PPC (polypropylene carbonate) polymers that are said to be more cost-effective. The process will be solvent-free that reduces the levels of heavy metal used in PPC. The project is funded by the Australian Research Council and Cardia Bioplastics through its 100% owned subsidiary CO2Starch Pty Ltd. The subsidiary will have commercialization rights to the PPC process being developed.
Novozymes’ wastewater-based biogas
Novozymes and Novo Nordisk use wastewater from the factories in Kalundborg, Denmark, for a large-scale biogas manufacture that can produce 47,000 megawatt of electricity per year. Novozymes owns and operates the biogas reactor as well as the large plant for water purification that is part of the reactor.
Axiall introduces bio-based vinyl compounds
Axiall Corporation has introduced Aspire™ flexible vinyl compounds, the market’s first phthalate-free, bio-based compounds offering improved performance at a competitive price. The compounds meet USDA BioPreferred Program requirements with greater than 25% renewable content.
Croda acquires bio-polyamides products
Croda International has completed the acquisition of the specialty products business of Arizona Chemical. The technologies and products acquired are naturally-derived polyamides with high bio-renewable content. No manufacturing assets are acquired. Croda will relocate manufacture of the products to its Mevisa site in Spain, and will relaunch the products with new trade names.
Nucelis inaugurates pilot plant
Nucelis has commissioned its first fermentation pilot facility custom-designed and fabricated to enable Nucelis to run virtually any fermentation process. The pilot plant is capable of simultaneously running multiple fermentation processes and can accomodate a variety of microorganisms. Nucelis also built a solvent-capable purification suite for a range of downstream processing needs. First product for the pilot scale plant is high-purity squalene.
