Ruud Lubbers: Rotterdam is going to be the biohub for North-western Europe
Ruud Lubbers, long standing prime minister of the Netherlands, now is one of the main advisors of the Rotterdam Climate Initiative. Energy efficiency, sustainable energy, carbon capture and storage, and biomass all have to contribute to a 50% reduction in the emission of greenhouse gases in this area (in 2025, compared to 1990). Being an
Marcel Wubbolts: DSM is the first in second generation biobased
‘We had quite some response, and congratulations from peer companies too, as we announced our next step in the implementation of bioalcohol production from corn waste end January 2012, a joint venture of POET and DSM.’ Says Marcel Wubbolts, DSM’s newly appointed chief technology officer. ‘The knack in this technology is that we do not
Synbra takes the biobased economy to your home
Synbra Technology, an Etten-Leur (the Netherlands) based company which produces sustainable bioplastics, is small (90 employees); but as a part of Synbra Holding (26 branches throughout Europe) it is a big player. Synbra Holding in all its European branches produces expanded polystyrene foam (EPF) for sustainable construction systems and packaging. Styrene itself is produced by
Cosun and the unbeatable beet
For Cosun, the beet is exceptionally suited as a starting point in the bio-based economy. ‘The sugar beet has by far the highest yield in the Netherlands (and elsewhere), and carries the highest income to the farmer. Even algae do not come close.’ Says Gerald van Engelen, general manager Cosun Biobased Products. Cosun and its
Avantium’s furanic technology, a giant awakening
Just two years ago Tom van Aken, Avantium’s CEO, called its 2,5-furanic dicarboxylic acid (FDCA) a sleeping giant. But since Coca-Cola and other big players are putting bags of development money into the product, this giant is coming to life and almost everybody in green chemical industry watches it very closely. Avantium is a small
Annita Westenbroek: biorefinery is at the heart of the biobased economy
Annita Westenbroek, director of the Dutch Biorefinery Cluster, a partnership of agricultural and biobased industrial companies, holds the opinion that the Netherlands can easily produce enough biomass to feed the entire chemical sector. But not to feed the entire energy sector. ‘The Netherlands’ excellent agricultural sector produces many valuable side streams that can deliver interesting
Jos Keurentjes: at AkzoNobel, sustainability is our license to operate
‘Last year we worked on a road map for AkzoNobel’s green chemistry,’ says Jos Keurentjes, Director of Technology in AkzoNobel and a Technical University Eindhoven professor. ‘We have already reached a level of 9% renewables in our feedstock. That is exceptionally high, chemical industry’s average is at 3%. Especially surfactants and cellulose derivatives, which we
Lubbert Dijkhuizen, a man of many research projects
Biotechnology and Microbial Physiology is one of several chairs held by Lubbert Dijkhuizen at the University of Groningen. Enzymatic modification of starch is one of his many research projects, in cooperation with AVEBE, a cooperation of potato farmers in the Northern provinces. In the human body, potato starch is quickly broken down into sugars, causing
