Renewable carbon, the key to a sustainable chemical industry
The world needs to start purposely to restructure chemical industry in such a way that it is based on renewable carbon instead of fossil fuels, says nova-Institute in its latest position paper. Chemical industry cannot ‘decarbonize’ as the energy sector can, as it is all about carbon. But it can move over to use renewable
Bio-based solvents on the rise
Driven by government regulations and concerns regarding environmental preservation and depletion of natural resources, the bio-based solvents industry has faced an exponential rise in demand and a push towards the development of innovative green solutions. These solvents, among which bio-acetone and bio-ethanol, are an effective and low-cost alternative to conventional solvents. Solvents are a vital
Microcrystalline cellulose: versatile and effective
Among the wonderful new materials with unexpected properties that will change our world is microcrystalline cellulose. I got a new perspective on it through the lecture of Stéphane Laurent at the Siñal exhibition in Châlons-en-Champagne, end May. Microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) is a relatively recently developed material with many applications. Production from cellulose MCC is a
Renewable chemicals building the biobased economy
Companies around the globe are building the biobased economy as they commercialize renewable chemicals and biobased products. Collectively, their progress has reached a tipping point for accelerated growth in the 21st century. Governments and policy makers can unleash this growth by supporting all companies and sectors that contribute to building the value chain. Says BIO,
How to cover future protein demand?
Many universities and innovative companies are looking for new ways to close the future protein gap for food and feed, and cover future protein demand on a sustainable basis. German nova-Institute compiled an overview of the latest developments. Nova-Institute organizes a conference ‘Revolution in Food and Biomass Production (REFAB)’ October 1 and 2, 2018 in
Strongest biomaterial ever
The strongest biomaterial ever has been assembled recently by Swedish, American and German researchers; it consists of cellulose, properly speaking of carefully parallel oriented cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs). The material is stronger than steel, even stronger than spider silk, regarded as the strongest biomaterial until recently. Vanderwaals forces The team, headed by Nitesh Mittal, recently published
Bio homes to tackle housing emergency
A new sustainable initiative in Bristol, in the UK, uses bio-based materials to face the need for additional and affordable housing supply: bio homes. Bristol is at the forefront of high-tech innovation in the UK, and was the European green capital in 2015. But it is also the second least affordable major British city housing-wise
World Bio Markets: make it real, give it life
At first glance, World Bio Markets in Amsterdam appeared to be another one of those biobased conferences with little news. There were speeches that told us how well companies were doing, whilst only few breakthroughs or research developments were presented. However, when looking back, the conference had important takeaways for us. Firstly, the increasing importance
