Can we engineer life? 3.1 Transition is unavoidable
‘Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world’ (Nelson Mandela). Hans Tramper is professor emeritus in Bioprocess Technology at Wageningen University and reflects on the development of his subject in a series of essays. His pieces were published so far on 18 June, 30 June, 11 July, 22 July
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
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,
Nano3Bio: promising results for chitosan
Nano3Bio is the name of an EU-funded program that investigated production and properties of chitosan, a promising biobased material. Recently the consortium held its final conference in Hyderabad, India. Chitosan holds important promises for medicine, agriculture, cosmetics and other industries like paper and textiles. Among others, Nano3Bio developed new perspectives for cancer treatments and repair
Biobased building blocks: an update
Biobased chemical building blocks go through a difficult phase: with falling crude oil prices over the past years, these chemicals had a hard time to remain competitive to fossil-based chemicals. Nevertheless, a nova Institute report predicted an 8% p.a. growth across the board for them in the five years to come. Last month, nova Institute
Cyrene, a biosolvent, to end the use of toxic solvents
Cyrene is a biobased solvent intended to substitute toxic solvents in fine chemistry and pharmaceutical industries. It is produced by Circa, an Australian company that has partnered with the Green Chemistry Centre of Excellence (GCCE) at the University of York, UK, and with pulp and paper company Norske Skog to start industrial production in Europe.
Purification of bio-based chemicals on an industrial scale
Separation and purification are essential processes in the production of bio-based chemicals. This is challenging because bio-based compounds can only be manipulated under mild conditions. Scientists and engineers are trying to overcome these challenges and at the EFIB-event in Glasgow, last October, various innovative separation techniques were presented. Using laboratory techniques on an industrial scale
