October 2009 Archives

Pine chemical company Arizona Chemical is complaining about the possibility of losing their black liquor-based feedstock because of the federal tax credit that are being given to pulp mills who mix black liquor with diesel and burn them as fuel for their operations.

Black liquor, by the way, is a liquid byproduct you get at a paper mill when wood is turned into pulp. Pine chemical companies rely on these byproducts such as black liquor soap/crude tall oil and crude sulphate turpentine as feedstocks to make renewable-based chemicals.

Arizona Chemicals noted that burning black liquor for biofuels could lead to plant closings across the pine chemicals industry and increased imports of replacement products, which are primarily made of non-renewable petroleum sources.

Pulp and paper mills have long used black liquor as an occasional fuel source, according to the paper industry. But with the 2007 biofuel tax credit legislation, Kraft paper mills who were already using the natural black liquor could now add as little as 0.1 percent of diesel to the fuel mixture and they could qualify for a tax credit.

Recent earnings report from major pulp and paper companies such as International Paper (IP), Weyerhaeuser, and Domtar revealed big federal tax credit gains from these operations.

In the third quarter this year, IP reported a $525 million pre-tax credit ($320 million after taxes) for alternative fuel mixture credits in addition to the $482 million pre-tax credit ($294 million after taxes) gained in the second quarter.

IP received its first biofuel tax credit check from the Internal Revenue Service in March this year with an amount of $71.6 million. The company produced (and used) the alternative fuel mixture at 15 of its mills for the period of November 14 to December 14, 2008.

Third quarter earnings also saw biofuel tax credit profits for Weyerhaeuser amounting to $74 million while Canada-based Domtar's profits impressively jumped in the third quarter mostly thanks to a $159-million federal biofuel tax credit (which came to $116-million after tax).

Domtar was able to earn (before tax) $131m in the second quarter and $46m in the first quarter from the tax credits alone.

I found this intriguing blog called "Dead Tree Edition" talking about this issue and the author of blog estimated that US kraft pulp mills could could generate $50 billion in tax credits before it expires at the end of 2012.

That is one heck of a big tax credit although it makes sense seeing that International Paper alone is on track to earn nearly $2 billion in alternative fuel mixture credits this year. The company paid less than $200 million in U.S. income taxes last year and had less than $400 million in earnings during the first half of this year, according to the blog's author.

Even paper company Marcal is calling on Congress to eliminate the credit stating potential further deforestation "under the guise of alternative fuel production." Marcal's paper products are mostly recycled-based, the company assures.

"Organizations across industries are scrambling for bailouts for survival, yet many paper manufacturers are taking advantage of taxpayers' dollars and are being rewarded with a bonus for pillaging our forests." - Marcal

My inbox was flooded this week with green news from Honeywell, which manufactures high-performance specialty materials.

First stop, the company announced that its Genetron® R-245fa refrigerant in an equipment called the 35Z Micro Power Plant, manufactured by Germany-based Turbolina GmbH & Co. KG. The equipment, which is sold to homeowners uses water heated by thermal solar panels to evaporate the refrigerant, which in turn drives a turbine to generate electricity.

The unit does not produce any carbon dioxide emissions and the remaining heat from the 35Z can be used to supply heating and hot water. (Cool! - I wonder how much this cost though?). Honeywell said the refrigerant is non-flammable, non-ozone-depleting and has low toxicity.

In Europe, Honeywell said it has partnered with Toyota Motors in a project to further improve the environmental leadership of the car manufacturer's operations across Europe. Toyota will implement Honeywell's HC900 Hybrid Controller platform and Profit® Controller in up to three of its European assembly plants by the end of 2010, reducing energy requirements and boosting environmental performance at each site.

Another European announcement was the use of Honeywell's Experion® Process Knowledge System (PKS) by Valorly, a division of the French utility Suez Environnement, in its Rillieux-la-Pape production plant. The PKS system will be used to control Valorly's incineration system, which transforms waste into both thermal and electrical energy.

With the installation of Experion, Honeywell noted that Valorly can turn waste into a valuable commodity and use it to produce electricity, heat and transportation fuels.

Finally, Honeywell's automation system was also chosen by Flambeau River Biofuels (FRB) to supply and integrate all of FRB's automation equipment for the largest second-generation "green diesel" plant they're building in the US.

The plant - located in Park Falls, Wis., and expected to be operational by 2012 - will produce energy, transportation fuels and chemicals from renewable biomass resources. The plant will process 1,000 dry tons per day of woody biomass from bark, sawdust and residue typically burned after forest harvesting.

The UK's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) is considering the ban of inorganic phosphates in domestic laundry cleaning products (DLCPs) and is soliciting comments about it since October 22 up until January 21, 2010.

According to DEFRA, a regulatory ban is needed to reduce phosphorus pollution in the UK's water system as well as reduce the energy and chemicals used by the water industry to remove phosphorus from sewage effluent. Domestic laundry cleaning products are said to contribute 3-4% of phosphorus pollution load to the freshwater environment in the UK and Wales.

The plan is to ban on sales of all DLCPs containing more than 0.4% phosphorus by 2015. Estimated costs of the ban, which will affect manufacturers and their customers who will bear the costs of the change, are around £5-8 million/year ($8-13m/year) within 15-year period and a one time cost of £10-15 million for the transition.

Water companies, however, will be able to save a total cost (in 15-year time frame) of around £59-123 million. There is of course the environmental benefits of not having phosphorus in the water system, according to DEFRA.

The group estimates 41,600 tonnes of phosphorus is discharged to England, Wales and Scotland's water environment each year. DEFRA estimates phosphates from household products account for 61% of the phosphorus discharged; 28% from agriculture; 5% from industry and 6% from other sources.

For phosphate updates in the US, check out my posts from the AOCS conference in May.

I wonder what chemical companies (who deal with Walmart directly and indirectly) think about this new tool called GreenWERCS, which Walmart said will help them analyze the products on the market and identify risks across a broad spectrum instead of looking at each chemical individually.

The chemical screening tool GreenWERCS reportedly analyzes the composition of individual products from ingredients entered by manufacturers. It also examines potential impact of those ingredients on human health and the environment.

According to a recent blog by the Environmental Defense Fund, GreenWERCS uses a pre-identified scoring and weighting algorithm to provide information on the chemical ingredients of the products and whether they include:

* persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic substances (PBTs);
* carcinogens, mutagens or reproductive toxicants (CMRs); and
* potential hazardous waste.

GreenWERCS is said to represent the second phase of Walmart's new approach to assessing chemicals. Walmart's goal is to eventually set standards and metrics on the sustainability of each of the billions of products that they sell, from how they're made, how they're distributed to how they're disposed.

To know more about GreenWERCS, you can also check out the website of the company who develops the tool, the WERCS (World Environmental Regulatory Compliance Solutions).

One of the issues hotly debated in the ICIS oleochemicals conference that I attended last week in Berlin is the sustainability of palm oil. Palm oil and palm kernel oil account for majority of oleochemical feedstock used most especially in Southeast Asia.

Non-government organizations such as Friends of the Earth and GreenPeace have increasingly sounded the alarm on the unsustainability of palm oil stating fast deforestation in Southeast Asia especially Indonesia to make way for palm plantations.

One speaker from a biofuel/oleochemical producer in Belgium noted the tightening scrutiny of European Union officials in the use of palm oil and derivatives for food, biofuel and chemical production in Europe because of NGO reports of the unsustainability of palm oil. I thought I heard him mention that European regulators might even use Google map to check if palm producers are properly using land for their plantations (such as not destroying forest or using peatlands). Hmmmm.

To counteract the growing negativity of palm oil production, producers and consumers of palm oil have organized the Round table on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) association and one of their goal is to form a certification proving that their palm oil products are sustainable.

Unfortunately, a recent news from the Guardian caught my attention (hence this blog post) about RSPO members having issues on setting up their sustainability standards. The problem is including calculations of greenhouse gas emissions (including emissions from land use) in their standards. Some RSPO members especially palm plantation owners are reportedly against this idea. They reasoned out that the economic and social benefits of palm oil are being eclipsed by environmental issues associated to the industry.

Palm oil, by the way, is not the only biofuel feedstock that could be affected by potential greenhouse gas emissions regulations being mulled by various governments worldwide.

Presenters at the ICIS oleochemicals conference also talked about the possible effects (especially in the US) of the new Renewable Fuel Standards (RFS2) being proposed by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Under RFS2, renewable fuels must reduce GHG emissions by 50% compared with the conventional diesel they are replacing. It must also take into account indirect emissions such as land use.

The US biodiesel industry states that soybean oil-based biodiesel will not be able to meet the EPA's 50% requirement and therefore would restrict most of biodiesel feedstock to animal fats and restaurant grease.

California's Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) believes green chemistry will wipe away the problem of trash in the ocean as seen in this promotional video.

DTSC via its Green Chemistry Initiative program is currently developing a "Safer Alternative Regulations" that will establish a process to identify and prioritize chemicals of concern in consumer products, and a process to evaluate safer alternatives. Comments and reviews regarding the current proposed regulation is being considered, the DTSC said.

Thanks to the Green Underworld Reporter about this green tech company called Itaconix that I have not encountered before.

Based in Hampton Falls, New Hampshire, Itaconix (and its partners Microbia Inc. and the University of Maine) recently received a $1.8m grant from the US Department of Agriculture and Department of Energy to produce green polymers from itaconic acid fermented with sugars extracted from hardwood biomass.

Itaconix just introduced this year its polyitaconic acid-based product line Itaconix Super Absorbent and Itaconix Dispersant, which is produced from fermented itaconic acid with corn glucose as feedstock. With the grant, the company hopes to use waste biomass and lignocellulosic instead of corn as feedstock.

"The research possible through this biomass initiative offers another major step toward sustainability and away from petroleum dependence by allowing us to use biomass wood and not divert corn away from food uses," said John R. Shaw, principal of Itaconix.

According to the USDA, polyitaconic acid (PIA) is a water soluble polymer with a wide range of applications including superabsorbents (SAP), anti-scaling agents in water treatments, co-builders in detergents, and dispersants for minerals in coatings.

Itaconic acid was identified as one of the top 12 value added chemicals from biomass in 2004 by the DOE but its polymerization was identified as a key barrier to commercial development. This technical barrier was said to have been overcome by the University of Hampshire researchers which licensed the technology to Itaconix.

PIA is said to be an attractive replacement to the well established petroleum-based polyacrylic acid. According to Itaconix, potential global market for PIA is 1.65m metric tons/year with SAP occupying 67% of the market; 3% adhesives, 9% dispersants; 6% water treatment; 11% detergents; and 4% for new SAP markets.

In order to displace polyacrylic acid, Itaconix said it must reach a production cost below $1.5/Kg using biomass feedstock. PIA has been produced by Itaconix using commercial itaconic acid obtained by the fermentation of dextrose typically derived from corn or rice. Under such non integrated structure, PIA can be produced at a cost of $3/Kg.

Ok, so I lied. I was able to compile several news after all after trying to clean out most of my unread emails from last week. As previously mentioned, there seems to be more news coming in every time I travel. Or maybe I'm just getting paranoid.

Here are last week's news in no particular order. A lot of the news by the way seem to be from the biofuels sector. Does this mean investments in biofuels are now turning around?

Ontario biomaterials partnership
Elevance is investing $1 million in a partnership with Trent University Biomaterials Research Laboratories, based in Peterborough, Ontario. Trent University's new laboratories, which opened last week, will be used to develop new biomaterials, biochemicals and bioproducts from natural oils.

Pulp ethanol not a fiction
Verenium is testing the effectiveness of its C5 technology for the creation of cellulosic ethanol from the hemicelluloses generated by the pulp and paper process through an agreement with Value Prior to Pulping (VPP), an organization created by the Agenda 2020 Technology Alliance, a special project of the American Forest and Paper Association, and CleanTech Partners.

Jatropha oil on sale
Biofuel Africa has begun commercial production of jatropha oil, said to be the first company in West Africa to move from growing and selling jatropha fruits and seeds to production and sale of jatropha oil on a commercial scale for direct use, without modification, and as a feedstock for biodiesel and synthetic diesel.

Major agribusiness company Cargill is really getting into the green industrial chemicals market aside from its BioFoam polyurethanes; bioplastic from its NatureWorks subsidiary; and the assorted vegetable oil/corn-based chems as well as its biofuels business of course.

This recent announcement is the joint production of vegetable-based coating formulations called TopScreen DS13, which was developed by Cargill's new partner Topchim, a paper and cardboard coating technology company.

TopScreen DS13 is said to be an alternative for polyethylene, paraffin and acrylic resin that are used as resistant water-proof barrier for paper and board applications. It is now being produced by Cargill in its Mairinque's plant in Brazil.

The companies plan to produce more sustainable line of products in Brazil to be used for paper and board applications.

[Photo: water drop by venkane]

No, this is not about Metabolix developing genetically modified tobacco so people can smoke it without having lung cancer.

Metabolix had two announcements last week, the first one is the use of its bioplastic resin Mirel in disposable hospital products; and the other is that Mirel has completed a field trial of genetically engineered tobacco that can potentially be a feedstock source for the company's polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) biobased polymers.

Metabolix has joined Amsterdam-based bioenergy tech company Pharmafilter for the development of bioplastic products such as service ware items, bed pans and trash bags for hospital use. In order to avoid contamination, these products will be disposed of along with the hospital and healthcare wastes using Pharmafilter's waste system, which reduces solid waste first through a grinding station and then through a series of purification steps, including anaerobic digestion.

Outputs are biogas for fuel or power generation, biomass for energy conversion, and clean water.

The initial pilot project is scheduled to begin operation in March 2010 at Delft Hospital in Amsterdam. It will be nice if we can also have this kind of system here in the US, don't you agree?

For Metabolix's tobacco project, the company said it was able to produce 3-5% of PHA-contained tobacco in a 0.8 acres of land. The experiment is said to lay the groundwork for planning and permitting activities for field trials in bioengineered, non-food oilseed and biomass crops producing PHA.

In my opinion, it might be better if they could develop PHA in other non-food crops that is not used to manufacture cancer-causing products.

By the way, this week's news roundup will be temporarily unavailable due to technical difficulties (meaning I was unable to compile news from last week because of travel and school schedules - Sorry!). However, I will be able to post more this week and will hopefully give some wrap-up coverage of last week's oleochemical conference that I attended in Berlin.

Major green chemical news were being announced this week while I'm gone...of course.

Elevance and Myriant both send me a press release on Wednesday, which I'll soon post. Metabolix have two major announcements on their bioplastics; Cargill continues in its biobased industrial chemicals development this time in pulp and paper applications; and for this particular post, an interesting development in the use of algae for industrial chemicals application.

Bioplastic manufacturer Cereplast said this week that they plan to launch a new family of algae-based resins that could hit the market by 2010. The company said it will target the hybrids at the polyolefins market, mainly polypropylene and polyethylene. Cereplast is currently using feedstock such as starches from corn, tapioca, wheat and potatoes and Ingeo PLA for their bioplastic.

"We are still in the development phase, but we believe that this breakthrough technology could result in a significant new line of business in the years to come," said Frederic Scheer, Founder, Chairman and CEO.

A recent article from Popular Mechanics, by the way, listed down the top five algae developers in the biofuel arena that include Solazyme. Wall Street Journal also wrote an article indicating algae as one of the most promising next generation biofuel feedstock.

Here are more recent updates on algae developments:

• Algal Biomass Organization Provides Comments for U.S. DOE's National Algal Biofuels Technology Roadmap

• LiveFuels Opens Pilot Facility to Accelerate Algae-to-Biofuels Project

• OriginOil Announces the Completion of Phase 1 Research Project with Department of Energy's Idaho National Laboratory

• W2 Energy Begins Negotiations to put Algae Oil Plants in the Caribbean

• Algal Fuels Consortium (AFC) won $2.724M in Australia Government's Development Grant

• Solix Biofuels Signs Agreement With Los Alamos National Laboratory to Develop Algal Oil Extraction Process

• Algae-fueled Car Completes 3,750 Mile Cross Country Tour

Hello from Berlin! Being jetlagged has its perks and one of them is having the time to blog since I can't sleep. As mentioned before, I am covering ICIS' oleochemicals conference and will try to tweet all the good stuff via @ICISgreenblog (keeping my fingers crossed on that internet connection).

While I'm complaining about the size of soda bottles here in Europe (I'm thirsty!), here are this week's news roundup.

BASF likes metathesis tech
Materia has exclusively licensed its metathesis technology to BASF for use in the research and development of certain specialty chemicals. Metathesis catalysts enable the formation and manipulation of carbon-carbon bonds in the synthesis of novel specialty chemicals with superior properties as well as in the development of more efficient and low cost production processes for existing ones.

Air Products' PV contract
Air Products signed a turnkey gas supply contract to provide its SunSource(TM) Solutions liquid bulk and specialty gases, related gas distribution equipment, and engineering services to DuPont Apollo (Shenzhen) Limited at its new amorphous silicon thin-film photovoltaic (PV) facility in GuangMing New District, Shenzhen, China.

No waste biodiesel
Yellow Diesel B.V. has produced high-quality biodiesel in a continuous fixed-bed micro
plant based on heterogeneous catalysis. This process gives pure biodiesel plus a cosmetics/food grade glycerol, with practically no waste streams.

The nice thing about traveling is you really discover something new even if you don't go out of your hotel room.

I saw this advertising on CNN International while I'm in Berlin and thought to share it. It's about Prince Charles of Wales' Rainforest Project called (of course) "The Prince's Rainforest Project." I am not sure how long it has been on TV but I sure did not see it on my local cable in the US. Or maybe I am not really watching CNN that often in the US...

The project was set up in 2007 by Prince Charles following reports from leading climate change experts, including the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, to promote awareness of the urgent need to take action against tropical deforestation.

I think this is a very good cause worth following. You can check out some of their behind-the-scene interview on YouTube as well. By the way, the frog they're holding, is that real??

Here is another video with Sting (and others) supporting the cause!

Here's a Friday treat that I've been compiling for several months now. If you're really into eco-products, you might want to try these newly launched stuff and let us know if you consider them really green or if they're just pure greenwash.

COUNTERTOP

• Cosentino launched in April its ECO by Cosentino, a new line of countertop and surfacing material composed of 75% recycled material. Using the materials can get points toward LEED certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. The countertops are GREENGUARD certified for low chemical emissions.

• Baumgartens introduced in July a range of new waterless cleaners under its environmentally-friendly brand CONSERVE that is sold in tablet form with consumers adding water once ready to use. Conserve Cleaners products consists of cleaners for glass and window,multi-surface, bathroom, and odor eliminator.

• Adco Cleaning Products LLC launched in June its new line of ecologically friendly detergent and softener under the brand AdcoEco to be sold by dry cleaners directly to consumers. The highly concentrated AdcoEco products are biodegradable and free of all harmful dyes and perfumes.

• Chemstar Corporation developed its Chemstar Liquid Fruit and Vegetable Wash that is safer to store, handle, and use than products that contain peroxyacetic acid, hydrogen peroxide, or chlorine. The product is based on citric acid formulation.

• Green Bay Converting introduced last month its Ever-Green bathroom tissue made from 100% recycled fiber (and packaged in a 100% recyclable carton).

• In July, Terminix introduced its Terminix SafeShield, a new, natural pest control product that is made primarily from plant extracts. Terminix SafeShield, which is EPA-exempt, was developed in partnership with TyraTech, an independent pesticide company and uses TyraTech's Nature's Technology formula.

• In April, Safety Kleen introduced its recycled motor oil EcoPower to consumers. EcoPower motor oil is available in 5W-20, 5W-30, 10W-30 and 15W-40 viscosity grades.

• In August, Samsung launched Reclaim™, the first phone in the U.S. constructed from eco-friendly bio-plastic materials made from corn. The bioplastic makes up 40% of Reclaim's outer casing and is said to be free of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), phthalates, and nearly free of brominated flame retardants (BFR).

• CalSprings introduced its biodegradable plastic water bottle BioGreen Bottles. The water bottles are reusable, recyclable, top shelf dishwasher safe, and BPA, DEHA and DEHP free.

• PlastiPure and Hydrapak created Purebot water bottle. The companies said the bottles are certified free of all estrogenic activity not just those caused by BPA and phthalates.

• Repurpose Compostables debut their brand new line of PLA cold cups and PLA cutlery. The products can withstand heats of up to 220 degrees and are able to biodegrade in 90 days.

Coskata's start-up of its semi-commercial flexible ethanol plant in Madison, Pennsylvania, today showcases the world's first commercially-viable flex ethanol process, according to Coskata officials.

The facility can have as much as 400 million gallons of capacity producing ethanol from numerous non-food based feedstocks such as wood biomass, agricultural waste, sustainable energy crops and construction waste. General Motors, one of Coskata's investors, will continuously test the ethanol produced its Milford Proving Grounds.

GM said it has already produced worldwide more than 5 million flex-fuel vehicles to date.

"In the U.S. alone, there are more than 3.5 million GM flex-fuel cars and trucks on the road. For the 2010 model year, 17 E85-capable flex-fuel vehicles from the Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick and GMC brands. GM is on track to make more than half of its vehicle production flex-fuel capable by 2012," said Bob Babik, GM Vehicle Emissions Director.

"The feedstock flexible nature of the Coskata approach also allows for true geographic flexibility, meaning facilities can be built anywhere a feedstock can be sourced or delivered."

"We anticipate being very much in DOE range of 4-5 dollars of installed capacity, and believe us to be unique in this regard," said Roe.

Ethanol producer POET is entering the industrial green chemicals sector with their new ethanol co-product called "Inviz", which the company said can replace petroleum-based ingredients in household products ranging from pill coatings to plastic packaging.

Inviz is made from a biodegradable, low-nutrient prolamine protein called zein found in corn. It can be used as a gum base or in films, packaging, adhesives, coatings and glazes, according to the company.

"Inviz can be used to make biodegradable plastics, time-release capsules for pills and other substances, varnish, there are just so many possibilities," said Poet senior scientist John Lawton. "It has been the focus of much of my research throughout my career, and I'm excited to see this product brought to market."

Green schools = Productive and healthy mind for students + Extra money for schools. This was the message sent last month at BASF's High Performance Buildings for Education summit held in New York City.

While construction chemical companies are indeed seeing great business potential in growing green buildings trend, there is no doubt (as seen on different case presentations that day) that the education sector will benefit greatly from making school buildings eco-friendly, energy-efficient, and sustainably designed.

According to BASF, the timing for long-term investment in school infrastructure is ripe because of the large federal economic stimulus plan which is providing schools with $90bn. The company said the summit was aimed at providing information on current construction chemicals technology available to retrofit or build green schools.

High-performance green schools in the US is said to spend approximately $85/student in energy costs while conventional schools spend $150/student.

BASF added that upfront installation expenses in constructing high-performance buildings are usually just 1-2% above conventional school buildings.

"In fact, it lowers the total cost of ownership when you factor in reduction in energy costs, water use and other operational costs by implementing sustainable design and solutions to the building's construction," said Jack Armstrong, leader, construction markets for BASF North America.

I hope the Green Blog readers enjoyed yesterday's guest post by ICB editor Joe Chang about Dow Chemical's water sustainability event. It is not everyday that we get to play paparazzo and be able to hound celebrities.

Speaking of playing, enzyme producer Novozymes announced that the company and environmental group WWF Denmark have teamed up to launch on October 19, a board game called "Rethink Tomorrow" (they should think a more catchy name than this!) aiming to put the climate change debate in the living rooms of consumers.

The board game will be launched at the Arnold Busck bookshop in Lyngby Shopping Centre in Denmark. I'm not sure if this board game will be available outside of Denmark, though.

WWF Denmark will receive the proceeds from the game, while the buyer will get one year's free membership of WWF Denmark.

BY JOSEPH CHANG

Celebrity Star Power! - not at your typical chemical industry event.

But the launch of the Dow Live Earth Run for Water event - "the largest global water initiative in history" - drew out a number of celebs supporting the cause, including actress Jessica Biel, musicians Pete Wentz and Angelique Kidjo, water advocate Alexandra Cousteau and elite triathlete and model Jenny Fletcher.

The launch event took place at The Lighthouse at Chelsea Piers in New York City.

Dow Chemical is partnering with Live Earth to combat the global water crisis by raising awareness and funding for water projects worldwide.

It's a worthwhile cause, and one that can raise the profile of the chemical industry and highlight its leadership in taking on such important global issues.

The actual Dow Live Earth Water Run for Water will take place on April 18, 2010 in around 20 cities worldwide, including New York, Los Angeles, Buenos Aires, London, Singapore City, Rio de Janeiro and Stockholm. The run/walk will be 6 kilometers, representing the average distance many women and children walk every day to secure water, said Dow.

NGO partners including Global Water Challenge, A Child's Right, Akvo, Fondo Para La Paz, Indonesia Water Partnership, Lien Aid, Pump Aid, Wildlands Conservation Trust and many others will aim to successfully implement water and conservation projects around the world.

Ian Barbour, general manager of Dow Water & Process Solutions, said the initiative draws attention to the chemical industry being part of the solution to crucial world issues.

"Sometimes we're too defensive in the chemical industry. Here is a fantastic opportunity to show what chemistry can do in tackling a critical world issue," Barbour said in an interview with ICIS.

See the story on Dow's Water & Process Solutions business on ICIS news (subscription required).

Actress Jessica Biel said: "Responsible corporate citizens like Dow make events and movements like this possible. They have committed to making changes in their business to positively affect communities and citizens around the world."

Around 1bn people worldwide, or one-eighth of the population, have no access to clean, safe drinking water, noted Barbour.

"We want to generate a surge in awareness and level of funding that will make a difference - making a dent in the number of people who don't have access to clean, safe drinking water," he said.

As for raising awareness, it sure doesn't hurt that high profile celebrities are on board to help solve the water crisis.

Jockeying for position amidst the throng of professional fotogs at the event in New York, I managed to get some videos (though a bit shaky!).

Video credit: ICIS

Japanese chemical company Teijin has been very busy last month with its bioplastic business.

After rolling out in early September its first bioplastic eyeglasses in partnership with eyewear manufacturer Tanaka Foresight, Teijin also rolled out (literally) its green carpet (also literally and figuratively) at the 22nd Tokyo International Film Festival. The film festival first used Teijin's eco-friendly carpet last year.

This year's green carpet used around 23,000 half-liter recycled PET bottles.

On September 17, Teijin announced the start-up production of its heat-resistant bioplastic BioFront at a demonstration plant in Matsuyama, Ehime Prefecture. The new demo plant expands Teijin's overall BioFront production to 1,000 tons as the company also manufactures the bioplastic at a 200-ton/annum pilot plant in Iwakuni, Yamaguchi Prefecture.

Teijin plans to increase the annual capacity of BIOFRONT to 5,000 tons by 2011, and eventually to tens of thousands of tons.

Last but certainly not the least, Teijin launched in China its Eco Circle closed loop recycling program in collaboration with major sports apparel company Li Ning Company Limited. As part of the program, Li Ning has designed tennis and training wear using Teijin Fibers' chemically recycled ECO CIRCLE FIBERS.

The 2009-10 winter lineup will be sold at 11 stores managed by Li Ning beginning this month.

The green chemicals blog will be sporadic next week as I cover the ICIS World Oleochemicals conference in Berlin. I'm expecting lots of good information on the current market for vegetable oil and animal fats-based chemicals and will tweet them live as long as I have good internet connection there. Check out @ICISgreenblog next week!

For now here are this week's news roundup:

Algae chemical partnership
Blue Marble Energy and Bionavitas formed a partnership where Blue Marble Energy will produce high-margin biochemicals from microalgae supplied by Bionavitas.

Clean fuels from syngas
Honeywell's UOP LLC company expanded its alliance with Rentech to support clean fuels production, adding UOP gas processing technology for the treatment of synthesis gas from sources such as biomass, natural gas and coal.

Coke's cogeneration plant
GE Energy, the Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company S.A., and the energy development company ContourGlobal started a new cogeneration plant at Coca-Cola Hellenic's Ploiesti bottling facility near Bucharest, Romania.

There are several chemical companies who like what they see when it comes to biofuel's growth in demand. Why? Because it gives them the opportunity to develop (and sell) products that make biofuel cheaper and more efficient to use.

Take for an example companies such as Albemarle, BASF, and Evonik who offer high performance catalysts for efficient production of biodiesel; while companies like Lanxess and Rhodia offer biofuel additives that are especially necessary when using feedstock such as vegetable oil, which can become rancid in fuel tanks caused by air exposure.

A very brief interview with Jose Berges, senior vice president and general manager at Evonik's Electrolysis products & Alcoxides business, noted Evonik's strategies in being close to major biofuel markets. Below is a snapshot of the interview with Mr. Berges.

Q: What is Evonik's overall strategy when it comes to alternative fuels? Why venture in these areas?

Berges: Biofuels is one of the most important megatrends in the global economy. As the world's leading supplier of catalysts for biodiesel production, we are present in all markets in order to be close to our customers and to be their partner for growth. We have plants in Europe and the US and will look into further production sites wherever the market requires this.

Q: What specific milestones the company hopes to accomplish targeting the alternative fuels market?

Berges: Probably the most important milestone (for the industry at least) is the implementation of RFS2 in the US. This would allow the biodiesel companies to operate their plants at satisfactory levels and help lessen dependency on fuel fossils.

Q: What are the challenges that the industry in general face when it comes to helping develop alternative fuels?

Berges: Biofuels has become a topic which is discussed in a very emotional way. Applying sound science to all evaluations is a major issue which has to be achieved in order to make the right decisions. The role of political administration is crucial. Without a clear commitment from government, biofuels will not find their way into a sound energy mix.

Q: Are there any other new biofuels development that caught the company's attention but has not (yet) delved into?

Berges: We are constantly looking at market developments in order to participate in potential new markets. This happens both from a point of view of an energy consumer as well as a supplier of chemical products for the fuel producers.

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Also check out more about Berges' view on biodiesel in this June 2009 issue of Biodiesel magazine.

ICIS Chemical Business (the magazine I work for) published this week its automotive issue and most of the topics seem to congregate on making automobiles green via fuel efficiency and use of renewable fuels.

Andy Brice wrote "The Weighting Game" which talked about innovative chemical products (an example is biobased engineering plastics) that reduce the weight of vehicles, and thus making them more economical and reduces emissions.

Consultants from PricewaterhouseCoopers wrote about the new CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Economy) standards being recommended by the EPA, which calls for a new minimum average fuel economy requirements of 35.5 miles/gallon for vehicles by 2016 compared to the current 27.5 mpg. The change won't be cheap they said.

Ryan Hickman tells a story about the cash-for-clunkers auto stimulus program in the US (and worldwide), how they affected sales of new automobiles and down the road, demand for automotive chemicals and materials.

Metabolix announced yesterday about a $350,000 grant from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) to develop biobased biodegradable HDPE-alternative plastic bottle.

The biodegradable resins are expected to be used for blow molded bottles and other containers. Metabolix cites that over 2 million tons/year of high density polyethylene are used for this application as according to the American Plastics Council.

Metabolix seeks to improve formulation of its biobased polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) for this application. Their PHA is currently made from corn.

By the way, this is an opportunity for me to list down other developments in the plastic sector:

• Chinese scientists have developed a cheap, eco-friendly method to extract dyes from wastewater, which can then be used to color plastics (via Royal Society of Chemistry).
  

• USDA researchers have developed chicken feather-derived biodegradable plastic flower pots. Another USDA researchers are also developing polystyrene made from potato, corn or wheat starches.
  

• Researchers from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada are also looking to develop bioplastics (as well as biopesticide and pharmaceuticals) from potato starch.

• Researchers at Queen's University Belfast are pioneering a new technique for the use of banana plants in the production of plastic products.

I'm receiving a lot of updates from the American Chemistry Council's Polyurethanes 2009 technical conference especially about their renewable content technical session.

Here are some presentation tidbits from that session:

• Battelle Memorial Institute reported a versatile approach to making renewable-content flexible foams derived from vegetable oils, animal fats, and fatty acids using between 20% to 40% glycerine.

• Cargill discussed their new BiOH polyol designed for the production of viscoelastic foams with very high renewable content as well as outstanding performance (in furniture applications).

• Troy Polymers talked about recycling scrap flexible polyurethane foams made with soy polyols.

• DuPont and Aragon Elastomers introduced a study of a renewably sourced high performance ingredient for polyurethanes.

• Vertellus Specialty Materials introduced high molecular weight castor oil-derived triols for a wide range of polyurethanes applications.

• Bayer MaterialScience presented about two-component polyurethane coatings for sustainable construction based on waterborne polyurethanes, natural oil polyols, and polyaspartic resins.

Meanwhile, the ACC awarded DuPont for its green innovative polyurethane technology at the event as well. DuPont received the award in the Polyurethane Chemicals category for its Cerenol® Polyol, a family of engineered renewably sourced polyetherdiols that serves as a soft segment ingredient for polyurethanes.

There must be something in the US wind energy market that attracts big oil and energy firm BP.

Last month, BP said it will focus its wind energy portfolio in the US while at the same time divesting its wind power interests in India. BP's subsidiary, BP Energy India Private Limited (BPEIPL), which owns and operates three wind farms in India with a total generating capacity of approximately 100 megawatts (MW), was sold for a total cash-free, debt-free enterprise value of around $95 million to Green Infra Limited.

BP's US wind energy portfolio now includes 100 projects, with a total potential generating capacity of up to 20,000 MW.

According to the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), U.S. wind energy installed in the second quarter was 1,210 megawatts (MW) of new power generating capacity, bringing the total added this year to just over 4,000 MW.

Total U.S. wind power generating capacity to date is 29,440 MW. The state posting the fastest growth in the 2nd quarter was Missouri, where wind power installations expanded by 90%, according to AWEA.

Pennsylvania and South Dakota ranked second and third in terms of growth rate in the second quarter, expanding by 28% and 21% respectively.

Also in the second quarter, 3 wind turbine and turbine component manufacturing facilities were opened, four facilities were expanding, and eight new facilities were announced, said AWEA.

Unfortunately, the economic recession have impacted wind turbine component manufacturing this year. AWEA said many existing supply chain companies have stopped hiring or have furloughed employees due to the slowdown in contracts for wind turbines. Wind turbine component manufacturing investment was one of the bright spots in the economy in 2008, with 55 facilities added, expanded or announced that year. In the first half of this year, only up to 20 facilities were opened, expanded and or announced for investment.

The US, however, is not the only country affected. NextGen Research said the global recession dealt a glancing blow to the wind power industry in 2009 by forcing many developers to cancel or delay projects. The industry is expected to rebound sharply next year as credit markets thaw and the flow of capital resumes.

October 1 is the start of banning plastic bottle waste in North Carolina's landfills along with clean wood waste, e-waste, wooden pallets and motor vehicle oil filter.

With plastic bottles, the law encourages people to recycling instead, said Raleigh City officials. Raleigh residents, they said, can put the plastic bottles in their City-issued recycling bins.

"This is a wonderful new law," Linda Leighton, waste reduction specialist for the City of Raleigh Solid Waste Services Department, said of the new law. "A great number of our residents would willingly comply and keep plastic bottles out of the landfill, if we make them aware of the new law."

The goal of Raleigh's Solid Waste Department is to increase that number to 451 pounds per year by 2012. Currently the average Raleigh resident recycles 384 pounds each year, said Leighton.

"The ban on placing plastic bottles in the landfill should help."

1. San Francisco, Calif., bag ban (2007)
2. Malibu, Calif. (2008)
3. Maui County, Hawaii (2008)
4. Westport, Conn. (2008)
5. Fairfax, Calif. (2008)
6. Palo Alto, Calif. (2009)
7. North Carolina Outer Banks (Currituck, Dare and Hyde Counties) (2009)
8. Edmonds, Wash. (2009)
9. Bethel, Alaska (2009)
10. District of Columbia (2009)

A recent interview* with Dow Chemical (by ICB editor Joe Chang) reveals that the company estimates sales potential for its new solar shingles of around $5bn by 2015 and $10-11bn by 2020.

The company unveiled yesterday its line of DOW™ POWERHOUSE™ Solar Shingle, said to be a revolutionary photovoltaic solar panels in the form of solar shingles that can be integrated into rooftops with standard asphalt shingle materials. The solar panels are made of low-cost, thin-film CIGS (copper indium gallium deselenide) photovoltaic cells.

The solar shingle systems will be available in limited quantities by mid-2010 and projected to be more widely available in 2011.

In the interview, Jane Palmieri, managing director of Dow Solar Solutions (DSS), said that that their solar shingle system will cost on average 10% less than applied solar panels - those that are bolted onto rooftops, and 40% less than similar building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) systems.

The use of Dow's solar shingles in a home would typically offset between 40-80% of power usage, or 2-4 kilowatts (KWs), said Palmieri.

*ICIS news link is subscription only.

Municipal wastewater solids could be a "hot" biofuel feedstock in the future thanks to continuous developments from companies such as Qteros and Applied CleanTech (ACT).

The companies announced today that they have formed a joint development project for more efficient and low-cost ethanol production using ACT's Sewage Recycling System to produce the waste-based feedstock Recyllose.

Qteros and ACT found that an ethanol production plant can produce 120-135 gallons of ethanol per ton of Recyllose™.

"A typical cellulosic ethanol plant would have to produce roughly 20-30 million gallons per year (MGY) in order to be profitable," says Qteros CEO William Frey. "With the proposed Qteros-ACT process, production with these economics could be viable at a smaller scale."

The companies said they are the first to demonstrate commercial success in creating ethanol from the cellulose in municipal and agricultural liquid waste, and to offer a process that all municipalities can use to help reduce expenses.

[Photo caption: Recyllose combustible]

Wow! There really seems to be plenty of stimulus money floating around when it comes green/clean technology development. That's definitely good news!

This time, the US Department of Energy (DoE) is awarding $1.4 billion for 12 carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects. The first funding phase will involve a total investment of $44.1m (from both the stimulus funds and private funds), and the remaining stimulus grant will be awarded to those who can prove their technology works.

Projects involved include capturing carbon dioxide emissions from plants such as cement manufacturing, chemical plants, refineries, paper mills and other manufacturing facilities. The captured gas will be stored in deep saline formations and other geologic systems.

The DOE expects phase activities completion by 2010. Some of the companies involved in these 12 projects include, among others, Air Products, Archer Daniels Midland (ADM), Dow Chemical, Boise White Paper, Fluor Corp., Shell, CEMEX, ConocoPhillips, Leucadia Energy, Praxair, BP, and Wolverine Power Supply Cooperative.

By the way, somebody told me that CCS technologies are very much in its infancy and that the EPA is wasting a lot of money trying to rush these projects into market commercialization, which, that somebody said, are doomed to failure anyway. Cheerful thought eh?

We will soon see a 100% renewable-based content on thermoplastic elastomers being used in automotive parts, electronics and sports equipment.

Arkema said today that it has developed a 100% renewable-based high performance thermoplastic elastomer range using the company's combined castor oil chemistry and bio-based polyol technology.

Arkema's new Pebax® Rnew100 is said to have outstanding mechanical properties, excellent resistance to thermal and ultra-violet ageing. The company's Pebax® Rnew range before was limited to up to 95% plant-based content.

Read my green sports equipment article for more about Arkema's Pebax Rnew in sports equipments. More on castor chemical development in an article I wrote in March!

Here are last month's newly launched green chemicals for readers' perusal. Remember, green is in the definition of the reader (or producer)!

1. Chemtura's mercury remover - Chemtura has launched its GeoBrom™ family of bromine and brominated derivative products for companies employing bromine technologies in the removal of toxic mercury emitted during the combustion of coal in power plants and other coal-fired boilers.

2. BASF green concrete - BASF Construction Chemicals has developed an advanced concrete optimization service called Green Sense Concrete technology that uses BASF's mixture proportioning expertise to determine the optimal combination of recycled materials and tailor-made chemical admixtures needed to improve the desired slump, setting characteristics, strength, and durability of concrete.

3. Honeywell's heat efficiency material - Honeywell has developed a new thermal management material called Honeywell LTM6300-SP, that improves energy efficiency of light emitting diodes (LEDs), which are increasingly being used in applications such as street lamps, automotive lighting, flat panel TV displays and computer monitors.

4. Actega's Solvent-free adhesives - a series of solvent-free polyurethane adhesives for laminates to be used in packaging has been developed by ACTEGA Rhenania. The adhesives have high bio-polyol based content.

5. DuPont's biobased coolant - DuPont Tate & Lyle Bio Products says its 100% renewably sourced Susterra® propanediol has been approved by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) International as a base coolant for all automobile coolant systems.

6. Rhodia fuel-efficient additives - RHODIA has launched its new performance additive Eolys Powerflex™, a catalyst specifically designed for new diesel engines that enables fast regeneration of particulate filters at low temperature therefore optimizing fuel consumption and reducing CO2 emissions by 3 to 5% compared with other technologies.

7. Kraton polymers for natural oils - Kraton Polymers has developed Kraton A styrenic block copolymers (SBCs) that will make it possible to formulate pressure sensitive adhesives (PSAs), sealants and coatings using natural oils.

Last week was rife with news about the EPA's plan to regulate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from power plants and manufacturing facilities, as well as planned shake up of EPA's existing chemicals management program (TSCA).

Chemical industry organizations seem ok with the TSCA reform although the same cannot be said with the greenhouse gas emissions regulation. The EPA estimates that its anticipated rulemaking on GHG emissions under the Clean Air Act will likely apply to 14,000 US power stations, refineries and factories. The National Petrochemical and Refiners Association (NPRA) was quick to challenge the agency stating that the EPA lacked the legal authority to decide which facilities should be regulated and which should be exempted.

More on those issues in the coming days ahead. Meanwhile, here are this week's news roundup.

Biomass fuel association formed
Advanced biofuel producers announced the formation of the Low Carbon Synthetic Fuels Association (LCSFA) representing the Biomass-to-Liquids (BtL) industry. The LCSFA was formed to address existing legislative and regulatory inequities that have slowed or even hindered the development of advanced biofuels.

Arkema's recycle solution
Arkema has developed Rcycle™, a global service package based on recycling biobased Rilsan® and Pebax® technical polymers. Rcycle™ covers the collection and sorting of waste, and its reuse in a range of recycled polymers.

Wacker exits solar wafer biz
Wacker Chemie AG exits from the solar wafer business and will transfer its shares in its joint venture WACKER SCHOTT Solar GmbH (WSS) to its former partner SCHOTT Solar AG. WACKER will focus its solar activities on the production of hyperpure polycrystalline silicon.

Gevo said it is ready to rock the biofuels market with its ethanol facility-based biobutanol.

Soon, ethanol producers can also manufacture Gevo's biobutanol product as Gevo successfully started up its worldwide-first biobutanol demonstration plant in St. Joseph, Missouri, which is designed from retrofitting an existing demonstration scale ethanol plant.

The 1m gal/year pilot plant will produce biobutanol that can be blended directly into gasoline and [or] can be used to make renewable hydrocarbons ("green gasoline"), diesel and jet fuel, chemical intermediates and biobased plastics.

Gevo said the retrofit of the pilot plant was completed in less than three months, and represents the first step along the route to produce cellulosic biobutanol which will be possible once biomass conversion technology becomes commercially available.

The company estimates the additional cost of this capital equipment to be approximately 30 cents per gallon of installed ethanol capacity. Retrofit facilities will have the flexibility to produce either ethanol or biobutanol.

Gevo also formed a subsidiary, Gevo Development, LLC to develop a fleet of biorefineries based on retrofitting existing ethanol plants with Gevo's proprietary technology to produce biobutanol.

For more on biobutanol and next generation liquid biofuels, check out my articles on ICIS Chemical Business!

A virtual press conference yesterday from Cleantech Group and Deloitte announced that venture capital (VC) investments for clean technologies in the third quarter of this year overtook investments for (medical) biotechnology and IT.

Cleantech group defines clean technology as a diverse range of products, services and processes that are intended to reduce or eliminate negative ecological impacts while at the same improving the productive and responsible use of natural resources at lower costs and with improved performance.

Green chemistry, along with industrial biotechnology is included in their scope of analysis under "MATERIALS" although Cleantech and their partner Deloitte do not really cover these areas that much except for biofuels (pity...).

Anyway, clean technology is now said to be the largest US venture capital category with 27% share followed by biotechnology (24%), software (18%), and medical devices and equipment (17%).

Cleantech's preliminary report estimates 3Q 2009 VC investments in North America, Europe, China and India totaling $1.59bn across 134 companies, up 10% compared to 2Q but still down 42% from 3Q 2008. Most of the rebound this quarter is attributed to effects of government stimulus funding worldwide.

"The two largest venture deals (Solyndra and Tesla Motors) and the largest IPO (A123Systems) this quarter were all recipients of US government funding. Hundreds of millions of dollars in new venture funds this quarter are also evidence of investor confidence and momentum, including $1.1bn in two new funds by Khosla Ventures alone."