Recently in News Roundup Category

Ok, so there have been more news on biofuel than I thought. I should have posted this last week. In the meantime, I am also looking at some of the recent earnings report that came out. As the blog posted before about rising ethanol prices because of drought, it looks like this is also affecting some renewable chemical companies based on Gevo's earnings call yesterday.

Speaking of Gevo, the blog has also been receiving several lawsuit updates against Butamax (including one today), so I guess it's that time of the month for another post in that area ;-).

Clariant starts cellulosic ethanol plant
Swiss specialty chemical company Clariant has opened Germany's biggest cellulosic ethanol pilot plant located in Straubing, Bavaria. The project will produce up to 1,000 tonnes of cellulosic ethanol using 4,500 tonnes of wheat straw based on the sunliquid processing technology developed by Clariant. The process, according to Clariant, is an innovative biotechnological method that turns plant waste products such as grain straw and corn straw into second-generation cellulose ethanol.

REG biodiesel now available
Biodiesel producer and marketer Renewable Energy Group (REG) will offer wholesale biodiesel  REG-9000 to large petroleum jobbers or large fleets beginning mid-August under a new agreement with Maxum Petroleum at its Rancho Dominguez (California) terminal location outside Long Beach. REG also recently announced biodiesel availability at a terminal near Lebanon, Ohio, and its own terminal in Clovis, New Mexico.

AFS BioOil aims $2/gal biodiesel
AFS BioOil has conducted initial tests on its algae production system, and the company states that they will be in the $2 per gallon range of production at commercial scale. For advanced biofuels, commercial scale is at least 1 million gallons per year of production. The company along with a renewable electricity firm are planning a 5 MW renewable electricity and 1-2m gal/year biodiesel projects. The companies are at a design stage and will release actual scope of the projects in the third quarter.

Azul Brazilian Airlines uses Amyris biofuel
Azul Brazilian Airlines has successfully demonstrated a flight using sugarcane jet fuel produced by Amyris. The Embraer E195 jet operated by Azul departed from Campinas Viracopos Airport, flew over Rio de Janeiro and landed at Rio's Santos Dumont Airport.

Algae.Tec commissions biofuel facility
Australia-based Algae.Tec has opened its advanced engineered algae to biofuels facility in Nowra, New South Wales. The facility is connected to the Manildra Group waste carbon dioxide site, which is used in the algae growth process. Algae.Tec also has projects with Holcim Lanka, joint venture discussions in China, and a manufacturing base in Atlanta, Georgia (USA)

Solazyme receives EPA registration
Solazyme has been granted registration for SoladieselRD fuel by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The registration enables SoladieselRD to be sold commercially either in blended and unblended (R100) form. SoladieselRD is said to be compatible with existing infrastructure and can be used with factory-standard diesel engines without modifications.

Novozymes partners with Shengquan
​Shengquan Group, a Shandong-based company specializing in furan resin and polymers, and Novozymes, a world leader in bioinnovation, formed a partnership deal enabling Shengquan to start commercial-scale production of cellulosic ethanol for solvents in June 2012 using Novozymes' technology. Using Novozymes enzymes, Shengquan will now convert corncob residues from furfural production into fermentable sugars and then into ethanol for solvents and other purposes.

Petrobras to produce biodiesel 
Petrobras Biofuel and the State of Rio Grande do Norte signed a memorandum where Petrobras plans to build an experimental biodiesel plant, located in the municipality of Guamaré for commercial production . With investments of R$ 5.1m, the unit will start in the first half of 2013, with a capacity to produce 20m liters/year of biodiesel.

ICM contracts ACA BIO for ethanol plant
ICM has signed a contract with ACA Bio Cooperative Limitada to design a dry-mill corn ethanol plant with a 40m gal/year capacity located near the city of Villa Maria, in the central province of Cordoba, Argentina. Completion of the facility is expected in the first quarter of 2014. Ethanol production from ACA Bio will focus primarily on the country's domestic markets.

EPEC partners with BioDimensions
Florida-based EPEC Biofuels Holdings Inc. has partnered with BioDimensions Delta BioRenewables (BDBR) of Memphis, Tennessee, to advance EPEC's Ethanol 2.0 platform towards commercialization. BDBR produces, process, and a downstream user of sweet sorghum and has integrated a mechanized system from field-to-factory. EPEC is a development stage company intent on owning and operating ethanol facilities using sweet sorghum on host farms across the US.

DIC Group in spirulina biofuel
Tokyo-based specialty chemical firm DIC Corp. announced that its California subsidiary Earthrise Nutritionals has entered an algae licensing deal with Sapphire Energy, where the company will integrate Earthrise Nutritionals' spirulina strain into its growing inventory of cyanobacteria and algae strains for algae-to-energy production or green crude - a drop-in replacement for petro-based crude oil. DIC Group is the world's largest supplier of Spirulina, which it has been producing for use in health foods and food colorings since the 1970s.

Sundrop uses ExxonMobil tech
Sundrop Fuels, a gasification-based drop-in advanced biofuels company, has finalized a licensing agreement to use ExxonMobil Research and Engineering Company's methanol-to-gasoline (MTG) technology to be incorporated into its "green gasoline" production facility located near Alexandria, Louisiana, which will use forest waste for feedstock. The facility will produce up to 50m gal/year renewable gasoline and is expected to start later this year.

Plymouth Energy picks Edeniq
Plymouth Energy has been using Edeniq's proprietary Cellunator milling equipment at its 50m gal.year corn ethanol facility Merrill, western Iowa, since the first quarter of the year. Plymouth said it has achieved a 3% yield boost since the Cellunators were installed. which enables to easily convert sugars from corn and other plant materials to produce biofuels.

Dyadic launches biofuel enzyme
Dyadic International has unveiled its latest biofuels enzyme AlternaFuel CMAX3, which enables the production of cellulosic biofuels and biobased chemicals from a wide range of renewable non-food feedstocks under broad pH and temperature ranges. The enzyme is said to be the latest generation of a cellulase and hemicellulase complex based on Dyadic's C1 platform technology.

The blog's favorite motto: Better late than never. Here is this week's news roundup. I will post another one on biofuels.

Gevo ships bio-isobutanol products
Gevo has shipped initial volumes of bio-isobutanol from its 250,000 gal/year plant in Luverne, Minnesota. Gevo is sending isobutanol to both chemical and non-automobile jet fuel customers. The company expects to reach full-capacity run rates in Luverne by year-end 2013.

EcoSynthetix partners with FutureMark
FutureMark Paper Company has signed a 3-year contract for a minimum of 2.45m dry pounds/year of EcoSynthetix's EcoSphere biolatex binders delivered to its Alsip, Illinois, mill. EcoSynthetix's biolatex is an alternative for petroleum-based styrene butadiene latex in FutureMark's paper coating.

Dow uses Betafoam in cavity seating
Dow Automotive Systems, a business unit of The Dow Chemical Company has introduced a new cavity sealing solution called BETAFOAM™ Renue polyurethane rigid foam system made with 25% renewable based materials. BETAFOAM is typically used to seal vehicle cavities to provide advantages in managing noise, vibration and harshness and offers improved acoustical performance of one to five decibels.

...and produces encapsulants for solar panels
Dow Chemical begun production in Thailand for ENLIGHT™ Polyolefin Encapsulant Films for use in photovoltaic (PV) solar panels. Dow is also constructing a third manufacturing site for this film in Schkopau, Germany. Dow has had a production facility in Findlay, Ohio, since December 2010. Demand for PV modules remains strong, according to Dow, and currently is projected to grow at 20% a year globally, for the next several years.

BioSolar completes certification
BioSolar has completed all technical UL certifications necessary to begin shipping BioBacksheet to solar manufacturers. BioSolar's patented BioBacksheet is the world's first UL certified solar panel backsheet made from renewable plant-based materials. In order for solar panels containing BioBacksheet to be sold in the general marketplace, full panel samples must be submitted to UL for UL 1703 certifications.

Matheson, Syngest fertilizer partnership
MATHESON and Syngest have entered a deal where MATHESON will supply 100% of the oxygen and nitrogen for Syngest's BioAmmonia and BioUrea projects. Syngest is entering commercial deployment of its biomass gasification process to produce nitrogen fertilizer BioAmmonia and BioUrea.

Cereplast bags patent
Cereplast has been granted by the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) patent 8,222,320 for high heat resistant polymer compositions having polylactic acid (PLA). PLA has limitations in terms of melt strength and heat resistance, which has restricted its use for high temperature applications. Cereplast said its high heat PLA compositions can be industrially compostable and can retain their structural properties at temperatures greater than 165 degrees Fahrenheit (74 degrees Celsius).

And from ICIS News (requires subscription):
Brazilian petrochemical producer Braskem said the company is yet to set deadlines for three projects -- ethanol-based polypropylene (PP) plant, a second ethanol-based polyethylene (PE) plant, and a naphtha-based PP plant. Braskem denied a recent news which reported that the company would delay the three projects.

Trade organizations involved in the US building formed a coalition -- the American High-Performance Building Coalition (AHPBC) -- to push for science-based "green" building standards that include more input by those groups. The coalition was formed in reaction to green building requirements now under consideration by the US General Services Administration (GSA).

US chemical sector officials expressed disappointment and concern over a Senate committee vote to advance a major chemicals management reform bill, the "Safe Chemicals Act", that is widely opposed by industry. The Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works voted 10-8 to approve the bill, which is designed to modernise the 36-year-old Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), the principal federal law governing chemicals in commerce.

I'd better put this out before this list gets longer. Some of the news that the blog missed for the past two weeks....

Grace and Braskem in catalysts
W.R. Grace and Braskem have partnered on a multi-year collaboration to develop process technologies and catalyst solutions to produce green chemicals. The agreement is intended to advance the commercialization of a process to convert renewably sourced feedstocks into value-added products. Details and financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

hte AG partners with Elevance
hte - the high throughput experimentation company and Elevance Renewable Sciences are collaborating on the development of bio-based specialty lubricants. hte will use its in-house developed multifold high throughput autoclave testing unit.

Aemetis in buying spree
Aemetis has acquired Cilion, Inc., including a 55m gallon/year (mgy) ethanol production plant located in Keyes, CA. The acquisition advances Aemetis' plans to use the existing ethanol plant's infrastructure to create a biorefinery producing advanced biofuels and renewable chemicals in addition to ethanol and animal feed products. Third Eye Capital, Aemetis' existing senior lender, provided a $15m term loan and an $18m working capital financing facility to assist Aemetis in the acquisition and to provide ongoing working capital.

Cargill buys bio-lube biz
Cargill has purchased the global Envirotemp FR3 fluid business and brand from Cooper Power Systems, a subsidiary of Cooper Industries. Cargill currently manufactures the patented, FR3 renewable dielectric fluid made from vegetable oil that is used in a wide range of applications for transformers and other electrical equipment.

BASF sells marine biopolymers
BASF SE has sold its Chitosan marine biopolymers business to Norwegian company Seagarden ASA. The biopolymers are used in personal care products and as pharmaceutical ingredients. The Chitosan business includes a production site in Tromsoe, Norway.

BASF's eco-label database triples in size
BASF's SELECT™ (Sustainability, Eco-Labeling and Environmental Certification Tracking) Eco-Label Manager has nearly tripled in size to 270 programs up from 100 programs the previous year. The SELECT Eco-Label Manager is a database that manages the abundance of eco-labels, environmental claims, directories and ratings systems strategically by allowing users to search, analyze and compare these programs in a structured and consistent format.

Oakbio's biopolymer from cement plant
Oakbio successfully produce biodegradable bioplastic polymers in their bioreactor systems using inputs of cement plant flue gas and electricity. The technology uses bioreactors driven by non-toxic microbes to capture CO2 and convert it to a products directly from the plant's gas emissions. The carbon conversion process is said to yield over 50% bioplastics in microbe biomass by dry weight.

Cardia Bioplastic's packaging alliance
Cardia Bioplastics and rigid plastic packaging company, Alto Packaging, have formed a partnership to produce high performance packaging solutions, manufactured with Cardia's thermoplastic cornstarch resins. Cardia's Biohybrid™ resins combine renewable thermoplastics with oil-based polymer material.

Global Bioenergies opens US branch
Global Bioenergies has expanded its global business operations into the US, opening a branch facility in Ames, Iowa. The new operation will focus on Global Bioenergies' program for bioconversion of renewable resources into isobutene and other light olefins.

Codexis' carbon capture tech displayed
Codexis' pilot-scale demonstration of its carbon capture technology conducted at the National Carbon Capture Center (NCCC) in Wilsonville, Alabama, shows that enzymes have promise to facilitate CO2 capture at coal-fired power plants. This is the largest scale that enzyme-based carbon capture technology has been demonstrated to date, with the equivalent daily capture rate of 1,800 average sized trees per day. Codexis developed this patented technology under a license granted by CO2 Solutions, Inc.

Cereplast partners with Albis Plastic
Cereplast has entered a distribution deal with Hamburg, Germany-based ALBIS PLASTIC GMBH to supply Cereplast bioplastic resins to the United Kingdom and Ireland. ALBIS PLASTIC will distribute both Cereplast Compostables® resins, with an emphasis on blown film grades and blow molding grades, as well as Cereplast Sustainables® resins, including the Cereplast Hybrid Resins® product line.

Global biogas market to reach $33bn
The biogas market reached $17.3bn in global revenue in 2011 and will nearly double by 2022, hitting $33.1 billion in that year, according to a new report from Pike Research. The market for biogas sits at the confluence of a number of forces, including increasing demand for distributed generation, tightening environmental regulations, and accelerating buildout of infrastructure for natural gas and for vehicles powered by natural gas.

And in ICIS News (requires subscription):
Bio-based polyethylene (PE) is projected to have the best opportunities for growth among bioplastics through 2016 because of lower prices with expanding production capacity, according to Cleveland-based industry research firm The Freedonia Group.

Singapore's Strategic Petroleum has built a new system capable of converting different types of waste materials into synthesis gas (syngas), which in turn can be used to produce power, methane gas or petrochemicals.

A US appellate court dismissed the legal challenge to federal regulation of greenhouse gases (GHG) filed by a broad coalition of industries and several states, saying the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) may rightly impose limits on such emissions.

The chemical industry has been at the forefront of the emerging green economy and without chemical businesses a green society cannot happen, the Chemical Industries Association (CIA) said.

The green blogger is going on a part work/part vacation for the next two 2.5 weeks outside the US. I will try my hardest not to check my emails while I'm on vacation ;-). Don't miss me too much!

Here are last week's news roundup:

BioTork collaborates with BASF
US biotechnology company BioTork expanded its collaboration with BASF on the optimization of certain microbial strains for the production of bio-based polymers and chemicals. BASF has been conducting intensive research on the use of microorganisms for the production of proteins, enzymes, vitamins and other high-value and low cost chemicals. The two companies recently completed a pilot study. Financial terms of the partnership have not been disclosed.

Chemtex bags USDA biomass grant
Chemtex, the engineering and technology division of Grupo Mossi & Ghisolfi, has been awarded $3,996,000 by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) under its Biomass Crop Assistance Program to support the establishment of over 4,000 acres of miscanthus and switchgrass across eleven counties in North Carolina.  The feedstock will be part of the biomass supply for Project Alpha, a 20m gal/year cellulosic ethanol biorefinery planned to be build in Sampson County, North Carolina, with a plant start-up expected in 2014.

Vertichem acquires Thesis Chemistry
Vertichem will acquire 100% interest in Thesis Chemistry, which is currently commercializing its technology platform for the production of vanillin and aromatic aldehydes from plant lignin. The company is also developing more advanced biorefining technologies to convert lignin into phenols, cresols, BTX and fuels. Vertichem is working on a portfolio of green platform chemicals including lignin, xylose, and cellulose from woody biomass, agricultural resides and grasses.

LS9 opens demo plant
LS9 officially opened its demonstration facility in Okeechobee, Florida. The 75,000 gal/year facility will be initially used for commercial samples for testing and product qualification, and to test and optimize new process conditions. Large-scale production from the plant is expected in the third quarter of 2012.

Amyris bags $8m DARPA contract
Amyris has been awarded an $8m contract from the US Department of Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to develop tools, technologies and methodologies that can transform biology into an engineering practice. Amyris said it can leverage its technology to developed improved DNA assembly and rapid integration across complex biological platform.

MVC Capital invests in Biovation 
MVC Capital will invest up to $3.05m in Biovation Holdings, a manufacturer of environment-friendly, organic and sustainable laminate materials and composites under the brand name Biosurf.  Biovation's materials are made from corn and soybean co-products that can be extruded into flat sheets or rolls. The products are expected to be used in industries such as decorative lighting, military applications, transportation, print media and electronics.

Darling International buys grease business
Darling International has completed the acquisition of all of the assets of RVO BioPur, which provides used cooking oil collection and grease trap services to restaurants and food service establishments in Connecticut, Massachusetts and northern New York City. Darling International recycles animal fat waste streams into tallow, feed-grade fats and animal feed ingredients.

...and in ICIS News (requires subscription):
Brazil sugarcane crushing declines in May - Unica

Belgium's Galactic to develop lactic acid from algae in EU project

Argentine complaints unlikely to boost biodiesel exports

Sorry this has been a long time coming. I hope biofuel fans are not too mad at me...

Enerkem starts waste-to-etoh plant
Montreal-based Enerkem initiated production of cellulosic ethanol from waste materials at its demonstration facility in Westbury, Quebec. The primary purpose of the Westbury facility is to validate the technology process design before full-scale commercial production, to test various waste feedstocks coming from customers and partners, as well as to continuously improve the technology, according to the company.

Repsol buys biofuel tech NEOL
Spain-based fuel company Repsol has acquired 50% of NEOL Biosolutions, formerly the bioindustrial divsion of Neuron Bio. The alliance is expected to accelerate development of bioprocesses for use in production of advanced biofuels. Repsol's New Energy unit is currently working on different business initiatives in bioenergy, renewable energy and electric transport.

Great Lakes Biodiesel picks TWD
TWD Technologies has been selected by Great Lakes Biodiesel (GLB) to build Canada's largest biodiesel plant, which will have capacity of 170m liters/year. The plant is scheduled to be operational by the Fall of 2012. TWD is providing full engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCM) for the Great Lakes Biodiesel Plant located in Welland, Ontario.

Biofuel competitive with H2Bioil process
Purdue University has developed a thermochemical process called H2Bioil method that can produce cost-effective biofuels. The method is said to be competitive when crude oil is $100/barrel. H2Bioil is created when biomass, such as switchgrass or corn stover, is heated rapidly to about 500 degrees Celcius in the presence of pressurized hydrogen. Resulting gases are passed over catalysts, causing reactions that separate oxygen from carbon molecules, making the carbon molecules high in energy content, similar to gasoline molecules.

Amyris fuel on Azul Airlines
Azul Airlines will use Amyris's sugarcane-based jet fuel during a demonstration flight on an Azul E195 aircraft powered by GE's CF34-10E engines. The "Azul+Verde" (a Greener Blue) flight will take place in Brazil on  June 19th, during the Rio+20 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development. The companies will provide additional information about the flight plans shortly, following authorization from Brazil's National Civil Aviation Agency (ANAC).

Evogene, T6 partners in castor
Evofuel Ltd., Evogene's wholly owned subsidiary, and T6 Industrial S.A., entered a collaboration for development of castor bean seeds as feedstock for biodiesel production. The companies will evaluate and develop Evofuel's advanced castor bean varieties for commercial production in Argentina. According to the USDA Foreign Agriculture Service, Argentina's 2011 biodiesel production was 2.5 billion liters, with soybean oil being the main feedstock.

Edeniq partners with Flint Hills
Edeniq will supply Flint Hills Resources Renewables its Cellunator technology which enables plants to mill corn and other plant materials into small, uniform pieces of feedstock that can be easily converted into sugars to produce biofuels. Edeniq is installing the technology at the first of four Flint Hills plants. Flint Hills expects further adoption of Edeniq equipment to produce cellulosic ethanol. Edeniq recently announced the company has raised over $30m in additional funding led by existing investors, as well as new investor Flint Hills Resources Renewables.

Sundrop Fuels, ThyssenKrupp partnership
Sundrop Fuels has partnere with engineering firm ThyssenKrupp Uhde to build a commercial green gasoline facility in Alexandria, Louisiana, with a capacity of up to 50m gal/year using biomass for feedstock. Sundrop Fuels will convert forest residues and thinnings as feedstock combined with natural gas into gasoline by using gasification, gas purification, methanol synthesis and a methanol-to-gasoline (MTG) process. The company's first production plant will have a capacity of about 3,500 barrels of renewable gasoline per day.

Gevo collaborates with VP Racing Fuels
Gevo and VP Racing Fuels will jointly develop a product line of renewable, high-performance, isobutanol-based fuel blends for the small engine market while looking toward other performance applications for isobutanol as well. The relationship will allow the companies to initially assess market opportunities, positioning and distribution channels to commercialize renewable fuels for outdoor power equipment.

Butamax, Fagen partnership
Butamax Advanced Biofuels has partnered with biofuels engineering, procurement and construction contractor Fagen to retrofit ethanol plants for biobutanol production. Fagen has constructed over 85 ethanol plants totaling approximately 6bn gallons of annual production. Butamax also announced the formation of the Early Adopters Group (EAG), a consortium of biofuel production companies interested in
becoming early adopters of Butamax™ biobutanol technology. Lincolnway Energy of Nevada, Iowa; and Corn, LP of Goldfield, Iowa are the latest additions to the EAG.

Primus Green's green gasoline
New Jersey, US-based Primus Green Energy Ltd. has produced its first sample of high octane (93) renewable drop-in gasoline through a proprietary combination of biomass conversion technologies. The company recently broke ground on an automated demonstration plant and is planning to break ground next year on a commercial plant in eastern Pennsylvania that will be designed to produce 4.8m gal/year of gasoline from wood pellets and non-food, herbaceous crops.

Cool Planet Biofuels' cellulosic gasoline
Cool Planet BioFuels has achieved 4,000 gallons/acre biomass-to-gasoline conversion in pilot testing using giant miscanthus, an advanced bioenergy crop. The giant miscanthus was developed at the University of Mississippi and provided from a high yield plot by Repreve Renewables.

DONG Energy approves DSM enzymes
Royal DSM has been qualified as supplier of enzymes for DONG Energy - Inbicon's wheat straw to cellulosic ethanol process. The enzymes have been successfully used in the 1.5m gal/year demonstration scale biorefinery of DONG Energy - Inbicon in Kalundborg, Denmark. The plant produces cellulosic biofuel for Statoil which is distributed via gasoline stations throughout Denmark.

Lallemand, Mascoma market yeast
Lallemand Ethanol Technology and Mascoma announced that the Mascoma Grain Technology, or MGT, yeast product will be marketed under the commercial name TransFerm for use by the fuel ethanol industry. TransFerm is a bioengineered drop-in substitute for conventional fermenting yeast that will reportedly lowers costs for corn ethanol producers. TransFerm is manufactured and distributed by Lallemand and jointly marketed and sold by Mascoma and Lallemand through an exclusive partnership.

Novozymes' new plant and partner
Novozymes has inaugurated the reportedly largest enzyme plant dedicated to biofuels in the US. The $200m facility is located in Blair, Nebraska. Novozymes has also joined the consortium behind Maabjerg Energy Concept, which will use Novozyme's biotech expertise to design a new bioenergy production plant, which will produce 94m cubic meters of biogas, 73m liters (19m gallons) of bioethanol, as well as district heating for 20,000 households and electricity for several thousand homes. The Maabjerg plant is located in western Denmark near the cities of Struer and Holstebro in Jutland.

Neste Oil's waste fish fat diesel
Neste Oil has begun to produce its NExBTL renewable diesel using waste fat from fish processing industry at its Singapore refinery. The batch of waste fish fat complies with the strict sustainability requirements of the EU's Renewable Energy Directive and is also accepted as a raw material for renewable fuel in the US.

The renewable chemical industry seems to be pretty quiet these days aside from a great news yesterday regarding the bio-PET collaboration between consumer brand companies Coca-Cola, Nike, P&G, Ford and Heinz.

Just FYI to readers, the blog will be out of service from June 15 to July 4. Translation: The blogger will be traveling partly for work and partly for vacation. Yeah!

Here are this week's news roundup:

Braskem, Tecnaro bioplastic partnership
Braskem and Tecnaro GmbH will collaborate to produce a new line of application for Braskem's sugarcane-based polyethylene (PE) plastic. Tecnaro will produce Green PE-based biopolymer compounds under the trademark ARBOBLEND, which can be processed by injection molding, extrusion or thermoforming depending on the formula. Tecnaro was selected by Braskem to expand the penetration of the biopolymer in the European market

PTT completes NatureWorks buy
PTT Global Chemical has completed its investment transaction on May 31 and fully acquired a 50% stake in NatureWorks for $150m (Baht 4,572m). PTT Global Chemical announced the acquisition last year in October. The companies plan to build a polylactic acid facility in Thailand.

DuPont solar deal in China
DuPont China will collaborate with China Sunergy Co. Ltd. in photovoltaic technologies and materials over a three-year period. China Sunergy has agreed to increase its purchase of photovoltaic materials from DuPont, including DuPont™ Solamet® photovoltaic metallizations used in solar cells to achieve higher cell efficiency and DuPont™ Tedlar® polyvinyl fluoride film-based backsheets for solar module protection.

Vertellus picks castor distributor
Vertellus Specialties has picked the Horn Company as its authorized distributor of castor oil, castor oil polyols and derivatives in the 11 western states of California, Washington, Oregon, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, Idaho, Nevada, Arizona and New Mexico as well as four southwestern states of Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Arizona.

Solvay opens India R&D center
Solvay has opened its new research, development and technology (RD&T) center in Gujarat State, India, which will focus mainly on the development of high-performance polymers, organic chemistry, nano composites and green chemistry. The Centre has also established three fellowships for research in sustainable chemistry, nano technology and polymer science at the Maharaja Sayajirao University in Vadodara.

HallStar's bio-based polymer patent
The HallStar Company was awarded US Patent number 8,158,731 titled "Biopolymer Compositions Having Improved Flexibility" from the US Patent and Trademark Office. The patent applies to bio-based polymeric additives such as its HALLGREEN R-8010 bio-based polymeric succinate that improves the flexibility and pliability of biopolymers including polylactic acid (PLA), starch-based polymers, polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA), and polyhydoxybutyrate (PHB).

BioSolar selects Stevens Urethane
BioSolar has entered into a manufacturing agreement with Massachusetts-based Stevens Urethane, a subsidiary of JPS Industries, for the upcoming full-scale production of the company's BioBacksheet for North American customers. BioSolar has developed a technology to produce bio-based materials for solar cell components that reportedly will reduce the cost per watt of solar cells.

And in ICIS News (requires subscription):
Growing flame retardants controversy spurs call for rules reform

Germany's Wacker opposes EU duties on China solar modules

Taiwan's CMMFC aims to produce bio-based EO/MEG from June

Los Angeles moves forward with ban on plastic bags

EU green policies could damage Europe's refining industry - EUROPIA

I hope US readers had a great 3-day weekend. I sure did enjoy mine =). Unfortunately, given that ICIS' production is based in the UK and next week is the Queens Jubilee where my colleagues will have 2 days off, we are now scrunched to file earlier this week so you might not hear too much from the blog until Friday.

I am also starting to work on my ICB article about bio-based polyamides so this should be interesting.

Here are last week's news roundup. By the way, I had a great conversation with LanzaTech CEO Jennifer Holmgren and Gevo CEO Patrick Gruber last week. I filed my stories on ICIS news but I'm trying to see if the blog can steal and post them here. Stay tune.

INVISTA's energy-efficient nylon
Nylon polymer producer INVISTA has developed an energy-efficient process for the production of adiponitrile (ADN), a key raw material for nylon 6,6. The company said it also virtually eliminates benzene from the production process. Other benefits of the new ADN technology includes improved product yields, lower CO2 emissions, enhanced process stability and reduced capital intensity. INVISTA plans to deploy the technology and now has the option of installing it at its existing facilities in Orange and Victoria, Texas, in addition to a plant INVISTA is constructing in China.

DSM invests in innovations lab
DSM has invested EUR100m in three new R&D facilities in Delft and Sittard-Geleen, the Netherlands, over the next two years focusing on biotechnological and bioprocessing research in Delft and high performance materials in Sittard-Geleen. DSM is also a partner with CSM/Purac and the Delft University of Technology in the recently opened Bioprocess Pilot Facility (BPF) on the DSM site in Delft. The BPF is an open facility in which other companies, universities, institutes, etc. can conduct their upscaling research for bio-processes.

BASF Venture invests in China
BASF Venture Capital GmbH has invested $5m in the China Environment Fund (CEF) IV, L.P., which focuses on clean technology managed by Tsing Capital. Tsing Capital, established in 2001, is the first fund manager investing in Chinese cleantech and environment related companies with an aggregate of assets under management over $600 million. China Environment Fund invests in portfolio companies across China in areas of renewable energy, energy efficiency, environ­mental protection, new materials, sustainable transportation, smart grids, sustainable agriculture and cleaner production.

Lignol Energy joins Oak Ridge
Lignol Energy, a technology company in the advanced biofuels and renewable chemicals sector, has become a member of the Oak Ridge Carbon Fiber Composites Consortium based in Oak Ridge, Tenn. The Consortium is composed of some 40 organizations with a common interest in the development and commercial deployment of new carbon fiber materials made with a non-polyacrylonitrile (PAN) precursor. Oak Ridge will soon complete construction of the Carbon Fiber Technology Facility (CFTC), which will include a pilot plant capable of producing up to 25 tons per year of new carbon fiber materials from several different precursors, including lignin, which Lignol manufactures.

DuPont partners with Bio-Botanica
DuPont Tate & Lyle Bio Products Company has partnered with Bio-Botanica® Inc. in creating a new line of botanical extracts called ZeaBasics™. The products, manufactured by Bio-Botanica®, feature the proprietary ingredient Zemea® propanediol, a 100% biobased ingredient made from corn sugar through fermentation and developed for use in the cosmetics and personal care market.

Micro-algae institute launched in France
The French National Institute for Agricultural Research (INRA) has launched GreenStars, in collaboration with 45 partners from public research, SMEs, multinationals, local authorities and competitive clusters, to focus on becoming one of the top global research institute worldwide in the field of micro-algae biorefinery within the next 5-10 years. The institute has a budget of EUR160m for 10 years of which 20% will come from public grants. GreenStars expects to have industrial prototypes as soon as 2016.

The world's first ethanol-based cooking fuel
CleanStar has opened its 2m liters/year ethanol-based cooking fuel facility in Mozambique's Sofala Province, using surplus cassava supplied by local farmers. CleanStar Mozambique is a company formed in 2010 by enzymes producer Novozymes and CleanStar ventures. CleanStar has started pre-sales of its NDZiLO cookstove and cooking fuel products through its company-owned shop network, which is being expanded across the city in preparation for full launch later this year. The fuel is said to be an alternative to using charcoal.

Ingeo bioplastic cradle to cradle certified
NatureWorks' Ingeo™ biopolymer is reportedly the first product of its kind to become Cradle to Cradle CertifiedCM Silver by the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute. The certification is a multi-attribute program that assesses products for safety to human and environmental health, design for future use cycles, and sustainable manufacturing processes. The program provides guidelines to help businesses implement the Cradle to Cradle® framework, which focuses on using safe materials that can be disassembled and reused as technical nutrients or composted as biological nutrients.

Global biodiesel to reach $64bn by 2017
The global biodiesel market has experienced robust growth over the last five years and is expected to continue its momentum, reaching $64bn by 2017 with a CAGR of 19% over the next five years, according to Lucintel, a global management consulting and market research firm. The growth driver in biodiesel usage is not only being generated in Europe but the Rest of the World(ROW) and Asia Pacific (APAC) are expected to experience tremendous growth in biodiesel supply and demand by 2017, driven primarily by public policy support.

And in ICIS News (requires subscription):
Butamax Advanced Biofuels has been granted a patent in the US for producing isobutanol from recombinant micro-organisms on a commercial scale.

Taiwan's China Man-Made Fiber Corp (CMMFC) plans to change the feedstock for its monoethylene glycol (MEG) production to bio-based ethylene from the current naphtha-based ethylene in June.

Rhodia plans to build a bio-based solvents plant at its Paulinia site in Sao Paulo, southeast Brazil, and is also studying a project in Asia.

The US Commerce Department has announced anti-dumping duties (ADDs) on photovoltaic (PV) products from China, ranging from 31.14% to 249.96%.