US Gevo begins shipping PX derived from renewable isobutanol

HOUSTON (ICIS)–Gevo has begun selling paraxylene (PX) derived from its renewable isobutanol to Toray, the US-based biotechnology firm said on Thursday.

“This is a groundbreaking achievement that we are very proud to have accomplished. This demonstrates that bio-isobutanol is truly a building block for the renewable chemicals industry,” said Gevo CEO Patrick Gruber.

Paraxylene is a feedstock for purified terephthalic acid (PTA), a monomer used in the production of polyethylene terephthalic (PET), which can produce synthetic fibres, plastic bottles and films.

The PX was sold under a previous agreement with Toray, which also helped fund the construction of Gevo’s PX demo plant at the South Hampton Resources complex in Silsbee, Texas.

Tokyo-based Toray expects to produce fibres, yarns and films for scale-up evaluation and market development purposes, Gevo said.

Gevo’s biorefinery at South Hampton Resources also produces renewable jet fuel and renewable iso-octane, using renewable isobutanol made at its plant in Luverne, Minnesota.