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November 4, 2016 | Green Biz
To simply design for sustainability is no longer enough, we need to design for regeneration! Collectively, as a species, we have already done too much damage to simply aim for sustainability — what William McDonough calls “100% less bad.” We have to undo the damage done over centuries — in some cases over millennia. We have to regenerate healthy ecosystems functions everywhere. To be able to do this well, we have to become good at designing as nature.
Novomer Sells CO2 Polyol Business to Aramco
November 4, 2016 | Everchem
Saudi Aramco has acquired the Converge product line and associated operations and technologies from US-based Novomer. The transaction was valued at up to $100 million. Converge polyol is manufactured from and contains a significant portion of carbon dioxide (CO2). The technology provides a high-performance, cost competitive and more sustainable alternative to conventional petroleum-based polyols that are used in coating, adhesive, sealant, and elastomer (CASE) applications which feature in high-value, high-demand end-products, including within the flexible and rigid foam manufacturing segments.
Coconut Derived Bio-based Surfactants are a Promising Substitute for Alkylbenzen
November 4, 2016 | Med Gadget
Surfactants are traditionally being manufactured from the crude oil. Scarcity of crude oil and growing environmental concerns are key drivers of bio surfactants manufactured by using plants and natural substances like coconuts, soybean, grapefruit seed and pulp extracts, corn etc. Methyl Ester Sulfonates (MES) is the largest consumed bio surfactant derived from coconut and it is the perfect substitute to synthetics surfactants as detergent feedstock.
Technology Converts Human Waste into Bio-Based Fuel
November 2, 2016 | Science Daily
Wastewater treatment plants across the United States may one day turn ordinary sewage into biocrude oil, thanks to new research. The technology, hydrothermal liquefaction, mimics the geological conditions Earth uses to create crude oil, using high pressure and temperature to achieve in minutes something that takes Mother Nature millions of years.
October 31, 2016 | The Guardian
Jean-François Huc, CEO of Canadian chemical company BioAmber, believes that yeast may be the key to taking some of the petrochemical market. BioAmber uses a genetically engineered yeast to produce succinic acid, a chemical building block that can be used to make a host of products, including polyurethanes, plastics, paints and polymers.