Basics Bio-PDO and
Basics Bio-PDO and Bio-BDO Versatile building blocks not only for bioplastics 1,3-propanediol (PDO) C 3 H 8 O 2 other names: • Propane-1,3-diol (IUPAC) • Trimethyleneglycol • 1,4-Propyleneglykol • 1,3-Dihydroxypropane 1 3 2 pictures: wikiwand.com One of today’s most prominent and versatile molecular building blocks for biobased materials is 1,3 propanediol. Originally synthetized through petroleum feedstocks in 1941 by the same scientists who invented PET, 1,3 propanediol is today only manufactured from renewable, biobased sources. DuPont Tate & Lyle Bio Products (DTL), Wilmington, Delaware, USA, is the world’s leading producer of biobased 1,3 propanediol, known as Bio-PDO as well as under the trade names Susterra® propanediol and Zemea® propanediol. There are tens of thousands of different products worldwide made with Bio-PDO. Bio-PDO is a biodegradable and high-performance ingredient that can be used in cosmetics, food and beverage, performance polymers, industrial applications such as coolants, and many other applications that currently use glycols. It can be used as a monomer to produce polyurethanes and unsaturated polyester resins, as well as other specialty polymers such as DuPont Sorona ® , a polytrimethylenterephthalate (PTT) polyester. Bio-PDO is also an excellent biobased solvent. DuPont’s patented production process for Bio-PDO remains as one of the best examples of biotechnology providing a lower cost, more efficient, and more sustainable alternative to displace an incumbent petrochemical molecule. Bio-PDO is produced at a world scale aerobic fermentation facility in Loudon, Tennessee. This facility utilizes a proprietary fermentation process to convert glucose into Susterra propanediol. The glucose is introduced to the biocatalyst and converted to 1,3 propanediol through the fermentation process using a patented microorganism under exact temperatures and conditions. The 1,3 propanediol is refined to a final purity of 99.7 % by deactivating and removing the microorganism, water and other byproducts. Bio-PDO is chemically identical to pure petroleum derived 1,3-propanediol, but all carbon in Bio- PDO is biobased. The LCA data for Bio-PDO also demonstrates nearly 50 % reduction of greenhouse gas emissions compared to the typical petrochemical alternatives. Bio-PDO is an organic compound with a three-carbon backbone structure, and is a colorless liquid that is highly miscible with water. The three-carbon structure is responsible for many of the unique performance characteristics of Bio- PDO in polymer applications, such as inherent stretch properties in fibers like Sorona, and better low-temperature flexibility for applications like solvent-free artificial leathers made with Susterra propanediol. For the cosmetics and personal care, Bio-PDO is known under the trade name Zemea propanediol. It can function as a humectant, emollient, solvent, co-solvent, preservative booster, and as a carrier for other actives. For food and flavorings applications, it can provide reduced bitterness and enhanced sweetness in food and beverage products and provides unique solubility properties for flavoring compounds. Polyurethanes are increasingly found in performance textile applications such as footwear and apparel, and the properties of Bio-PDO make it well suited for a wide range of thermoplastic and cast elastomers, foams, and adhesives found in these products. Thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) made with polyols derived from Susterra propanediol can have up to 75 % bio-content and is readily used in existing injection molding tooling. Global brands such as Reebok, Vivobarefoot, and many others have incorporated Susterra based outsoles, insoles, breathable waterproof membranes, and other components to add sustainability to their products without sacrificing performance. www.duponttateandlyle.com By: Ben Roth Business Development Director DuPont Tate & Lyle BioProducts Wilmington, Delaware, USA 48 bioplastics MAGAZINE [04/20] Vol. 15
Basics To start this Basics section: What are diols? Diols are organic compounds with a carbon-carbon backbone containing two alcoholic hydroxy groups (-OH), i.e. divalent alcohols (dialcohols or more precisely saturated diols). An example of a simple, stable diol is ethylene glycol (1,2-ethanediol) C 2 H 6 O 2 . Other important diols are 1,3-propanediol and 1,4 butanediol. 1,2 - 1,3 and 1,4 indicate the number of the carbon atom to which the alcoholic hydroxy groups are attached. Such diols can, among other things, be used to produce plastics. What’s more, the above-mentioned diols can also be made from renewable resources. While biobased ethylenegycol is one of the monomers used to make partly biobased PET, this Basics section concentrates on bio-PDO and bio-BDO. bioplastics MAGAZINE is grateful to the two experts who explain these chemical building blocks in more detail below. MT 1,4-butanediol (BDO) C 4 H 10 O 2 other names: • Butane-1,4-diol (IUPAC) • Tetramethyleneglycol • 1,4-Butyleneglykol • 1,4-Dihydroxybutane 1 3 2 4 1,4 BDO (1,4 butanediol) is a chemical intermediate used in a wide range of applications, in sectors such as textiles, electronics, automotive and the production of consumer goods, as well as the biopolymer sector. The Global 1,4 BDO Market is expected to reach USD 14.04 billion by 2025, up from USD 7.14 billion in 2017, growing at a CAGR of 8.01 % during the period 2018 – 2025 [1]. It should be noted, however, that in 2020, consumption of 1,4 BDO, especially in the automotive sector, has been severely impacted by the Covid 19 outbreak. Mater-Biotech represents the world’s first dedicated industrial plant for the production of 1,4 BDO directly from sugars, starting from a technology developed by Genomatica, a Californian company leader in bioengineering innovation, and Novamont’s unique know-how in developing low impact processes. Mater-Biotech is an Italian company based in Adria (in the north-eastern part of Italy), 100 % owned by Novamont, leader in the bioplastics sector and in the development of biochemicals and bioproducts obtained from the integration of chemistry, agriculture and the environment. Mater-Bi is the range of biobased, biodegradable and compostable bioplastics developed by Novamont to provide solutions to certain environmental, economic and social problems. 1,4 BDO from renewable sources is obtained from the fermentation of sugars, using a Escherichia coli strain and has the same characteristics of 1,4 BDO obtained from fossil fuels. From an environmental perspective, this bio-butanediol has a much lower carbon footprint. LCA cradle to gate studies (up to the production of the monomer and including the biogenic CO 2 of the 1,4 BDO) show a difference of up to 50 % in terms of carbon footprint between the production of 1,4 BDO from fossil fuels through traditional processes and the 1,4 BDO production in Mater-Biotech plant. Further improvements in the environmental profile of bio BDO can be achieved through further optimization of production processes and the use of alternative sugars [2], whose study is underway by Novamont. This environmental profile offers a unique solution for polymer producers and brand owners, and thanks to the unique one step biotechnological process developed by Mater- Biotech to obtain 1,4 BDO from renewable origins, today the fourth generation of Mater-Bi is available on the market, and work is ongoing on the fifth, which will boast an even higher renewable resource content. Mater-Biotech, which started operations at the end of 2016, is the result of the conversion of a decommissioned site acquired by Novamont in 2012. The aim is to act as much as possible locally, to support territorial regeneration and to avoid the loss of existing skills and competencies, with a positive return on the downstream industries and its connected activities. The plant covers today an area of 200,000 m² and has a production capacity of 30,000 tonnes/year. The whole production site is conceived to reuse by-products for its own energy purpose, optimizing the whole life-cycle process. www.novamont.com References: [1] Global 1, 4 Butanediol Market– Industry Trends and Forecast to 2025 Data Bridge Market Research, 2018 [2] Patel et al, 2018, Second-generation bio-based plastics are becoming a reality – Non-renewable energy and greenhouse gas (GHG) balance of succinic acidbased plastic end products made from lignocellulosic biomass. By: Stefano Facco New Business Development Manager Novamont Novara, Italy bioplastics MAGAZINE [04/20] Vol. 15 49
