Competition for the best “Renewable Material of the Year 2022”, sponsored by Covestro
Participants at the “Renewable Materials Conference” voted for the three winners:
The six nominees were as follows:
Borregaard (NO)
Exilva® Cellulose Fibrils
In 2015, the Norwegian biorefinery Borregaard completed the construction of the world’s largest plant for the production of fibrillated cellulose, and since then its innovative product Exilva® has been commercially available. Exilva® consists of highly fibrillated cellulose. It is obtained by mechanically processing cellulose pulp that comes from sustainably managed forests. The innovative aspects of this fibrillated cellulose are the high aspect ratio, the small aggregate size and the high specific surface area resulting from the efficient fibrillation process, as well as the high water retention value. Thanks to the high efficiency, robustness in harsh environments and multifunctional properties, it is suitable for a wide range of products.
More information: www.borregaard.com
Eastman (US)
Material-to-Material Molecular Recycling Technologies
Material-to-material molecular recycling uses plastic waste as a feedstock to make new plastics, keeping the carbon in play and leaving more fossil feedstocks in the ground. The process breaks down the waste to the molecular level – which is indistinguishable from virgin feedstocks – to make new materials. These materials can be recycled over and over without degradation of quality, and is available at-scale, today. These processes are also key to Eastman’s climate strategy, reducing the company’s greenhouse gas emissions by 20%-50% in producing the building blocks for new materials, when compared to traditional processes.
More information: www.eastman.com
Lactips (FR)
Plastic Free PaperTM with CareTips® – a Natural Polymer to Rethink Plastic
Lactips manufactures CareTips®, a natural polymer with multiple technical and performance properties that is biodegradable in various environments and supports manufacturers in their environmental and regulatory transformation. A natural polymer that offers solutions to rethink plastic and master its end of life. It is a unique solution that meets the requirements of the most stringent regulations for single-use plastics. The latest application of CareTips® is Plastic Free PaperTM, a 100% bio-based coating solution for paper and board that improves barrier properties and enables thermosealing without compromising the recyclability of paper.
More information: www.lactips.com
Origin Materials (US)
Technology Platform for Producing Carbon Negative PET
Origin Materials offers an entirely circular plastic solution: recyclable, 100% plant-based PET, which the world’s plastic recycling infrastructure is already designed to collect, sort, and re-use, with the critical added benefit of removing CO2 from the atmosphere.
Origin believes that making PET plastic from sustainable wood residues is a unique and powerful solution that meets the most pressing environmental challenges of the day. Origin expects the strong demand environment to continue and remain well ahead of projected supplies for the foreseeable future.
More information: www.originmaterials.com
Twelve Benefit Corporation (US)
Electrochemical CO2 Transformation to Chemicals and Materials
Twelve has developed a novel device that uses water and renewable energy to turn carbon dioxide (CO2) into essential chemicals, materials, and fuels, using a new class of CO2-reducing catalysts. Twelve is scaling to industrial systems to transform CO2 into carbon monoxide (CO), a key chemical building block for products including car parts, furniture, building materials, jet fuel, and numerous other materials that are currently made from petroleum. By replacing the fossil carbon in chemicals with renewable, recycled carbon from CO2, we can eliminate emissions from thousands of essential products. The first products are car parts (with Daimler), sunglasses (with Pangaia), and laundry detergent (with P&G).
More information: www.twelve.co
VERBIO Vereinigte BioEnergie (DE)
VerBioChem Ethenolyis Platform for Renewable Chemicals
VERBIO has developed the VerBioChem process for the production of specialty chemicals and polymers with a low carbon footprint from renewable rapeseed methyl esters by olefin metathesis/ethenolysis: Methyl 9-decenoate, 1-decene and C18 diacids (e.g. dimethyl 9-octadecenedioate). VERBIO is currently building a commercial-scale ethenolysis plant in Germany with a nominal capacity of 50-60 kt/a of products. The first products are expected in 2024. VerBioChem will offer renewable chemicals with a broad range of applications as an innovative platform for the chemical industry.
More information: www.verbio.de
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The answer to the hunt for renewable materials: The Renewable Materials Conference 10 - 12 May 2022, Cologne (Germany, hybrid event). Its unique concept of presenting all renewable material solutions at one event hits the mark: bio-based, CO2-based and recycled are the only available alternatives to fossil-based chemicals and materials.
Ready-to-use fossil-free sustainable material solutions with a low carbon footprint are in fast-growing demand. Innovative brand owners are keeping an eye out for such solutions, in particular those that will soon reach the mainstream.
To further motivate this trend, the innovation award “Renewable Material of the Year 2022”, organised by nova-Institute and sponsored by Covestro, will be granted at the Renewable Materials Conference 2022. Producers and inventors of innovative technologies and applications based on biomass, CO2 or advanced recycling were invited to submit their innovation.
First stage: 15 March
Simply submit a completed application form (below) and a leaflet or other additional information in PDF format about your product in English, including printable digital images (300 dpi) that we can use free of charge in our subsequent media advertising. The documents should indicate what is special about the innovation and when it was or will be introduced to the market. If possible, please send us a sample of your product/material to the following postal address:
nova-Institute, Michael Carus, Chemiepark Knapsack, Gebaeude 0611, Industriestraße 300, 50354 Huerth, Germany
For questions, please contact dominik.vogt@nova-institut.de
Second stage: End of March 2022
A jury consisting of representatives of nova-Institute, the advisory board and the conference sponsors will nominate the outstanding 'Top 6' applicants in the run-up to the conference.
After the jury has selected the 'Top 6' among the applicants, their application documents will be made available for download on the conference website to give our audience and other interested parties a first insight into these innovations.
Third stage: At the conference, 11 May 2022
In a 10-minute on-site presentation, each of the six selected companies will introduce their innovation on the 2nd day of the conference. Following the presentations, the final award winners will be chosen by the conference participants and presented at the innovation award ceremony in the evening.
In addition, the “Top 6” will present their innovations in a shared exhibition space provided by nova-Institute during the entire conference. Each “Top 6” candidate receives one free ticket to the conference and further tickets at a discount rate.
nova-Institute will use its large network of 100,000 companies and hundreds of press contacts to generate market demand for the winners.
Download: Winners of the past innovation award “Renewable Material of the Year 2021”
