Blogopmaak
Sustainable business cases in the chemical industry
August 19, 2020
The chemical industry is currently not a
leading example of green innovation
Now that large sums of money are being made available for ‘post Corona’ economic support, many are arguing to link sustainability criteria to economic support, to direct a fundamental change to more sustainable business models. This is good thinking, because to continue to do what we have always done, means continue to practice unsustainable business models. One of my worries is the unconstrained use of fossil fuels and fossil based chemistry.
I especially liked the words from IMF’s Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva “What we do now will not only reshape our economies and societies; it will also reshape humanity’s future on this planet. Coming out of one crisis need not be a prelude to getting into another—a ‘green recovery” is our bridge to a more resilient future”. It is important that we keep prioritizing sustainability, and don't fall back into the old ways. This includes putting a price to carbon emissions, promote green finance and use public support wisely.
The chemical industry is currently not a leading example of green innovation, locked into capital intensive production assets, readily available & low cost fossil feedstock, fierce competition from low cost countries where environmental governance less evolved, who can blame us? The chemical industry still is an important source of direct and indirect emissions world-wide. At the same time the products produced by the chemical industry are essential for daily life and energy conservation, think of insulation foams to conserve heat.
It is true, sustainability
and carbon footprint are important drivers for the chemical industry. Awareness within the industry about the impact of raw materials used and the end-of-life emissions of its products is high as is the need to address these emissions urgently. Key players in the industry are well aware that there is no option but to keep heading towards a much more sustainable industry and products. The world will continue to need essential materials and products such as coatings to protect wood and metal, adhesives and materials to manufacture electronics, insulation materials, car dashboards, safety glasses, shoe soles, etc etc.
So where will the required change and innovation come from if the established industry is willing but not always able? A growing landscape of ambitious start-ups are willing to improve and offer more sustainable alternatives. However they have been struggling to achieve significant growth rates. Why? Key to the chemical industry is to look at sustainable business cases and in reality, many improvements in sustainability result in higher cost under the current price structures and mechanisms.
Relement has decided to focus on specialty, renewable chemicals. To offer higher value and performance improvement is our way forward. Not just greener. Our business case is based on product improvement and improved sustainability is a bonus. Wrong priority? I argue that if this is the way to get results and to build a sustainable chemical enterprise.
However I want to call governments to action. Use those ‘Post Corona’ funds to introduce sustainability criteria and more support mechanisms. Create a level playing field between sustainable products and the lower cost fossil feedback based materials. otherwise the blunt economics of 40 USD/barrel oil will dictate what happens, not the good intentions of the many willing start-ups.
In the meantime, we at Relement will focus on sustainable business cases using specialty chemicals. Relement is ready to take its place and offer better solutions, not only for product but also for planet.
Relement team is happy to announce we have contracted Allessa GmbH in Germany, to initiate industrial-scale production of our launching product bio MPA (3-methylphthalic anhydride). The first ton-scale production campaign is planned for late 2025, targeting commercial market introduction of bio MPA. For the production of bio MPA standard chemical unit operations are needed. Allessa (part of Weylchem Group) has extensive expertise and capabilities in chemical contract manufacturing that will ensure efficient large-scale production of bio MPA while upholding Relement’ high standards for quality and sustainability. Relement’ outsourcing strategy reduces time-to-market significantly compared to building our own flagship plant. We are impressed with Allessa’s capabilities and professionalism, which are a good fit with Relement’ needs. Furthermore, the close distance between Allessa and our largest customers will further facilitate logistics and communication. We are excited about the next step for our company. We are building a world scale, sustainable valuable chemical ingredients business. Our unique bio aromatic ingredients improve sustainability and product performance for e.g. coatings, adhesives and composite materials. For more information please contact our CTO Stefano Iannacone: stefano.iannacone@relement.eu
Relement has contracted Alessa GmbH as Contract Manufacturing Organisation. Ton-scale production will start of our launching product bio MPA at ton-scale in 2025. It is possible to pre-order sample material now to start a labscreening or a pilot. Also, offtake agreements can be negotiated. Please indicate to us the volume bio MPA you would like to purchase in 2025 to boost the sustainability ánd performance of your products. Fill in the form below:
Relement is pleased to announce the signing of an offtake agreement with Worlée Chemie GmbH, a leading German chemical company. The agreement secures a fixed volume of bio MPA, a novel high performance biobased ingredient for use in coating resins . Bio MPA, our launching product, is scheduled for ton-scale production by late 2025 via contract manufacturing. This innovative material is designed to replace fossil-based components in alkyd resins, offering improved sustainability alongside performance benefits. Over the past four years, Relement and Worlée have worked closely to integrate bio MPA into coating resins, achieving results such as enhanced hardness, lower viscosity for reduced solvent use, faster drying times, and improved gloss. Worlée plans to introduce a range of alkyd resins featuring bio MPA to selected European coating formulators. The agreement also sets the stage for further development of resins aimed at a wider range of applications, underlining both companies’ commitment to sustainable innovation in the coatings industry. Joachim Freude, Managing director at Worlée Chemie, commented: “We are delighted to introduce new biobased alkyd resins on the market that will allow our customers to create more sustainable coatings without compromising on quality. Bio MPA is a key step toward replacing fossil-based ingredients in our formulations.” We are very excited to expand our partnership with Worlée, it is an important milestone. It brings us closer to the commercialization of bio MPA and demonstrates the value of strong partnerships in building a sustainable, biobased value chain. We are proud to work with Worlée to meet the growing demand for greener and more efficient products. For more information please contact our CCO Monique wekking: monique.wekking@relement.eu
Relement has successfully integrated bio MPA (biobased 3-methylphthalic anhydride) in a (polyester, polyether) polyol for use in polyurethane (PUR) and polyisocyanurate (PIR) rigid foams. Such foams are often used as insulation material in buildings. Since there is more attention for sustainable building materials and energy conservation measures, increasing the biobased content of such materials is of interest. Petrochemical phthalic anhydride is often used as an ingredient in aromatic, rigid PUR and PIR foam. Relement’s launching product bio MPA can be used as a biobased substitute and performance enhancer. Due to steric hindrance of the additional methyl group in bio MPA compared to phthalic anhydride, it is expected that bio MPA based insulation foams will be more rigid, improving the compressive and tensile properties and increasing the glass transition temperature. In collaboration with Avans Applied University in the Netherlands, Relement successfully synthesized basic polyester polyols with bio MPA.
Relement is honored and grateful to be among the winners of the Tech Tour Bio-Based Industries 2024 Award. The Tech Tour event highlighted >30 selected companies at the forefront of bio-based innovation, chosen through a rigorous selection process led by a panel of active investors. Our CEO Roger Blokland was on site to present our activities. He pitched about transforming sustainable biomass residues into high-performance bio-aromatics for coatings, adhesives, and materials, offering a renewable alternative to fossil-based ingredients while also enhancing product performance. The expert jury acknowledged Relement as one of the companies that is setting new benchmarks in sustainability, circular materials, and green technology. The Tech Tour Bio-based Industries 2024 event was co-organized by Bio-based Industries Consortium (BIC) and co-hosted by Circular Valley and City of Wuppertal, as well as supported by partners like Bayer, DWNRW, ZAZ Ventures, and Shaping Bio. Of course, we would also like to congratulate the other winners: Arda Biomaterials, Blue Ocean Closures, Mevaldi, Origin by Ocean, Quorium and SenseUP Biotechnology.
Relement has completed its first collaboration project with Fontys University of Applied Sciences, Eindhoven (The Netherlands). During a 18 months period, a team of teachers and 21 students worked on alkyd coating research based on Relement’ launching product bio MPA. To accelerate the research, coating experts Joost van Dijk (Puroc) and Henk van den Haak (Resinconsult) advised the students with experimental setup and formulation work. A wealth of knowledge has been created supporting the commercial use of bio MPA in performance alkyd coatings. The Relement team enjoyed the project and is convinced about the effectiveness of collaborative applied research. We are thankful with at least 21 new ambassadors for sustainable chemistry! This project is partially funded with subsidy from KIEM GoChem, a joint subsidy program from the Dutch Regieorgaan SIA and ChemistryNL.
Relement has contracted R&D partners to further optimize the production process for our launching product bio MPA (3-methylphthalic anhydride), enabling us to commence industrial-scale manufacturing soon. The efforts resulted in: a leaner and more robust process; increased bio MPA product recovery; reduced formation of byproducts such as humins; reduced the use of organic solvents; reduced energy requirement. After the summer, we will select a Contract Manufacturing Organisation to begin the production of our launching product bio MPA. Join us on our mission towards a greener chemical future. Get in touch if you would like to purchase bio MPA for your coating, adhesive or composite resin. For more information please contact our CTO Stefano Iannacone: Stefano.iannacone@relement.eu
Relement achieved an important milestone by successfully demonstrating the use of our ingredient bio MPA in high-quality composite materials. Relement worked with Hobum to create this game-changing material: a high-performance, biobased composite material with a glass transition temperature of >110 degrees Celsius. Hobum aimed to develop composites parts made of plant fibres and a vegetable oil-based resins using a resin-transfer moulding process to create a bisphenol A-free product. Hobum reached out to Relement for the utilisation of our ingredient bio MPA to replace fossil-based anhydrides such as MHHPA in their resins. After 1.5 year of testing of various formulations, the partnership hit a breakthrough with a recipe based on admergenic acid (ADA), epoxidized linseed oil (ELO) and Relement’s ingredient 3-methylphthalic anhydride (bio MPA). This resulted in a prototype car interior panel part. The composite material reached the highest % biobased (85%) and the highest glass transition temperature (Tg 95-120 °C depending on catalyst and temperature). A higher Tg results in enhanced strength, stiffness and heat resistance. There is a strong demand worldwide on availability of lightweight composite materials with high performance. Bio MPA can be a gamechanger for this industry. HOBUM recently showed all technical data at their HOBUM Innovation Exchange Webinar. Please view the complete record using the link below:
Following meetings with AkzoNobel, Relement is excited to note that AkzoNobel has been following our progress and technology development to date with interest. Relement and Akzo Nobel are working together to explore use of Relement's launching product bio MPA (3-methylphthalic anhydride) in coatings and measure the impact of our bio MPA in coating performances. Together, we have also identified a number of other opportunities that can broaden the scope of this partnership and add value in multiple areas. For more information please contact our Chief Commercial Officer Monique Wekking: monique.wekking@relement.eu
We are excited to be part of the consortium AROMATICS in which 3 promising bio-aromatics production platforms will be further developed and scaled, including furfural based aromatics such as our launching product bio MPA The consortium consists of 14 partners and the entire value chain is on board including brandowners. We are looking forward to explore new applications based on bio MPA and bio HMA. AROMATICS stands for Aromatic Renewables as an Opportunity for MATerials with Improved Circularity and Sustainability and this 3-year project is performed with MOOI-funding from the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs & Climate.