Total Corbion PLA intends to build the first commercial scale PLA plant in Europe

By -

Type of post: NEWS IN BRIEF. 

Total Corbion PLA, a 50/50 joint venture between Total and Corbion, has announced its intention to build a second PLA plant with a capacity ramping up to 100 ktons/year, less than two years after starting up the commercial scale production at its first plant in Thailand. 

Figure 1. PLA and the circular economy (taken from the brochure “PLA bioplastics for a brighter future”) 

The new plant is planned to be located on a Total site in Grandpuits (France) and to be operational in 2024. The total investment in this project is expected to be approximately 200 M€ and Corbion will continue to be the supplier of lactic acid. The project implementation would make Total Corbion PLA the global market leader in PLA, firmly positioned to cater for the rapidly growing demand for Luminy® PLA resins. 

Popular Posts

Braskem and Sojitz launch Sustainea to produce and market biobased glycols

By -
Image
Type of post: NEWS IN BRIEF. Braskem and Sojitz have announced the launch of Sustainea, which will produce and market bioMEG (monoethylene glycol) and bioMPG (monopropylene glycol). The market launch of the brand follows the approval of the joint venture (the process began in March 2022) by antitrust authorities. Press release: " Braskem and Sojitz Corporation launch Sustainea ", 21/10/2022. Related posts:  - " Braskem and Haldor Topsoe to validate new bio-MEG production process in a demo plant ", 13/11/2017. - " Braskem and Haldor Topsoe start production of biobased MEG at their demo plant in Lyngby ", 25/11/2020. Figure 1. Braskem and Sojitz launch Sustainea to produce and market biobased glycols The business plan envisages the construction of three industrial plants, with the first unit slated for operational startup in 2025, taking advantage of market opportunities and feedstock availability. The locations where the industrial units will be built have ...
Read more

Biorefinery models - Lignocellulosic biorefinery

By -
Image
Publication date: 25/04/2016 Last update: 25/04/2016 ABOUT THE SERIES OF POSTS “BIOREFINERY MODELS” This post belongs to a series called “ Biorefinery Models ”. This series is devoted to briefly describe the models or concepts of advanced biorefineries which have emerged in the last few years and that are rising currently. These models are simplified representations which enable us to understand in a simple way the structure and characteristics of a general biorefinery type. Some of these models refer to the type of feedstock while other focus on the technologies involved. A biorefinery may resemble these models or be the result of variations and combinations of them. It should be noted that although these paradigms are very useful and instructive, they show limitations in describing and classifying complex systems with high level of integration. In order to define and describe a specific complex case, the blog recommends use the classification proposed by IEA Bioenerg...
Read more

Levulinic acid biorefineries

By -
Image
Publication date: 16/11/2015 Last update: 20/02/2016 Description 1,2 Levulinic acid (also known as 4-oxopentanoic acid or γ-ketovaleric acid) is an organic compound with chemical formula C 5 H 8 O 3 . It is a white crystalline solid soluble in water and polar organic solvents. It contains ketone and a carboxylic group whose presence results in interesting reactivity patterns. It is one of the more recognized Biobased Chemical Building Blocks , a starting material for a wide number of compounds (see Applications below). In fact, it was recognized by the US DoE as one of the top biobased platform chemicals of the future and it can successfully address many performance-related issues attributed to petroleum-based chemicals and materials. Process technologies 1,3,4,5 The controlled degradation of C6-sugars by acids is the most widely used approach to prepare levulinic acid from lignocellulosic biomass. Other methods have also been studied, for instance, the hydroly...
Read more

Hydrotreating (HVO) – Advantages over FAME and properties

By -
Image
Versión en Español Section: ADVANCED BIOFUELS Series: HVO - Hydrotreating (HVO) – Concepts, feedstocksand specifications - Hydrotreating (HVO) – Advantages over FAME and properties - Hydrotreated Vegetable Oils (HVO) Biorefineries – The rise of renewable diesel - Posts: HVO Hydrotreating is an alternative process to esterification to produce diesel from biomass. Traditionally, diesel components produced from vegetable oils are made by an esterification process. In fact, HVO are commonly referred to as renewable diesel or green diesel in order to distinguish from Fatty Acid Methyl Esters (FAME), best known as biodiesel. Other acronyms are also used depending on the feedstock, such as Rape Seed Methyl Ester” (RME), “Soybean Methyl Ester” (SME), “Palm Oil Methyl Ester” (PME) or “Used Cooking Oils Methyl Ester (UCOME). In the HVO production process, hydrogen is used to remove the oxygen from the triglycerides and does not produce any glycerol as a side product. Additi...
Read more

Sugar Corporation plans the construction of a new bioethanol plant in Ethiopia

By -
Image
Ethiopian Sugar Corpor ation and Eugen Schmitt Company signed a joint investment agreement to set up an ethanol plant on May 25, 2017. The press release was published some time ago but it was only recently that the story was aired by media. I have considered that it could be interesting to bring it to the Blog in order to know more about the reality of the sector in Africa. A company called “Wonji Ethanol Technology Share Company” was established based on the agreement with a working capital of more than 46 M€ both in cash and in kind. According to the press release, Eugen Schmitt Company is a veteran German firm with vast experience in ethanol sector but I could not find any reliable information about it. Oher three shareholders would have reached an agreement to work within the partnership, their names are not known. Eugen Schmitt and the Sugar Corpor ation own 83% and 14% of the shares respectively while the rest three shareholders have 1% each one of them. Factsheet ...
Read more