Evonik has started producing renewable isophorone-based products from renewable acetone, said the company.
The new range of products will have lower carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions than conventionally made material, enabling more sustainable production of solvents, composites and coatings. The isophorone, isophorone diamine and isophorone diisocyanate materials have the same properties as the same products made from fossil fuels.
The potential CO2 reductions of the material are evaluated on a mass balance approach - an accounting principle matching inputs with outputs from the production process. The processes will be audited to be compliant with the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC) and RECCert standards to verify the use of renewable resources across all stages of production.
The products will be used in the manufacturing of paints, lacquers and binders for modern coating systems, and will be suitable for high-performance composite materials like rotor blades for wind turbines, automotive interiors or the latest chemical synthesis technologies.
As MRC reported before, Evonik is investing a three-digit million-euro sum in the construction of a new production plant for bio-based and fully biodegradable rhamnolipids. The decision to build the plant follows a breakthrough in Evonik's research and development. Rhamnolipids are biosurfactants and serve as active ingredients in shower gels and detergents. Demand for environ-mentally friendly surfactants is growing rapidly worldwide.
We remind that in February, 2020, Dow and Evonik entered into an exclusive technology partnership. Together, they plan to bring a unique method for directly synthesizing propylene glycol (PG) from propylene and hydrogen peroxide to market maturity.
Evonik is one of the world leaders in specialty chemicals. The company is active in more than 100 countries around the world and generated sales of EUR13.1 bn and an operating profit (adjusted EBITDA) of EUR2.15 bn in 2019. Evonik goes far beyond chemistry to create innovative, profitable and sustainable solutions for customers.
MRC