Products made from sugar beet waste could address the need for sustainable raw materials across several industries including food, healthcare, the coatings and construction sectors, according to specialty chemicals company AkzoNobel and agro-industrial cooperative Royal Cosun.
The two have formed a partnership to develop products from cellulose waste resulting from sugar beet processing.
The partnership will combine Royal Cosun’s knowledge in separating and purifying agricultural process waste streams with AkzoNobel’s expertise in the chemical modification of cellulose.
“Putting agricultural side streams to use as a sustainable source of chemicals is clearly a big step forward,” said Peter Nieuwenhuizen, RD&I director of AkzoNobel Specialty Chemicals, in a statement. “By working together with Royal Cosun, we aim to develop and market sustainable new cellulose-based products, which will serve as essential ingredients for our customers’ applications.”
The partnership also emphasizes AkzoNobel’s Planet Possible agenda, which includes efforts to develop and introduce sustainable, biobased products that contribute to a circular economy.
In other circular-economy efforts, General Motors is turning its employees’ recycled water bottles into noise-reducing fabric insulation that covers the Chevrolet Equinox engine. Also Dow has partnered with Evides Water Co. and the city of Terneuzen, Netherlands, where its largest chemical plant is located, to turn wastewater into a new product — freshwater for industrial use. The plant accepts wastewater each day from the city, has it purified by the water company, and reuses it for its manufacturing processes.
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