Avantium awarded grant to advance CO2 as polyester building block
Technology company Avantium has been awarded a €3 million grant by the EU Horizon Europe programme for its participation in the four-year research and development programme WaterProof.
The programme aims to demonstrate the value of electrochemical conversion of carbon dioxide (CO2) into high-value chemicals and products.
One of Avantium’s technology platforms is called Volta Technology and uses electrochemistry to convert CO2 to high-value products and chemical building blocks such as formic acid, oxalic acid and glycolic acid. The latter two are key building blocks for polyesters and other materials, allowing production of CO2 negative plastics.
The WaterProof programme aims to demonstrate the full value chain of a closed carbon cycle. Under this programme, Avantium will convert CO2 from wastewater purification and waste incineration into formic acid using its proprietary catalytic electrochemistry platform. This formic acid can then be used to make new consumer products.
The WaterProof programme will start in June 2022 under the coordination of Avantium. In addition to Avantium, the WaterProof consortium consists of 11 companies and knowledge institutes: Funditec (Spain), Tecnalia (Spain), Stichting Waternet (Netherlands), Ecover (Belgium), nova-Institut GmbH (Germany), Nordic Fish Leather (Iceland), Izes GmbH (Germany), Frames Renewable Energy Solutions BV (Netherlands), Coatema GmbH (Germany), HVC (Netherlands), CTA (Columbia). The consortium received a total grant of €9.2 million.
Annelie Jongerius, senior scientist at Avantium, said: “Electrochemistry has the potential to use CO2 as a feedstock for the sustainable production of chemicals and materials and this is seen as a ’game-changer’ for the chemical industry. Leading the WaterProof programme is a fantastic opportunity for us to work with like-minded organisations towards a fossil-free future.”
Avantium develops novel technologies based on renewable carbon sources as an alternative to fossil- based chemicals and plastics. The company currently has three technologies at pilot and demonstration phase. The most advanced technology is the YXY plant-to-plastics technology that catalytically converts plant-based sugars into FDCA (furandicarboxylic acid), the key building block for the sustainable plastic PEF (polyethylene furanoate).
Avantium has successfully demonstrated the YXY Technology at its pilot plant in Geleen, the Netherlands, and has started construction of the world’s first commercial plant in 2022, with planned large-scale production of PEF in 2024.
