Solugen Raises Over $350 Million In Series C Funding Led By Baillie Gifford & GIC To Make Carbon Negative Chemicals

Julie Fernandes

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October 5, 2021

Solugen Raises Over $350 Million In Series C Funding Led By Baillie Gifford & GIC To Make Carbon Negative Chemicals

The company decarbonizing the chemicals industry announced a Series C financing round of over $350 million. GIC and Baillie Gifford led the round with participation from Temasek Holdings, funds, and accounts managed by BlackRock, Carbon Direct Capital Management, Refactor Capital, and Fifty Years.

Solugen’s patented Bioforge processes produce chemicals from bio-based feedstocks and are based on discoveries in synthetic biology, metal catalyst engineering, and modular plant design. The company’s green products are cost-competitive and also drastically reduce or eliminate emissions. Solugen is a platform chemistry company, and the company’s solutions will also address clean water, sustainable materials, safer food, and healthy personal care.

“Our breakthroughs in enzyme and metal catalyst engineering allow us to produce chemicals in a more sustainable and profitable way,” said Dr. Gaurab Chakrabarti, CEO, and co-founder of Solugen. “We can now deliver for our customer’s performance benefits, cost savings, and most importantly, lower carbon footprints.”

The latest round of funding will be used to expand Solugen’s Bioforge technology platform, which is used to produce lower-carbon and carbon-negative chemicals & materials for its key customers and to expand the reach of Solugen’s product portfolio. “This fundraising round allows us to continue expanding the footprint of our Bioforge technology to give industries the products they need to reduce emissions in their existing supply chains, without compromising on performance or economics,” said Solugen co-founder and Chief Technology Officer Dr. Sean Hunt.

The BioForge achieves highly profitable and carbon-negative molecular manufacturing by simultaneously satisfying four parameters: bio-based feedstocks, high selectivity, high yields, and high throughput. This enables Bio Forge to convert inexpensive feedstock directly into valuable product molecules while avoiding the formation of waste products.

For more details: www.solugen.bio

Water soluble PVA bags and products to save India’s oceans and beaches

Julie Fernandes

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September 24, 2021

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Water soluble PVA bags and products to save India’s oceans and beaches

Annually, India generates more than 3.3 million metric tonnes of plastic waste. And that resulted into one of the biggest obstacles of mankind. Plastics often contain additives making them strong more flexible, and durable. But many of these additives can extend the life of products if they become litter, with some estimates ranging to at least 400 years to break down.
When plastic gets dumped into landfills and oceans, “Once in the ocean, it is difficult—if not impossible—to retrieve plastic waste” quoted Mr. Trash Wheel. Millions of animals are killed by it every year, from birds to fish to other marine organisms. Approximately 700 species, including endangered ones, are known to have been affected by plastics. Nearly every species of seabird eats plastics. Plastics have been consumed by land-based animals, including elephants, hyenas, zebras, tigers, camels, cattle, and other large mammals, in some cases causing death.

Marine Plastic Pollution

70% of the oxygen we breathe comes from the ocean.
13 million tons of plastic is dumped into the ocean every year.
The plastic garbage patch in the Pacific Ocean is larger than India.
Plastic kills more than one million marine creatures every year.
Thousands of sea turtles die each year, from eating plastic bags.
Thousands of camels die each year, from eating plastic bags.
Marine plastic enters our food chain in the form of micro plastics.
Our oceans contain more than 100 million tons of plastic.
By 2050, the weight of marine plastic will exceed the weight of all the fish in the ocean.
500 billion plastic bags are used annually throughout the world.
2 million plastic bags used every minute, this is insane!
The average lifespan of a plastic bag is 15 minutes, and for this, our planet is being
destroyed.

Therefore plastic has become a challenging tool for habitual individuals, these users are unable to pay for use of the system because of an affordability gap. But many industries refused to see plastic as a problem and gave industries the opportunities to look for alternatives for plastic that can be affordable and environment friendly.
And with this consideration, Bioplastics International located in Arizona and Washington State is the company that offers a large assortment of bio-resins from corn, sugarcane, potatoes, sugar beets, and many other plant starches. Bioplastic resins are sustainable, renewable, and compostable. As a solutions provider, offer the largest selection of bioplastic resins in the world. No need to call a large number of companies to find the resins you need, Bioplastic is the one-stop-shop. The company specializes in the creation of custom bioplastic resins, for almost any product. Bioplastics International decided not to sit on those plastic problems and came up with a new alternative for plastic-like PVA bags, films, fiber, and products, polyvinyl alcohol, made from refined biogas, renewable natural gas, and minerals. PVA bags are water-soluble; they will dissolve in water in minutes, to water and carbon dioxide. PVA bags contain no plastic, no toxins, and no bioplastic. Yet the product is stronger and more durable than petroleum plastic bags.

PVA bags Covers features

This product is approved for human consumption by the US FDA, and it is currently used as
a food additive, in artificial tears, and for time-release pill capsules, as well as the medical
industry.
PVA bags and products contain no toxins
Marine mammals, fish, and land animals can eat them, and they will safely pass through
digestive systems.
This product will not accumulate in landfills; can be washed down the sink drain.
PVA bags will not contaminate the petroleum plastic recycle stream in any way.
PVA bags will dissolve in the oceans or any water within minutes, to months, and also we
can control the temperature or the time to dissolve.
PVA can also be injection and extrusion molded.
PVA bags and products are a start to the solution to the plastic destruction of our oceans
and planet.

PVA has surpassed the antiquated, confusing technologies of compostable, biodegradable, bio- based, and so on, which do nothing to reduce ocean plastic pollution. Water-soluble PVA is the way toward the future. With water-soluble PVA bags and Bioplastics International’s other products, the plastic pollution of India’s oceans, beaches and rivets could promisingly stop. There is now an alternative, to the current confusing choices and greenwashing, with PVA bags the elimination of plastic pollution in our oceans can be a stepping stone. Bioplastics International’s mission is to save India’s oceans, deserts, and the planet, from plastic pollution. India is a beautiful country we can’t allow its distraction by plastic pollution

Innovative Masterbatches Supplier

Julie Fernandes

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September 18, 2021

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Innovative Masterbatches Supplier

JJ Plastalloy was established in 1995 as a global leader, with a maximum manufacturing and developing masterbatches with a volume of 60,000 metric tons per year. JJ Plastalloy is an award-winning manufacturer ISO/TS 16949:2009, ISO 9001:2008, ISO 14001:2004, OHSAS 18001:2007 certifications, Economic Times Award 2019/2020/2021 are some of those awards JJ Plastalloy has been honored with.

JJ Plastalloy is a versatile manufacturer with key products like Colour Masterbatches, Additive Masterbatches, White Masterbatches, Black Masterbatches, Talc Masterbatches, Fibre Masterbatches, Calcium Carbonate Masterbatches, Modifier Masterbatches, and Polypropylene Compounds, with an extended range. Though out JJ Plastalloy had been exporting to over 65 countries across North America, South America, Europe, and Asia.

JJ Plastalloy has a global network for supplying raw materials that consistently delivers globally. The company mainly focuses on Quality, Cost, and Delivery to ensure reliability, sustainability, and profitability for its customers. With a hard focus on in-house research and development (R&D), JJ Plastalloy has built a state-of-the-art infrastructure operated by 5 in-house scientists. Precocious equipment, specialized research facilities and a robust ERP system enable continuous innovation in uniform standards and efficient services. JJ Plastalloy’s end-to-end manufacturing, ERP and distribution system enables it to efficiently and effectively fulfill the apt demands of its clients at competitive pricing.

With environmental sustainability as a key priority, the company has designed its entire process to minimize environmental impact and implemented several initiatives for reducing its carbon footprint. Following thorough recycling and waste allocation process, the minimum waste is disposed of.

“How wonderful it is that nobody waits a single moment before starting to improve the world” In times like this when companies are competitive and grasp any opportunity for the global establishment, JJ Plastalloy Stands with the notion #Makeinindia. With no compromise in quality, with process excellence and digital transformation. JJ Plastalloy produces optimal designs and priced masterbatches that ensure reliability, sustainability, and profitability for customers.

Extra-wide CPP-lines for maximum cost-efficiency at high volumes

Julie Fernandes

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June 1, 2021

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Think big, think smart:

Extra-wide CPP-lines for maximum cost-efficiency at high volumes

When it comes the production of CPP film, i. e. for the metallised packaging of food and textiles, there is a clear trend towards high-volume production. But is the ability of to manufacture high quantities at good qualities alone enough to get the edge in today’s markets? SML has the answer.

“We from SML would say that machinery, that is reliably delivering premium-quality film in constantly high volumes is a prerequisite. But at the end, the final key to commercial success are productivity and low unit costs,” says Christian Malzner, Sales Manager, India. This is why SML is continuously further-developing the widths of its CPP lines in accordance with raising maximum output quantities. This happens especially with regard to the markets in Asia, where SML premium CPP lines with a width of more than 5 meters are in operation for years. Recently, SML sold two extra-wide CPP lines with film widths of 6.5 meters and with an output-capacity of up to 20 000 metric tons per year to Asian customers.

Bringing unit-costs down

Compared to other lines for CPP film, SML’s extra-wide CPP lines have a considerably lower ratio of edge trims. Additionally, the inline feedback of the edge trim scrap by a scraptruder essentially contributes to its commercial success. Labour costs per unit on extra-wide lines are also lower, as they do not require additional personnel to produce higher volumes. And also in terms of power consumption (kW/kg), extra-wide lines clearly beat smaller CPP film machinery.

CPP films for metallisation: perfect conditions for premium qualities

A frequent extruder-combination in SML’s extra-wide CPP lines is Ø 180/90/90/90/90mm. Extruders from SML, which produce CPP films for metallisation in a subsequent separate process, are additionally equipped with disc or candle filters. These large area filters are capable of eliminating even small gel particles. This avoids defects in the film at the following metallising process. For extra-wide CPP cast film lines, SML recommends its turret winder W6000 with a maximum outer roll diameter of 1,300mm. Bigger roll diameters are a major boost in production efficiency for the manufacturing of metallising CPP films. Due to longer running times at the metalliser, there are less roll changes with less film waste. SML’s turret winder W6000 enables a roll length of 50 000 meters or – 50 km! – of 25 μm film.

Quality, reliability, service
SML is a globally reputated technology leader for extrusion systems. Machinery developed and manufactured from SML stand for high standards in terms of reliability, longevity and output quality. Partnering with SML provides you a reliable project implementation and a proven track record of adhering to the agreed times, costs, and performance values.

sml.at

OQ Chemicals Receives ISCC Plus Certification

Julie Fernandes

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May 30, 2021

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The global chemical company OQ Chemicals has received International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC) under the ISCC Plus scheme for its German production sites and headquarters. Customers can now procure ISCC Plus certified oxo intermediates and oxo derivatives out of Oberhausen and Marl. ISCC is a globally recognized system for mass balance certifications. It focuses on circular economy intending to ensure traceability of raw materials throughout the value chain and complies with the Renewable Energy Directive (RED) of the European Commission. “With the ISCC Plus certification, we can now offer our customers an alternative to our fossil-based portfolio featuring the same quality and performance as conventional products. However, they contain a certain amount of sustainable feedstocks from sources such as biomass, biogenic wastes and residues, or renewables. Using the mass balance concept, we track the sustainability characteristics of our products and attribute them on the basis of a verifiable record-keeping audit trail. This supports our customers in producing their own ISCC Plus compliant products,” explains Dr. Ina Werxhausen, responsible for sustainability management at OQ Chemicals. “The ISCC Plus certificates for our German sites are an important milestone on our path toward greater sustainability. The certificates apply to all products and processes in Oberhausen and Marl. Therefore, based on demand and available feedstocks, we have the option to expand our bio-based product portfolio,” she added.

https://chemicals.oq.com/

SI GROUP ANNOUNCES TACKIFIER CAPACITY EXPANSION IN INDIA

Julie Fernandes

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May 30, 2021

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SI Group, a leading performance additives company, announced today the decision to increase tackifier resin capacity at its Lote, India, manufacturing site by an expected 75%. The expansion will propel the site to become a regional hub for best-in-class tackifier resin production and technology.The investment addresses an increasing demand for Novolac tackifiers in one of our core regions. The expansion is slated for completion in two phases. The first phase will be completed by the end of 2021 and the second phase will commercialize in the latter half of 2022.

“We have decided to grow capacity as another step forward in demonstrating our commitment to supporting our customers’ growth and positioning ourselves as a leader in specialty additives,” said Robert Kaiser, Vice President – Rubber & Adhesives Solutions at SI Group. “This expansion will not only benefit the region’s supply, but it will also provide superior solutions at the highest reliability to our customers globally.”“This investment positions SI Group to supply regional growth and meet strong forecasts within the Indian tires & automobile sector,” stated Suresh Kalra, Vice President & Managing Director India at SI Group. He further said that these investments will strengthen the position of our customers and India’s Rubber Industry moving forward.SI Group has a long history of manufacturing tackifier resins used to enhance the performance and durability of tires. In addition to tackifier resins, the company also has a robust portfolio of antidegradants and bonding, curing, and reinforcing resins manufactured globally. This expansion follows the company’s previous announcements to also expand resin capacity in Nanjing, China, and Bethune, France.

https://siigroup.com/

Arkema acquires Agiplast

Julie Fernandes

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May 29, 2021

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With the planned acquisition of Agiplast, a leader in the regeneration of high performance polymers, in particular specialty polyamides and fluoropolymers, Arkema will be able to offer a full service to customers in terms of materials circularity, addressing growing market expectations in this field. This project, which contributes to the sustainable development of the polymer industry, is perfectly in line with Arkema’s sustainable growth strategy. Arkema plans to acquire Agiplast, a company specialized in the regeneration of high performance polymers and its historical partner in recycling operations. The company, with annual sales of around €15 million, operates a plant in Italy and has 32 employees. Agiplast’s strong know-how in mechanical recycling technologies will enable Arkema to offer high quality recycled polymers to its customers.

In October 2019, Arkema, the world leader in bio-based high performance polymers, had already launched Virtucycle, an ambitious program with Agiplast aimed at developing loops for the collection and regeneration of high performance polymers while minimizing CO2 emissions. With this acquisition, Arkema will be the first fully integrated high performance polymer manufacturer offering both bio-based and recycled materials in order to address the challenges of resource scarcity and end-of-life products. This bolt-on acquisition is thus in line with Arkema’s CSR and sustainable growth strategy, and in particular the transition to a circular economy.

https://www.arkema.com/

Closed Loop Partners Launches Multi-Million Dollar Circular Plastics Fund with Dow, LyondellBasell,

Julie Fernandes

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May 29, 2021

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Three leading plastics and material science companies––Dow, LyondellBasell and NOVA Chemicals––announced the establishment of the Closed Loop Circular Plastics Fund to invest in scalable recycling technologies, equipment upgrades and infrastructure solutions. The Fund, managed by Closed Loop Partners, and with an initial $25 million investment, invites businesses across the plastics value chain to join in advancing the recovery and recycling of plastics in the U.S. and Canada. The goal of the catalytic fund is to grow to deploy $100 million, through a combination of the Fund’s founding investors, additional corporate investors and financial institutions, in order to attract additional capital beyond the Fund’s own commitments. At scale, the Fund’s investments aim to recycle over 500 million pounds of plastic over the Fund’s lifespan. The Closed Loop Circular Plastics Fund will invest in three strategic areas to increase the amount of recycled plastic available to meet the growing demand for high-quality, recycled content in products and packaging:

Access – Increasing the collection of targeted polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) plastics by advancing current and next-generation material collection systems, including transportation, logistics and recycling sortation technologies and infrastructure.
Optimization – Upgrading recycling systems to more efficiently aggregate, classify and sort the targeted plastics to increase the total amount of high-quality plastic, including food-grade and medical-grade plastic, sent for remanufacturing.
Manufacturing – Investing in facilities and equipment that manufacture ﬁnished products, packaging or related goods using recycled content, including recycled PE and PP.

Since its founding in 2014, Closed Loop Partners’ existing portfolio of more than 50 investments has diverted more than 4,600 million pounds of material from landfills and back into manufacturing supply chains. Building on this, the Closed Loop Circular Plastics Fund will invest in technologies, companies and infrastructure projects that enhance the recovery and recycling of target materials including post-consumer and post-industrial PE and PP in the U.S. & Canada. The Fund will deploy a flexible mix of debt and equity financing, and will also aim to stimulate mainstream co-investments, including those from financial institutions, into circular solutions for plastics to further accelerate impact at scale. With established facilities, extensive supply chain networks and markets, Dow, LyondellBasell and NOVA Chemicals are collectively well-positioned to help advance the transition to a new, more circular system. Together, they create a precedent for a sustainable future for the plastics industry, building a runway for further investments and synergies with other stakeholders in the plastics recovery and reuse value chain. “The plastic resin manufacturers that create value for their shareholders now and in the future will be the ones that ensure that 100% of their products are safely recycled or reused, and never discarded in a landfill or elsewhere in our ecosystem. We look forward to investing in sustainable infrastructure and innovations that enable and encourage other companies, including investors in the Closed Loop Circular Plastics Fund, to deploy significantly more of their own capital to further scale these critical solutions,” says Ron Gonen, Founder & CEO of Closed Loop Partners. “Alongside championing scalable reusable packaging models and innovative new materials, growing recycling and circular economy infrastructure in the U.S. and Canada plays a critical role in eliminating plastic waste and reducing the need for the costly extraction of raw materials.” The current supply of recycled plastics meets only 6% of demand for the most commonly used plastics in the U.S. and Canada Systemic bottlenecks, misaligned incentives and policies, technological inefficiencies and outdated equipment across the plastics recovery system contribute to millions of tons of plastic going to waste in landfills and oceans. Increasing the recovery and recirculation of plastics could help meet an addressable market for plastics with potential revenue opportunities of $120 billion in the U.S. and Canada alone.[2] Within this, significant opportunity exists to bolster the recovery of PE and PP, based on these materials’ market desirability and expected production amounts, as well as their wide variety of applications across industries, including healthcare and food and beverage. “Dow is investing with Closed Loop Partners as another way to catalyze additional investment in recycling technology and infrastructure in the U.S. & Canada. Plastic materials are essential to a sustainable, low carbon economy and this fund, alongside other investments and collaborations we are engaged in, will help move society toward a circular economy, ensuring plastic is not lost to the environment,” says Jim Fitterling, Chairman and CEO of Dow. “But our commitment and capital alone are not enough to end plastic waste. We urge others, across all sectors of society, to join us and scale the technologies, partnerships and capital needed to build the circular plastics supply chains of the future.” “Addressing the challenge of plastic waste in the environment requires collective action on multiple fronts. As a company, we have been executing a multi-pronged strategy that includes innovations in mechanical recycling, the advancement of molecular recycling technologies and the incorporation of renewable feedstocks into our manufacturing,” says Bob Patel, CEO of LyondellBasell. “In addition to our company’s efforts, further enhancements to recycling infrastructure are critical to capturing the value of used plastics and advancing the circular economy. We believe successful joint investment can transform the challenges of plastic waste into sustainable business opportunities.” “NOVA Chemicals is eager to join forces with industry leaders who share our same commitment to building a circular economy for plastics,” says Luis Sierra, President and CEO of NOVA Chemicals. “Innovation is key to our collective success. If we can create plastic products that are easier to recycle, perform with less materials, incorporate more recycled content and invest in the recycling and recovery infrastructure, we will achieve a zero plastic waste future. We are ready to work across the value chain, developing new solutions that will shape a better tomorrow.

https://www.lyondellbasell.com/

Advanced gripper technology receives German Innovation Award 2021

Julie Fernandes

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May 29, 2021

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With the bionic inspired ADHESO gripper from SCHUNK, users can safely handle delicate parts without the risk of any residual marking. The new SCHUNK ADHESO gripper offers sensitive gripping without mechanical force or the need for any external power supply. The German Design Council honored the new technology with the German Innovation Award 2021 in the competition class “Excellence in Business to Business.”

This new way of handling is based on a principle of function from nature and uses the intermolecularly acting Van der Waals forces. Geckos are using these adhesive forces allowing them to grip to various surfaces quickly and easily. This type of gentle and residue-free handling of sensitive components opens numerous new fields of application. Ultra-light glass materials or micro-mechanical parts can be handled, but also heavy automotive or mechanical engineering components. The ADHESO technology is especially effective in hygienically sensitive environments where its strength really come to the fore: as it works without particle emission, it is perfectly suited for cleanroom applications in lab automation, medical and pharmaceutical industry as well as electrical industry. ADHESO grippers can safely grip and hold containers, syringes, wafers, or circuit boards without requiring external energy. This is a real added value in terms of operating costs but also facilitates commissioning. The competence leader for gripping systems and clamping technology won over the Council of the German Innovation Award 2021 with this functional and sustainable overall concept, and they honored the SCHUNK ADHESO in the competition class “Excellence in Business to Business,“ in the category “Machines & Engineering“ as innovation. SCHUNK developed the flexibly configurable adhesive gripper in cooperation with the young start-up company INNOCISE. Anyone who wants to use the new technology in his robotic application, can have it validated under real conditions in the SCHUNK CoLab before buying it. This ensures more safety within the planning process.

https://schunk.com/

Cosmos Speciality Chemicals announces the launch of environment-friendly Microenz BS for Textile Ind

Julie Fernandes

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May 29, 2021

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Sourced through enzymatic process to reduce degradation of garments/fabrics Cosmo Speciality Chemicals Pvt Ltd, a wholly Indian subsidiary of Cosmo Films Ltd., announces the development of Microenz BS sourced through enzymatic process, making it an environment-friendly alkaline pectatelyase. Thus, it helps eliminating the challenges posed by the chemical when sourced through traditional processes such as high ETP load, usage of very harsh chemicals, wastage of water and time etc.

Embarked on the key product innovation principles of multi-functionality (performance oriented), process optimisation (energy, water and time saving) and sustainability (eco-friendliness), the advancement of Microenz BS ensures less fabric and garment damage as Pectatelyase degrades the pectin from the primary cell wall of cotton without degrading the cotton itself, improved functional finish, lower yarn coefficient of friction, increased yarn elongation for improved weaving efficiencies, improved emerising and brushing properties, no degradation of cellulose and lower weight loss while being safe and easy to use as well as eco-friendly. The chemical Microenz BS works in a way which is specially designed for the end users using alkaline pectatelyase as pectatelyase degrades the pectin from the primary cell wall of cotton without degrading the cotton itself. Microenz BS can also be used successfully for combined desizing and bio-sourcing (CDB). The dosage used for application is exhaust with doses 1.0% to 1.2%.On this new innovation by the company, Mr. Anil Gaikwad, Business Head, Cosmo Speciality Chemicals said “For medium and darker shades on cotton yarn & knitwear, we suggest a one-bath-two-step pretreatment process. We propose an enzymatic pectinase treatment with Microenz BS 1.0 to 1.2% in combination with a mild peroxide bleach. This process includes a pectinase treatment as well as a mild peroxide bleach. The mild conditions lead to a softer handle in comparison to alkali-treated goods. Furthermore, bio-scoured cotton shows relatively good hydrophilic properties.”

cosmofilms.com