News

Approval for nine new projects in the Biobased Performance Materials programme

Published on
May 19, 2015

At the beginning of May, the Chemistry of Advanced Materials council of the Top Sector Chemistry gave the green light for nine new projects in the Biobased Performance Materials (BPM) programme. Wageningen Food & Biobased Research, together with 25 partners, will be focusing on materials made from plant-based raw materials. The research will be concentrating on, for example, roof coverings and carpet tiles made from 100% biobased bitumen, biobased alternatives for digital printer inks (2D and 3D) and particle board made from natural waste materials.

In-depth, technological and innovative research
The projects, all of which run for two to three years, include research leading to the development of specific end products, investigations into biobased replacements with improved and/or new properties, and the development of new processes and technologies for biobased materials. Programme Manager Biobased Materials Christiaan Bolck: “The new package consists of a wide variety of projects and applications. The programme therefore guarantees an excellent range of in-depth, technological and innovative research.”

New products and polymers

In addition to research into biobased bitumen, printer inks and particle board, there will be projects looking at biobased alternatives for industrial glues and also at the application potential of biobased plastics made using succinic acid. At the same time, several projects will involve more in-depth research into the application of some of the biobased building blocks already developed, for example: analysing further opportunities for scaling up the production of isoidide polymers for high-performance polyesters; and investigating itaconic and citric acids in more detail in relation to developing biobased methyl acrylic acid for use in resins and latex.

New properties and processes

Biobased polymers provide not only an alternative for oil-based products; they can also lead to materials with enhanced and entirely new properties, examples being printer inks with better performance, polyurethane elastomers with improved water resistance, and polymer compounds with even more useful properties. The whole package of research projects is complemented by research into processes and technologies aimed at improving the deployment of biobased polymers. To that end there will be research into the production of PLA foams by means of extrusion as well as into the potential compatibility between starch and polyethylene for forming extruded film-barrier materials.

26 Partners from various sectors

Two to four industrial partners are collaborating in each of the nine new BPM projects. These companies, ranging in size from large to small, are located in the Netherlands and abroad. The partners, together with Wageningen Food & Biobased Research, form a diverse group, all involved in different parts of the manufacturing chain: raw materials, polymers, compounds, processing, end products, and machine production.

Magazine on BPM results so far

The first wave of projects in the successful BPM programme has recently been completed. The results of these nine projects were put online today in the BPM Magazine 2015.