May 11 2010
What potential is there for replacing resources of fossil origin with raw materials of vegetable origin, and for which industrial applications? How to combine chemistry with environmental protection? How to encourage “green” investments? What place is there for green chemistry in French agriculture?
These are some of the green chemistry questions which the participants in these first parliamentary meetings will attempt to answer. Arkema, a French chemicals manufacturer firmly engaged in green chemistry R&D, will be represented by Denis Bortzmeyer, its Scientific Partnerships Director.
Organized by Jean-Yves Le Déaut, member of parliament for Meurthe-et-Moselle and vice-president of the Parliamentary Office for evaluation of scientific and technological options, and Daniel Garrigue, member of parliament for Dordogne and president of the chemical industry study group, these parliamentary meetings are intended to review the issues and challenges of biobased chemistry in France; they are placed under the aegis of Jean-Louis Borloo, Minister for Ecology, and involve the French National Assembly for the first time.
As France’s leading chemicals producer, Arkema will convey its viewpoint as a manufacturer who has made green chemistry and the chemistry of biosourced materials one of its priority R&D areas. Over 50% of its R&D expenditure is directly allocated to the development of eco-technologies, while approximately 7.5% of its sales, against 4% in 2005, are generated from product lines developed from biosourced raw materials.
The objective is to increase this figure to 10% by 2012 through a number of development projects currently underway. Arkema already markets five polymer groups derived from castor oil, used increasingly in high-tech applications demanding sturdiness and durability, such as automotive, oil extraction, and sports articles. Arkema is also confidently engaged in an acrylics research program looking to convert glycerol, a by-product of bio-diesel, into acrylic acid, a product resulting hitherto from fossil-based propylene. Finally, from 2011 onwards Arkema aims to market carbon nanotubes manufactured from bio-ethanol rather than ethylene as is presently the case.
These first parliamentary meetings are being held on May 12th at Maison de la chimie.