Can treating water be more sustainable ?
Jean-Christophe Ades , senior marketing manager , municipal , EMEA , at Kemira , presents the use of biomass-based polymers in water treatment
Chemistry based on renewable raw materials is an essential tool in the fight to mitigate climate change . Water-intensive industries can now transform their sustainability performance , playing a critical role in improving the quality of life for people and planet , with one simple switch : from fossil-based polymers to renewable biomassbalanced chemistries .
High-performance polymers are an essential tool for treating water and sludge , whether in industrial processes or municipal wastewater networks . They are Kemira ’ s secondbiggest product offer for water treatment applications .
However , there is a catch . Making these polymers requires fossilbased feedstocks , which are neither renewable nor climate friendly . At the same time , regulations related to water treatment continue to tighten , which means demand for high performance sustainable watertreatment chemistries is increasing . Advanced municipal wastewater treatment also has a big climate impact , so the goal is to improve the environmental and overall performance of treatment plants wherever possible .
Biomass balance
When a polymer is biomassbalanced , it means that the majority of the fossil-based raw materials used to manufacture it are replaced by renewable massbalanced feedstocks . These feedstocks – which can come from sources such as industrial side streams , agricultural residues , used cooking oil and biogas – contribute to carbon reduction by sequestering carbon from the atmosphere .
The biomass balance approach is a specific strategy that replaces conventional fossil-based raw materials with renewable resources in existing industrial production processes , promoting sustainable practices and reducing environmental impact . Water-soluble biomassbalanced polyacrylamides ( PAMs ) find applications in municipal and industrial wastewater treatment , drinking water treatment and paper-making processes .
40 SPECIALITY CHEMICALS MAGAZINE ESTABLISHED 1981