Waste not , want not
Multiple projects are looking into tapping Scotland ’ s abundant biomass for use in chemicals . Andrew Warmington reports from ChemUK 2022
The growing importance of the bioeconomy to the chemicals industry was in evidence again at the third ChemUK show at the NEC in Birmingham , UK , in May . The show featured panel discussions on ‘ Transitioning to biobased chemicals ’, ‘ Circular economy – balancing conventional chemistry & the switch to bioresources ’ and ‘ Bioeconomy offers Net Zero solutions for the chemical supply chain ’. The ultimate reasons for this – climate change , resource scarcity , supply chain disruption and so forth – are well known . As several speakers pointed out , however , the chemical industry cannot decarbonise ; it is built on carbon . What it can and must do is to ‘ defossilise ’ by using biomass and natural resources as an alternative feedstock Industrial biotechnology ( IB ) can help the chemical industry to improve its sustainability through pollution prevent , cost and emission reduction and resource conservation . Some of the most interesting work being done in the UK and elsewhere has come through regional networks centred around and supported by a regional body . One such is BioVale in Yorkshire and the Humber ; another is in Scotland , through the Industrial Biotechnology Innovation Centre ( IBioIC ). This , said Dr Liz Fletcher , director of business engagement , is a networking organisation set up by the devolved government in 2014 to bring together stakeholders to fast-track the growth of the biobased industry . As well as aiming to hit Net
Zero by 2045 , Scotland has its own plan for industrial biotech , with more immediate targets for the number of companies adopting it . IBioIC has been involved in many of the projects highlighted at ChemUK through funding and making its facilities available for R & D into biobased feedstocks based on Scotland ’ s vast but dispersed and underutilised natural resources . These were discussed in the ‘ Net Zero ’ session .
Beet that
Russell Clarke , business engagement manager at IBioIC , noted that in 2017 , a report by Zero Waste Scotland found that 27 million tonnes of bioresources are available in Scotland for biorefining , including food production , waste water and forestry . IBioIC ’ s website now has a mapping tool to show where it all is . “ There are limitations ,” Clarke added . “ Many of these resources come from different parts of the country and it can be difficult to develop a business reliant on these waste streams .” One viable solution to developing a business reliant on Scotland ’ s waste streams is sugar beet , Clarke said . This was cultivated on the East Coast until the 1970s and has a range of potential applications from bioethanol for fuel to a building block for pharmaceuticals and chemicals . A series of analyses from 2019 to 2021 by IBioIC and others concluded that it would be feasible to grow one million tonnes / year sugar beet in Scotland again , at yields of 60 tonnes / hectare for delivery to a central refinery to be located in Grangemouth or Dundee . This would be enough to supply 75 % of Scotland ’ s bioethanol demand , paying farmers a “ pretty reasonable ” £ 35 / tonne and without impacting other crops . Such a facility would capture 275,000 tonnes / year of CO 2
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It would also be profitable at all the scales studied . Scottish Enterprise , Scottish Development International , IBioIC and others are now looking at the next steps to take the project forward .
Forest fruits
Bio-Sep focuses specifically on valorising waste streams from under-used natural resources , specifically spruce sawdust waste . “ Woody biomass is available in vast quantities but it ’ s tough , fibrous and hard to break down ,” said commercial director Miranda Lindsay-Fynn . ‘ Traditional processes use toxic acids and really high heat , making them economically and environmentally unsound and inefficient .” Any process used to valorise this feedstock had to be low-energy , use only green solvents and be feedstockadaptable . Bio-Sep also wanted to turn as much as possible into products ; at present , about 25 % of the product of forestry is considered low value and is typically burned for energy . It has succeeded in achieving 96 % conversion . The rest is ash , which the firm is also seeking to turn into a product as well . Bio-Sep uses ultrasound to generate cavitations , essentially bubbles , inside the woody biomass . When
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