The
chemical industry already meets up to 8 percent of its demand for starting materials with
renewable raw materials. Strategies for gaining a further increase in this share, and the technological tools that need to be developed for this purpose, were the main topics of the BioRenewables Days of
Degussa AG. 150 experts from politics, industry and universities from
Germany and abroad met for a day and a half to discuss perspectives on biorenewables in chemical
production. "The conversion from fossil starting materials to renewable
raw materials is one of the biggest challenges we face over the next 50 years," said Dr. Alfred Oberholz, the
Degussa Management Board Member responsible for research and development. "The leaders will be the companies and economies that develop alternatives to the fossil-based economy early on, and promote technologies for using renewable raw materials."
The BioRenewables Days focus on the technical, economic and environmental aspects of the industrial use of biorenewables, as well as natural
oils and
fats as starting materials for products such as
cosmetics. A third area of concern are new developments in
white biotechnology - ranging from enzymes and
microorganisms that convert raw materials such as sugar or starches into valuable chemical
building blocks, all the way to "bio-
refineries." These use the entire
biomass of renewable raw materials, and convert them fully into
chemicals, active
substances and
fuels and
gasoline.
The BioRenewables Days build on the work of the new Bio Science-to- Business Center, which Degussa started on January 1, 2006 in Marl. The Group is investing 50 million euros over the next five years in developing new biotechnological products and processes based mainly on renewable raw materials together with university and industry partners. The government of North Rhine-Westphalia is also supporting Degussa's activities in
white biotechnology, in the form of a public-private partnership.