International.
The European company Global Bioenergies announced the completion of a series of tests on the oxidation of isobutene of biological origin.
The reaction produces methacrylic acid, one of the main components of acrylic paint, in a market worth more than €500 million, and up to €5 billion, if all methacrylate by-products (organic glass and specialty products) are included.
Methacrylic acid is currently produced in a process dependent exclusively on fossil resources. During a selective oxidation test, Arkema, its partner in the BIOMA+ project, made a key observation: the behavior of isobutene of biological origin and isobutene from petrochemical sources was identical.
One of the objectives of the BIOMA+ project was to confirm the compatibility of isobutene of biological origin with chemical oxidation.
The company produced isobutene by fermentation at its pilot plant in Pomacle-Bazancourt (near Reims in France) and delivered it to the Arkema Research Center (in Pierre-Bénite), where it was used as the load in a selective oxidation test.
A large series of tests showed that fermentative isobutene delivered the same yield as reference isobutene from petrochemical sources, in terms of selectivity and performance. The test showed no difference in the lifetime of the catalyst.
