elements 25, Issue 4 | 2008 - Evonik

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elements25S C I E N C E N E W S L E T T E R | 2 2 | 2 3 | 2 4 | | 2 0 0 8

B I O T E C H N O L O G Y

Cosmetic Esters: Sustainability That Gets Under the SkinWith Metabolic Pathways to Sustainable Chemistry

evo_ele25_e.qxd:evo_ele25_e 13.11.2008 14:19 Uhr Seite 1

Energy efficiency in chemistry is a win-win for everyone: The climate and the environment, because asfew raw materials and energies as possible are used; chemical companies, because a minus for energy andraw materials means a plus for profitability; customers and end-users, because the products of chemistryare not only based on energy-efficient processes but also help save energy.

When your car uses less gas thanks to lightweight construction materials, low rolling resistance tires,and more powerful lithium-ion batteries for hybrid drives, when structural steelwork lasts longer becauseof reliable corrosion protection, or when sufficient quantities of the raw material solar silicon are avail able –naturally produced in an energy-efficient process – it can all be traced back to the chemistry of EvonikIndustries. When your house in Düsseldorf-Eller requires almost 90 percent less energy than two yearsago, or when, in the future, the people living in Soultz-sous-Forêts, France, obtain their energy from 4,000meters below ground, the Energy and Real Estate Business Areas of Evonik will have helped make it happen.

Chemicals, Real Estate, Energy – with these business areas, we cover a significant portion of daily life,and thus have enormous potential to use energy efficiently and protect the climate. With our Science-to-Business concept, on the other hand, we have a sustainable method for closely interlinking science andindustry, and thereby developing new products quickly. We have now combined the two: At the beginningof October, we launched our third Science-to-Business Center, S2B Eco², where we intend to exploit thesynergies generated from our Energy, Real Estate, and Chemicals business areas for the first time on alarge scale. The task of the new center is to develop technologies and products to generate, store, and useenergy efficiently, and to isolate CO2 from industrial processes for further use.

These activities reflect the mood of our society, which becomes clear even if we restrict our gaze toGermany. Whether Germany experiences a power shortage in 2020 or not – and this question is still hotlydebated – the ambitious climate goals of the German government will remain: To reduce CO2 emissionsby 40 percent by the year 2020, and to increase the share of power generated by combined power and heatto 25 percent, and by renewable sources to 25 to 30 percent by the year 2030. It is in this context we intendto develop solutions that contribute to a safe and sustainable energy supply– solutions that, like the 3-litercar and the 3-liter house, pave the way to the “3-liter society.” We refuse to save energy in only one area:advancing these projects.

I hope you enjoy the current issue.

2 elements25 E V O N I K S C I E N C E N E W S L E T T E R

E D I T O R I A L

3-Liter Society

NEWS25 Nanotechnologies in power generation –

intensive exchange at symposium

BIOTECHNOLOGY26 With metabolic pathways to sustainable chemistry

NEWS33 Propylene oxide: Successful commissioning

of first ever HPPO plant 34 Homogeneous catalysis: Evonik has granted

exclusive license to Solvias 34 Hydrogen peroxide production in

South Africa to be expanded34 Capacities expanded for biodiesel

catalyst at Mobile site35 A quantum leap in MMA technology: AVENEER

36 EVENTS AND CREDITS

elements25 | 2008

The cover photo showsDr. Henrike Gebhardtfrom the Bio technol ogyScience-to-BusinessCenter (p. 26)

NEWS4 Adhesion on command5 Evonik is a key supplier for Microsoft Surface™,

focusing on the visual interface tabletop

BIOTECHNOLOGY6 Cosmetic esters:

Sustainability that gets under the skin

NEWS11 New solar silicon plant opened11 New oil additives plant in Singapore

DESIGNING WITH POLYMERS12 Hyperbranched polymers:

Multitalented individualists

EUROPEAN SCIENCE-TO-BUSINESS AWARD 2008 18 Biocatalysis for Chiral Amino Diols

Dr. Paul Dalby wins € 100.000

DESIGNING WITH POLYMERS20 New additive for scratch-resistant polypropylene

compounds: Anti-aging properties for cars

Dr. Alfred OberholzMember of the Executive Board ofEvonik Industries AG

contents


elements25 E V O N I K S C I E N C E N E W S L E T T E R 3

The Supervisory Board of Evonik Industries approved the requestmade by Dr. Werner Müller (62), Chairman of the Executive Board,to be released from his contract as of December 31, 2008. At thesame time, the Supervisory Board appointed Dr. Klaus Engel, mem -ber of the Executive Board of Evonik and Chairman of the Board ofManagement of Evonik Degussa GmbH, to succeed him as Chairmanof the Executive Board of Evonik Industries AG effective January 1,2009. The Supervisory Board unanimously accepted the proposalsput forward by the Executive Committee of the Supervisory Board,which is chaired by Wilhelm Bonse-Geuking.

On behalf of the Supervisory Board, Wilhelm Bonse-Geukingthanked Dr. Werner Müller for his outstanding achievements in thetrans formation of the former RAG Group and the establishment ofEvonik Industries AG. He wished Dr. Engel success and entrepreneur-ial foresight in his new role: “With Klaus Engel at the helm, we knowthat the Group is in the best of hands.“

news

+++ Dr. Klaus Engel to succeed Dr. Werner Müller as Chairman of the Executive Board

Evonik Industries launched the new Eco2 Science-to-Business Cen ter(S2B Eco2) at the Marl site on October 1. From now to 2013 alone,the Essen-based industrial group will invest an additional sum ex -ceed ing € 50 million for this purpose. Together with the budgetedsubsidies, the total investment will be in the high double-digit mil -lion-euro range. The initial portfolio of the new center comprises 21attractive research projects focusing on energy efficiency and climateprotection. “Evonik has already successfully developed intelligentsolutions for resource conservation and climate protection. We havean idea of the future. Our new research center will be a catalyst fortranslating ideas into market-ready products and services,” saidDr. Alfred Oberholz, member of the Executive Board of EvonikIndustries AG.

The new research center pools the Group’s energy efficiency andclimate protection expertise, initiating development projects that ex -tend across more than one business unit or business area. S2B Eco2

covers five fields: CO2 separation and utilization, energy generation,energy storage, solutions for improving energy efficiency for custom-ers, and pools for increasing energy efficiency in Evonik processes.

“What we claim to do is translate the latest scientific knowledgerapidly and efficiently into successful products,” said Oberholz, add -ing that Evonik’s S2B concept satisfies this claim, thanks to the verti-cal integration of all research and development activities under a singleroof. Under this concept, user industries as well as academic institu -tions are involved in development, and the focus lies more on theprod uct in question, its application, and the underlying market. In thewords of Oberholz, “Today, we have to see at the earliest stage of aninnovation what business opportunities it will open.” The new re -search center has created some 50 jobs at Evonik and additional jobsfor its partners.

Evonik already occupies a leading market position in innovativeenergy supply and storage and in efficient utilization of energy. InDuis burg (Germany), the industrial group is currently buildingEurope’s most advanced coal-fired power plant. It is a leader in gen -erating power from biomass and geothermal sources, too, and itsChemicals Business Area offers leading products and technol ogies.The portfolio includes the latest generation of large-volume lithium-ion batteries as well as components for low-rolling-resis tance

+++ Energy Efficiency Center established

Dr. Klaus Engel

>>>


In the near future, electronic devices could be much smaller, lighter,and more powerful than at present. This is possible thanks to anovel high-tech adhesive tape system, the product of a collaborativeeffort between Lohmann GmbH & Co. KG and Evonik Industries.Duplocoll® RCD (Rapid Curing on Demand) looks like, and is pro -cessed in the same way as classic pressure-sensitive adhesive tape,but a downstream curing process allows bond strengths that cannotbe achieved by conventional pressure-sensitive tapes. The adhesiveforce is about 300 percent stronger than that of a conventionalhigh-performance adhesive tape. In the case of a plastic hook gluedto the wall, the loadbearing capacity increases from 3 to 5 kilo-grams with a conventional adhesive to 20–40 kilograms with thenew system.

MagSilica®, the new adhesive additive recently developed byEvonik, is responsible for this effect. MagSilica® is made of iron oxidecrystals embedded in a silicon dioxide matrix and therefore reactsuperparamagnetically. When an adhesive equipped with these par-ticles is exposed to a high-frequency alternating field, it heats up andhardens in seconds. The method results not only in enormous bond -ing strengths but significantly shorter curing times. Instead of the 30minutes required before, curing now takes no longer than 60 secondswhen the adhesive matrix contains 5 to 15 percent MagSilica®. A fur -ther advantage is that heating is restricted to the area of the joint. Therest of the component is heated only moderately, if at all. As a result,even heat-sensitive materials such as plastics can be bonded withoutbeing damaged.

High-tech, accurately die-cut adhesive tapes are used where li q -uid adhesives reach their limits – in bonding extremely small parts.With Duplocoll® RCD, many parts can be made even smaller in thefuture, because less surface area will be required for the adhesive to

+++ Adhesion on Command

hold. Cell phones, computers, DVD players, and hearing aids – thereare now unimagined new possibilities in function and design.

Potential for the automotive industryThe automotive industry is another promising field of application forthe MagSilica®adhesive system, because bonded joints allow the useof lighter materials. One kilogram of adhesive used in this way reducesthe weight of a car by 25 kilograms. Until now, however, the use ofadhesion technology in automotive construction has had two seriousdisadvantages: Adhesives needed very long curing times, and thebon ding was not easily reversed – a major drawback in repairs and re -cycling. For these problems, MagSilica® now offers a solution, becausethe adhesive additive drastically shortens curing times. It also allowsthe debonding of joints that have been specifically designed with thispossibility in mind.

MagSilica® opens up new possibilities not only in large-scale pro-duction but also for repairs and recycling, because the various plasticcomponents can be separated out and recycled without much effort.


tires and processes for cost-effectively producing solar silicon for thephotovoltaics industry.

“With our research center for energy efficiency, we are nowgoing a step further and entering areas such as CO2 separation andutilization,” explained Dr. Stefan Nordhoff, head of the Science-to-Business Center Eco2. “In close collaboration with the Group’s busi-ness and service units, we will press ahead with commercially attrac-tive projects with high potential for reducing CO2 emissions, andbring these to market readiness.”

Following an intensive evaluation process, Evonik has selected21 projects for the initial portfolio from a total of 230 project propos -als. This includes projects in the following areas:• CO2 separation: Use of customized absorbents for the partial ab -sorption of CO2 from flue gases, with the CO2 reused as a raw mate-rial for chemical products;• Power generation: A cost-effective process that can be used de -cen trally for enriching methane from biogases and feeding it into thenatural gas grid;• Power storage: Regulation systems that take advantage of thestrengths of innovative storage technologies such as the lithium-ionbattery as much as possible, allowing energy harnessed from thewind or the sun to be used more efficiently;

• Solutions for improving energy efficiency for customers: Devel -opment of systems for buildings that intelligently combine the func -tions of insulation and energy generation; and• Increasing energy efficiency in Evonik processes: 700-degreetech nology for coal-based power generation, with an efficiency ex -ceeding 50 percent.

“We will regularly monitor the prospects of success of this projectportfolio, add new and attractive project ideas to the pipeline, and ter-minate projects whose chances of success turn out to be too low,”explained Nordhoff. The introduction of a Group-wide standard forlife cycle assessments, which will make it possible to evaluate theCO2 savings potential and resource efficiency of Evonik’s currentopera tions and its research and development projects over their en -tire lifetime, is also planned.

Creavis Technologies & Innovation, in which Evonik pools itsstrategic research and development efforts, manages the S2B cen-ters. Having launched S2B Eco2, Evonik now operates three S2B cen-ters, all at the Marl site. The Nanotronics S2B Center develops systemsolutions based on nanomaterials for the electronics industry, whilethe Biotechnology S2B Center develops new biotechnological prod -ucts and processes based on renewable raw materials.



news

+++ Evonik is a key supplier for Microsoft Surface™, focusing on the visual interface tabletop

Under a strategic cooperation agreement with Microsoft Cor -poration, Evonik Industries will supply the projection tabletop forMicrosoft Surface™, Microsoft’s first surface computing device,which enables users to interact with digital content on the tabletopthrough touch, gestures, and objects placed on Surface. Composed ofseveral PLEXIGLAS®-based optical function layers, including onerear projection film optimized specifically for Surface, the projectionhardware allows the tabletop to be used for both viewing and input,opening up a wide range of new possibilities for Surface. For Evonik,the collaboration with Microsoft is another milestone on the way tobecoming a complete system supplier, combining functionality anddesign in an optimal manner.

“Microsoft is changing the way people interact with digital infor-mation, and the contribution of Evonik is helping to make that a real -ity,” said Pete Thompson, general manager of Microsoft Surface.“Microsoft is bringing surface computing to life and transforming theway consumers around the world shop, dine, entertain, and live.”

Production in GermanyTo better meet the demands of this new technology, Evonik expandsits capacity for production under clean room conditions at its Weiter -stadt site in the course of 2008. Production of components for com-mercial display applications requires the highest degree of cleanlinessbecause demands on optical quality are at the same level as for LCDtelevision monitors. Up to fifteen new jobs will be created at the site,mainly in production and quality assurance.

From personal computing to surface computingSurface computing breaks down the traditional barriers betweenpeo ple and technology, providing effortless interaction with digitalcon tent. With Surface it is possible for multiple users to interactdirectly and simultaneously with the computer by touching the table-top, without the use of a mouse or keyboard. Surface also featuresobject recognition and will respond to objects placed on the tabletop,triggering different types of digital responses.

The size and shape of Surface make it possible for multiple usersto interact with Surface at the same time, transforming the individualworkstation of the PC into a collaborative experience. Surface is cur-rently available in the US only and being developed in retail, hospi -tality, and entertainment environments where customers can accessand interact with digital content directly on the tabletop. More infor-mation on Microsoft Surface can be found at www.surface.com.

Microsoft Surface is a 30-inch display in a table-like form factorthat’s easy for individuals or small groups to interact with. Thesystem recognizes more than 50 simultaneous touches or objects.With Microsoft Surface, you can, for example, browse through pictures by stretching, zooming, and dragging the images with yourfingers. The first Surface units have already been set up at selectstores of the U.S. company AT&T, and at Harrah‘s Las Vegas Casino

Production of the displays in Weiterstadt (Germany): PLEXIGLAS® sheets and films are bonded in a special cleanroom to avoid any contamination

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cess using custom-tailored enzymes: myristyl myristate, decylcocoate, cetyl ricinoleate and isocetyl palmitate. With a produc-tion volume of several hundred metric tons per year, myristylmyristate is the most important of these.

The biggest advantage of the enzyme catalysts is their mildreaction conditions. The chemical process for the esterificationof long-chain fatty acids and fatty alcohols requires temperaturesas high as about 240 °C (464 °F), which can generate raw prod -ucts that are dark-colored and do not meet the required qualitycriteria for cosmetic products in terms of purity, color, and smell.For this reason, they undergo a host of reprocessing steps inwhich they are steamed, bleached, and filtered to remove the un -desired color and smells caused by the impurities.

The biocatalytic process, on the other hand, runs at 60 °C(140 °F) under nearly physiological reaction conditions, and sup-plies highly selective ultra-pure, colorless products that obviatethe need for expensive, time-consuming reprocessing and clean -ing. The only problem: Because the enzyme is extremely ex pen -s ive, a sufficient number of campaigns must be carried out eachtime the enzyme is loaded to make the process cost-effec tivecompared to the chemical variant. Because the enzyme is bynature highly sensitive, it cannot be used in its natural state.

To find an economically sensible solution, Evonik is usingimmobilized enzymes, a variant in which the enzyme is bondedto small spheres that act as a carrier material. Immobilization al -lows the enzymes to be integrated into a fixed-bed reactor witha circulation loop, through which the reaction charge is pumpedlong enough to reach the intended yield. With this technique, thebiocatalyst remains stable longer, and can be separated more


ith a surface area of as much as two squaremeters and a weight of about ten kilograms, theskin is the largest human organ. It is also thebody’s control center for a number of sensory

perceptions, a key element in the regulation of body tempera -ture, and the protective covering for the body. Care of the skin isa high priority in our society. According to one ongoing study,begun in the early 90s by the German Cosmetic, Toiletry, Per -fumery, and Detergent Association in cooperation with variousuniversities and institutes, over 90 percent of women and near-ly half of all men in Germany alone regularly use facial creamsand body lotions.

But how does the user like his skin to feel? Should the feelingbe relaxing, soft, light and silky, or rich and heavy? The decisivefactor here is the oil phase, which increasingly consists of “emol-lient esters.” Emollient esters are produced through esterifica-tion of a fatty acid with a long-chained alcohol. As the oil phaseof an oil-in-water (O/W) or water-in-oil (W/O) formulation,emollient esters, along with emulsifiers and other additives,represent valuable starting products for skin care cosmeticssuch as creams and body lotions.

A trailblazer in biocatalysis

About 50 different emollient esters are now available on themar ket for creating creams and lotions for optimal skin feel,depending on preference and application. Evonik currently hasabout 20 of these esters in its portfolio, and is the sole supplierworldwide which produces four esters in a biotechnological pro-

W

Evonik Industries is the only company worldwide that offers biotechnologicallyproduced emollient esters for the cosmetics industry. Compared to the chemicalproduction process, the biotechnological variant boasts extraordinarily good selec tivity, mild reaction conditions, and high product purity. It is also sustainable:For the first time, researchers at Evonik have used a life cycle assessment to quantitatively record and evaluate the advantages of biocatalysis on the example of myristyl myristate production.

C O S M E T I C E S T E R S

Sustainability That Gets Under the SDR. OLIVER THUM


• Myristyl myristate: Ester of myristic acid with myristyl alcohol. White, wax-like substance. Used as an easily spreadable oil compo-nent in O/W emulsions, especially in lotions, and to improve the consistency of W/O emulsions

• Decyl cocoate: Ester of coconut fatty acid with decyl alcohol. Primarily used in face care products and in O/W-type sunscreen formulations

• Cetyl ricinoleate: Ester of ricinoleic acid with cetyl alcohol. Uses include, for example, skin care products, decorative cosmetics andlipsticks

• Isocetyl palmitate: Ester of palmitic acid with isocetyl alcohol. Used, for example, as a substitute for mineral oil in skin care products,especially for dry skin

easily from the reaction mixture – a technological advancementthat explains why Evonik is now the only company that offersenzymatically manufactured emollient esters.

Disproportionate growth in the market for natural cosmetics

Bioproducts are on the rise, and not only in the food industry. InEurope, the market for natural cosmetics is recording double-digit growth rates. Even though bioproducts are still a nichemarket, L’Oréal, the world’s largest cosmetics corporation, re -cently acquired the natural cosmetics chain The Body Shop, andeven discount chains are attaching great importance to environ-mental products. The reason is the consumer’s growing desirefor natural products, which are also often labeled as such.

elements25 E V O N I K S C I E N C E N E W S L E T T E R


7

Powerful quartet – the emollient esters produced in an enzymatic process at Evonik

he Skin

Biotechnologically produced emollient esters meet this de -mand. This is also clear from the fact that, when given a choicebetween an emollient ester produced in the conventional wayand one produced enzymatically, more and more cosmetic com-panies are choosing the latter.

Life cycle assessment confirms sustainability of biocatalysis

The life cycle assessment shows that what the consumer wantsis also good for the environment. In collaboration with the Dan -ish company Novozymes A/S, the Consumer Specialties Busi -ness Unit of Evonik conducted the first environmental life cycleassessment (LCA) of an emollient ester for cosmetic applica -tions. The researchers selected production of the emollient >>>



Figure 1. Using the production of myristylmyristate as their model, Novozymes andEvonik are the first companies to conduct an environmental lifecycle assessment for boththe enzymatic and chemical manufacture ofan emollient ester for cosmetics

O

O

Figure 2. Flow chart of the enzymatic andchem ical processes thatEvonik com pared. Pro -cess steps omitted fromthe LCA are shown indashed squares

Waste watertreatment

Enzymeproduction (NZ 435)

Packaging

Induced processes

Displaced processes

Ester formationTin catalysis

>180 °C

Deodorization>140 °C

Bleaching100 °C

Drying100 °C

Filtration 100 °C

Elemental tin

Sodiumformiate

Ca(OH)2

H2SO4

Energy

Fatty acid ester

Sn oxalateproduction

Energyproduction

Liquid N production

Water

Steamproduction

NaOCl production

Filter aidproduction

Waste watertreatment

Treatmentof solid waste

Waste water

NZ 435

Waste water

Solid waste

Enzymatic process

Conventional process

Coconutproduction

Ester formationEnzyme catalysis

60 °C

Fattyacid/alcoholproduction

Packaging

Waste water

Waste water

Solid wasteSolid waste

Raw materials

Reaction

Deodorization

Bleaching

Drying

Filtration

Packaging

Catalyst

Steam

Bleach

Filter aid

Volatile compounds

Aqeous waste

Aqeous waste

Solid waste

Conventional

Applied temperature> 180 °C

140 °C

100 °C

60 °C

20 °C

Raw materials

Reaction

Enzymatic

Packaging

Catalyst recycled



ester myristyl myristate as their model process, but the resultscan be easily transferred to similar cosmetic fatty acids (Fig. 1).

In their assessment, the scientists used immobilized lipase Bfrom the organism Candida antarctica to examine the industrialenzymatic process used at Evonik to produce the ester, inclu-ding recovery of the enzyme, all the way to its deactivation.They then compared this process with the conventional chem -ical production process, which is carried out at 240 °C (464 °F)and uses tin oxalate as catalyst. Other parameters for this vari antincluded the use of nitrogen as inert gas, and a refinement pro-cess consisting of bleaching with sodium chlorite, three hours ofsteam stripping, and filtration.

Scientists made out an inventory for both processes, calcu -lating how much electricity was needed for stirrers and pumps,how much energy is needed to heat the vessel, what raw mate-rials in what quantities go into the process, and what kinds ofwaste are produced. In those few cases in which the parametersin the detailed analysis are based on assumptions or are difficultto calculate, the most conservative variant was used to avoid gi v-ing the advantage to the enzymatic process. For example, thelife cycle assessment did not consider all waste treatment, al -though the enzymatic process would have a clear advantagehere owing to the significantly lower amounts of waste it gener -ates. The higher yields of the enzymatic process were, there fore,completely disregarded in the life cycle assessment (Fig. 2).

The result of this inventory was an inventory table that liststhe raw materials and energies used, and the wastes generatedfrom all the process steps. They then integrated the ex isting lifecycle assessments contained in databases for the raw materialsused. This was the only way they could ensure that the life cycleassessment factored the energy and raw material consumptionof myristyl myristate production as well as the production of thefeed materials (Fig. 3).

If no life cycle assessment was available for a starting mate-rial, the researchers traced the product lines based on the start -ing material until data was available. They had to rely on thismethod in the case of tin(II) oxalate, the catalyst for the chem icalprocess, because there is no life cycle assessment for it. Insteadof tin(II) oxalate, they used elemental tin, sodium formiate, cal-cium hydroxide, and sulfuric acid as starting materials, and prod-uced calcium sulfate as the waste product. Energy consumptionfor the production of tin(II) oxalate was completely disre garded –a conservative assumption to avoid giving the advantage to bio-technology. The scientists were also unable to find a life cycleassessment for sodium chlorite, so they got around the problemby substituting sodium hypochlorite.

Using the individual life cycle assessments of all the startingmaterials, the scientists evaluated both processes based on fivestandardized environmental categories: energy consumption,in fluence on global warming using greenhouse gas emissions,acidification of soil through noxious gases such as SO2, the eutro-phication of soil and water through the immission of nutrientssuch as phosphorous and nitrogen, as well as smog formationthrough volatile organic compounds.

The results speak loud and clear: Despite conservative as -sumptions, the biocatalytic manufacturing process for the emol-lient ester myristyl myristate can, on balance, save more


>>>

Figure 3. First, the researchers listed the used raw materials, energies, andwastes generated from all the process steps in the comparison in an initial in -ven tory table (upper table). To make a total assessment, their next step was to integrate the individual life cycle assessments of the raw materials and pre-pare a second inventory table (lower table)

Evonik uses lipase Bas a biocatalyst in theenzymatic process for manufacturing thecosmetic ester

Electricity (primary energy)

Heating energy (from electricity)

Gaseous nitrogen

Tin(II)oxalate

Novozyme 435

Filter aid (Tonsil)

Bleach NaOCl2

Water for steam

Cooling water

Waste water

Tin-containing waste

Enzyme waste

Conventional

0.63

6.34

3,200

25

25

20

105

570

445

70

Enzymatic

2.38

0.76

0.27

180

0.5

GJ

GJ

Litres

kg

kg

kg

kg

kg

kg

kg

kg

kg

Total energy from electricity

Liquid nitrogen

Tin from mining

Sodium formiate

H2SO4, 96 %

Ca(OH)2, solid

Novozyme 435

NaOCl, 15 %

Waste CaSO4

Tin-containing waste

Enzyme waste

Conventional

6.97

5

14

17

18.2

9.3

133

17

70

Enzymatic

3.14

0.27

0.5

GJ

kg

kg

kg

kg

kg

kg

kg

kg

kg

kg

Emollient estersare also used inlipstick, amongother applications



than 60 percent energy while reducing the formation of envi-ronmentally damaging impurities by as much as 88 percent(Fig. 4). All these facts clearly support the sustainability of thebiocatalytic process.

Finally, in their quest for improvement potential, the scien-tists analyzed which process steps and which feed materialshave the biggest environmental impact in chemical synthesis(Fig. 5). They determined that the leading energy consumer isthe heating of the reaction vessel, which also makes the chiefcontribution to the greenhouse gas effect. Tin was found tohave the most environmentally damaging impurities.

Portfolio of enzymatically manufactured products will continue to grow

Evonik is encouraged by the positive response of cosmeticsmanu facturers to products manufactured with enzymes, andplans to market more high-quality enzymatically manufacturedproducts for the cosmetics industry. In cooperation with themarketing department of the Personal Care Business Line,

re searchers are identifying new target compounds, and study-ing their production and technical application properties.

Because of the intrinsic advantage of biocatalysis – highselec tivity and mild reaction conditions – and the opportunityto exploit both the environmental and economic improvementpotentials in the pursuit of sustainability, researchers in theConsumer Specialties Business Unit are also working on theenzymatic synthesis of products for other fields of application.Even though enzymes currently reach their limits when itcomes to certain substrates – for example, in the case of emol-lient esters from branched carboxylic acids, which enable theproduction of ultra-light creams – they keep their promises toconsumers and chemists. They produce high-purity substances,protect the environment, and open the door to new products –all good reasons for the Evonik researchers who work in thisarea to press on with their work, and continue expanding thecompany’s range of biotechnologically manufactured products.They laid the foundation for this work years ago, having built abroad enzymatic technology platform with numerous patentsthat open up access to new substance classes. ●

DR. OLIVER THUMBorn in 1974Oliver Thum is head of biotechnological research in theConsumer Specialties Business Unit of Evonik. Afterstudying chemistry at the University of Bonn, where hefinished his thesis under the direction of Prof. WilhelmBoland of the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Eco -logy in Jena, and subsequently earned his doctorate, hebegan his professional career in 2002 as a scientific assistant at Noxxon Pharma AG in Berlin. One year laterhe moved to Evonik Industries as group leader inresearch and development in the Con sumer Specialties

Business Unit. Thum has held his current position since 2006.+49 201 173-1658, [email protected]

Figure 4. The results of the life cycle assessmentshow that the enzymatic process is considerablymore eco-friendly

Figure 5. In the chemical process the use of tin and the energy necessary for heating the reactionvessel have the biggest impact on the environment

Results of the life cycle assessment

5 ton scale

Energy

Global warming

Acidification

Nutrient enrichment

Smog formation

GJ

kg

kg

kg

kg

CO2 eq.

SO2 eq.

PO4 eq.

C2H4 eq.

Conventional

22.5

1,518

10.58

0.86

0.49

Enzymatic

8.63

582

1.31

0.24

0.12

Savings %

62

62

88

74

76

Main contributors to environmental impact

Tin

Heating energy

NaOCl

Sodium formiate

Filter aid

Acidification

%

70

20

5

< 1

< 1

Global warming

%

15

70

5

< 1

< 1

Fossil energy

%

15

70

5

< 1

2

Nutrientenrichment

%

55

35

5

< 1

5

Smogformation

%

45

40

5

1

1



Evonik Industries and SolarWorld have officially opened their newsolar silicon plant in Rheinfelden (Baden, Germany). As part of thejoint venture Joint Solar Silicon (JSSI), the two companies are using aninnovative process in the new plant that enables energy savings of upto 90 percent compared to conventional solar silicon production.“With the opening of the plant, Evonik Industries is answering theworldwide demand to further increase the share of alternative ener-gies, such as solar energy, in power generation,” says Dr. AlfredOberholz, member of Evonik’s Executive Board. The investment vol -ume for the integrated production network will be in the double-digitmillion euro range.

JSSI is a joint venture of Evonik Industries AG, Essen (51 percent),and SolarWorld AG, Bonn. “With JSSI, we are consistently expandingour activities in raw materials supply,” says certified engineer FrankH. Asbeck, SolarWorld’s chairman of the board, stressing the impor-tance of the new plant for his company. “We manufacture ultra-thinwafers from solar silicon, and process them into solar cells and mo d -ules.” For Asbeck, one thing is certain: “In a few years, solar powerfrom your rooftop will be cheaper than power from an electrical out-let.”

Michael Müller, Parliamentary State Secretary in the Federal En -vi ronment Ministry, welcomes the companies’ investment in Rhein -felden. “It’s good that photovoltaics are taking us out of the niche andinto comprehensive industrial added value.”

The integrated production network includes an Evonik monosi -lane plant. In the second plant in the network, JSSI takes the monosi-lane and uses it to manufacture solar silicon. The Rheinfelden facilitywill start with an annual production capacity of 850 metric tons ofsolar silicon.

Based on the steady international demand for solar power prod -ucts, both joint venture partners see a substantial market for the newtechnology. The process was developed by JSSI in cooperation withleading universities. Currently, the growth of the solar industry is stilllimited by low raw material capacities. With the new plant, JSSI has

news

+++ New solar silicon plant opened

come considerably closer to satisfying this demand bottleneck andbeing able to supply the solar industry with high-quality and inexpen-sive solar silicon.

Photovoltaics and construction of this plant supports one of thefields of concentration identified by Evonik: “Today, energy efficien-cy is one of the worldwide megatrends. With top technological prod -ucts, Evonik will contribute to safeguarding the energy supply whileprotecting the environment and climate,” says Oberholz. Evonik isallocating up to two billion euros for this purpose from 2008 to theend of 2010 alone. In the Chemicals Business Area, which includesthe site in Baden, Evonik already offers numerous intelligent solutionsthat are helping to conserve resources and reduce emissions.

+++ New oil additives plant in Singapore

Evonik subsidiary RohMax has begun operating its oil additivesmanufacturing facility on Jurong Island in Singapore. This new state-of-the-art facility manufactures the company’s high-performanceVISCOPLEX® lubricant additives for the global market, in particular,the regions Asia-Pacific, Middle East, and Africa.

VISCOPLEX® additives form a key component in finished lub -ricants used in automotive and other industrial applications and helpimprove the performance of engines and transmissions. They thusplay a role in achieving better fuel efficiency. The facility also includesa technology center, where new applications for oil additive productsare tested and developed. The plant represents an investmentof more than € 10 million and, together with RohMax’s other fourproduction facilities in Europe and North America, will strengthenthe company’s global supply chain capabilities for its worldwidecustomers.

Asia is the fastest-growing region for the industrial lubricantsmarket. This region accounts for more than one-third of the globallubricant demand. “This plant is designed to support the growing de -mand for our VISCOPLEX® products in the Asia-Pacific region overthe next ten years,” explained Dr. Dirk Reese, managing director ofEvonik RohMax Additives GmbH. “We opened our technical centerin Shanghai just a few years ago in 2005, so now this new productionsite will allow us to broaden our presence in the Asia-Pacific regioneven more and extend our leadership position in high-performancelubricant additives.”

RohMax Oil Additives is a leading global supplier of high-perfor-mance VISCOPLEX® lubricant additives and VISCOBASE® syntheticbase fluids for use in automotive and industrial lubricants. The com-pany also produces dewaxing aids used in refinery processing andcold flow improvers for biodiesel.

The new solar silicon plant in Rheinfelden



Polymer molecules with tree-likebranches are setting new standards. Just a small quantity of these moleculesis enough to equip coating systems andmolded bodies with novel properties.Because they branch just like a tree, theirnatural model, hyperbranched polymershave a high number of functional endgroups. These end groups can be usedto generate individual molecular proper-ties that impart interesting functionalitiesto materials. This is why “tree-like mole -cules” are such a high priority in the eval -uation of innovative application ideas at Evonik. Their fields of application arejust as versatile as the molecules them-selves. In addition to paints and coatings,these fields include molded bodies, anti-icing fluids, cosmetic actives, drug de -livery systems, and the separation ofmulti-component mixtures in processengineering.

H Y P E R B R A N C H E D P O L Y M E R S

Multitalented Individualists

yperbranched polymers are globular macromole -cules with a branched, tree-like architecture. Theylack the perfect radial symmetry of dendrimers,which also belong to the class of dendritic polymers

(from dendron, the Greek word for “tree”). While dendrimershave to be synthesized in time-consuming, multi-stage synthe-ses, and are therefore extremely expensive, hyperbranchedpolymers can be easily produced via one-step reactions frommultifunctional monomers and therefore represent economi-cally promising products also for large-scale applications.

A young product for a variety of applications

“The variety of applications for hyperbranched polymers is fas-cinating. From performance additives in the coatings anddispersions segment, through the controlled release of activeingredients, all the way to anti-icing agents for aircraft surfaces,a host of applications have been developed to market maturityin the last few years. Often, the key to the success of these en -deavors was the development of a detailed understanding of therelevant structure-property relationships, as well as the solv ingof challenges in the field of thermodynamics and chemical engi -neering,” says Dr. Matthias Seiler, head of the “Bringing Tech -nology to Market” group in the Process Technology & Engi -neering Service Unit.

Hyperbranched polymers carry a wide variety of functionalgroups, allowing scientists to tune molecular properties selec -tively. By chemically converting the functional end groups, theycan furnish polymer molecules with either hydrophilic orhydro phobic properties, for example. By varying the polarity ofthe end groups, developers can set the glass transition tempera-ture to between –20 °C and +300 °C. Even very low melt vis -cosities and/or thermal stabilities of up to 500 °C are possible,which makes hyperbranched polymers especially attractive foruse under extreme conditions.

Their globular, highly branched molecular structure alsomeans that hyperbranched polymers do not form intermolecularentanglements. For this reason, they display significantly lowermelt and solution viscosities compared to linear polymers. Thisis a great advantage for polymer processing, because far less en -er gy is required, and the solvent can even be eliminated alto -gether.

Generally speaking, three aspects of the structure-propertyrelationships of hyperbranched polymers have proven critical:the branched, tree-like structure, the variety of functionalgroups, and the comparatively low molecular weights. Theseare the features researchers adjust to create custom-madeproperties.

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D E S I G N I N G W I T H P O L Y M E R S

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Potential applications for hyperbranched polymers. Hyper branched polymers typically possess a highly branched structure, several functional groups, and relatively low molecular weights. These three features allow chemists to control properties and to adjust them to the target application

Paper coatings

Processing aid

Molecular imprinting

Personal care additive

Oil field chemicalFuel additive

Textile chemical

Performance additive for flexible polyurethane foams

Oligomer precursor for UV-curing applications

Additive/resin for waterborne applications

Dyes

Adhesive (rheology, adhesion,dying, compatibilization)

Plastics additive

Rheology modifier

Elastomer crosslinker

Anchor for catalysts, proteins etc.

Controlled release agent

Moisture retention in cosmetics

Dispersion agent

Catalysis, micelles

Dental composites

Dye transfer inhibitor

Globular templates

Membranes

Hydrogel components for tissue-growth active hydrogels

Photosensitive materials

Sensor materials

Entrainer, extraction solvent, scrubbing agent

Wetting agent

(D)emulsifier

Lubricant

Detergent

(Anti)foam agent



Unique color effects and custom-made properties

“Thanks to their branched structure, custom-made hyper -branched polymers can be used for the dispersion and stabiliza-tion of pigments in paints and coatings,” explains Dr. PedroCavaleiro, R&D manager in the Coatings & Additives BusinessUnit at Evonik. Hyperbranched deflocculating agents use theirarms to hold pigments at a uniform distance, and they also bringthem to the surface of coating systems. This allows the creationof exceptionally strong, intense colors.

“With this development, Coatings & Additives was able tobuild on the groundwork of several other business units atEvonik,” says Cavaleiro. “The results we have obtained so farare quite promising. The first end users from the packaging printreport excellent performance as a dispersion additive, for whichtwo percent of these hyperbranched structures display the sameeffect as seven percent of the best comparable conventionalproduct. Following successful production of dispersion addi -tives based on hyperbranched structures, we are now ready fora broad-based market launch of this chemical technology.”

“Because of their tree-like molecular shape, hyperbranchedpolymers offer limitless opportunities for realizing defined ar -chi tectures in materials. In the area of coatings chemistry, thesebuilding blocks can be used to fine-tune properties such ashardness, flexibility, and UV protection. This is why our cus -tomers also find these polymers and their properties so attrac -tive,” says Dr. Markus Schwarz, group leader for InnovationManagement of the Coatings & Additives Business Unit.

The scratch resistance of paints can be strengthened consid -erably, for example, by redispersing inorganic nanoparticlesinto the paint matrix. Since nanoparticles have a strong tendencyto agglomerate, the process of redispersion consumes a highamount of energy.

A newly developed method eliminates this energy-intensivestep, and allows the nanoparticles to be developed right in thematrix. With the help of this “in-situ nucleation”, scientists atEvonik have succeeded in generating tiny, hard, hyperbranchedspheres inside the paint matrix. The spheres are evenly dis -tributed in the polymer matrix, where the large number of func -tional groups ensures strong inter- and intramolecular cross-

As an adhesion pro moterin multi-layer tubing made of various plastics –for example, for fuel linesin cars – hyper branchedpolymers improve com -patibility



linking. When the nanodispersion is cured, transparent paintfilms with outstanding mechanical properties are obtained.

Self-cleaning and antimicrobial surfaces can also be pro -d uced with hyperbranched polymers that tend to accumulate onthe surface of the coating material. These kinds of performancead di tives reduce the surface energy of the material, which meansthat surfaces can be equipped with dirt- and bacteria-repellantfunctions.

Supported by their many functional groups, hyperbranchedpolymers can also take on the job of improving the compatibi lityof various plastic components. In the area of high-performanceplastics, for example, Evonik uses these molecules successfully asadhesion promoters in multi-layer tubing made of polyamide 12and poly(butylene terephthalate). “Hyperbranched polymers areoutstanding performance additives that have proven successfulfor us, especially in applications such as plastic piping,” saysDr. Harald Häger, department head for process and productdevelopment in the Performance Polymers Business Unit.

Magic: first tough, then liquid

The development of a new performance additive for anti-icingfluids based on hyperbranched polymers has met with strongin terest among airport operators. Because ice that accumulateson the surface of an aircraft when it is parked in cold weatherposes a safety risk, it is usually removed with an anti-icing fluid,made from propylene glycol/water mixtures.

“As a liquid additive, hyperbranched polymers with their largenumber of end groups are perfect for fine-tuning the rheo -l o gical properties in aircraft anti-icing fluids, for example,” saysDr. Stefan Bernhardt, whose responsibilities in the ‘BringingTech nology to Market’ group include coordination of the activi-ties related to polymer chemistry.

Hyperbranched polymers added to anti-icing fluids act asthickening agents to ensure that the fluid has a high enough vis-cosity to adhere to the wings when it is sprayed, and therebyoffer significantly longer protection against freezing. Whenexposed to shearing forces during take-off, however, the hyper-branched polymers reduce the viscosity of the anti-icing


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Hyperbranched polymersas dis persing additives for paint and coating pigments. The results areultra-intense colors re -quired for applications such as packaging print.



fluid – in other words, they improve its shear-thinning behaviorso it can flow off the wings. The use of hyperbranched polymersalso offers economic and environmental advantages becausethey are biodegradable and help conserve other components.

Formulation and selective release of active ingredients

Hyperbranched polymer substrates take on entirely differenttasks for the cosmetics and pharmaceutical industries, wherethey are used not only to stabilize and protect active ingredientsbut to control their release at the target location over a definedperiod of time.

The cosmetics industry offers enormous market potentialfor this function. Anti-aging is just one example. Consumersturn to these products to hide signs of aging, and advanced cos-metics research proves them right to do so. While cosmetic ac -tive ingredients such as vitamins, fruit acids, and plant extractscannot stop the aging process of the skin, they can slow it downby nurturing and protecting the skin, and soften wrinkles byhelping the skin to regenerate. But many cosmetic ingredientsare susceptible to environmental influences and become in -effective when exposed to ultraviolet radiation or oxygen, forexample, or when processed at high temperatures. So the activeingredients must be formulated in such a way that they becomeactive only when they come in contact with the skin. The mar-ket for these kinds of technologies has already exceeded € 100million.

“We are developing formulations that can be used to protectcosmetic active ingredients and release them selectively on theskin,” says Dr. Peter Lersch, head of the R&D department forCare Ingredients/Biotechnology in the Consumer SpecialtiesBusiness Unit. “Hyperbranched polymers open up highly attrac-tive possibilities for manufacturing multi-functional cosmeticssystems. Together with our Process Technology colleagues weare developing new products in this area.” To cite one example,Evonik is working on systems that can selectively release activeingredients through enzymatic degradation of a hyperbranchedpolymer substrate.

“For the pharmaceutical industry, the multi-functional hy -per branched polymers can also be used to develop active in -gredient formulations that are able to enter cells,” explainsDr. Norbert Windhab, responsible for strategic projects in thePharma Poly mers Business Line. “Through skillful selection offunctional groups, we at Evonik have succeeded in producinghyperbranched polymer substrates that transport both hydro-philic and hydrophobic active ingredients and additives. Thesekinds of trimodular aggregates could then be absorbed by cellsin the human intestinal tract and release the active ingredientthere.

To prevent the body’s immune system from rendering theminert, researchers have equipped the surfaces of these nanotrans-porters with “signal peptides.” When the signal peptides adhereto the appropriate receptors of intestinal cells, the path to the inte-rior of the cell is free for the particles containing the pharmaceu-tical active ingredient.

Jets are not allowed to take off when frost, snow, or ice has accumu-lated on the surface of the aircraft, particularly the wings, because itchanges the aero dy na mics. This is whycritical surfaces on the aircraft must be deiced in winter and protectedagainst fur ther ice formation with anti-icing fluids. Hyperbranched poly-mers can be used to adjust the rheo-logy of these fluids

Aerodynamics of aircraft wings

Unimpeded aerodynamics on the wing of an airplane (shown as a cross-section)

Ice, snow, and frost roughen the surface of the wings. This causes turbulence, which reduces lift

When the angles of attack are larger, as they are when an airplanestarts, powerful turbulent forces could cause the plane to stall. It would then be in danger of crashing

Lift Drag

Airflow

Lift Drag

Airflow

LiftDrag

Airflow



Material separation

Hyperbranched polymers are providing valuable assistance inthe area of separating chemical, multi-component mixtures.With their wide range of functional groups, hyperbranchedmolecules can separate systems by selectively interacting withspecific components. This can be used to separate azeotropicsystems through extractive distillation or liquid-liquid extrac -tion, or to separate gases through absorption. In this regard,low-viscosity, hydrolysis-stable hyperbranched polymers pos-sess enormous potential.

The key to success: crossing disciplines and the mindset of an engineer

The pioneering research and development in hyperbranchedpolymers is a great example of the way interdisciplinary team-work can accelerate the innovation process. Using hyper -branched polymers as an additive for anti-icing fluids, for exam-ple, requires expertise in the areas of fluid hydraulics, thermo-dynamics, rheology, polymer chemistry, and polymer processengineering – knowledge that cannot be found in just one disci-pline.

“Interdisciplinarity and close cooperation with the businessunits are vital for the newly established ‘Bringing Technology toMarket’ group in the Process Technology & Engineering Ser -vice Unit to live up to its name,” stresses Dr. Axel Kobus, direc-tor of the fluid processing department. “Our approach is to eval -

uate new business ideas with the mindset of an engineer andimplement them together with the business units to also pro -mote the development of topics such as hyperbranched poly-mers in the future.”

Bundling competencies and creating synergies is also thegoal of all six Areas of Competence at Evonik – cross-unit com-petence fields that represent over 80 percent of the markets inthe Chemicals Business Area, and combine expertise in future-oriented technologies. This structure allows Evonik systematiccontrol over the interplay of various skills in the innovation pro-cess, and opens up additional growth potential.

“Cross-project, interdisciplinary exchange among colleaguesis essential to the discussion and evaluation of new, innovativeideas,” says Dr. Manfred Stickler of the Innovation ManagementChemicals unit. “Evonik’s competence field days make a very im -portant contribution in this regard. At Evonik, hyperbranchedpolymers are handled within the ‘Designing with Poly mers’Area of Competence, and are a splendid example of how multipleapplications can arise from a single idea with in just a few years.” ●


DR. MATTHIAS SEILEREvonik IndustriesProcess Technology & EngineeringService Unit, Head of “Bringing Technology to Market”+49 6181 [email protected]

ANSPRECHPARTNER

The influence of different concentrations of various hyperbranched additives on the viscosity of a standard anti-icing formulation (blank). Additive 3, for example, increases viscosity signifi-cantly at concentrations as low as 0.01 percent by weight. This allows aircraft to stand at thegate for considerably longer periods of time before their surfaces ice up – an in valuable compe t -itive advan tage in an age of increased air travel and inevitable airport delays during winter

Experimental results

◆ Additive 1 ■ Additive 2 ▲ Additive 3 ● Additive 4

Viscosity [mPa · s]

2.5 · 104

2.0 · 104

1.5 · 104

1.0 · 104

0.5 · 104

0 0.01 0.02 0.03 0.04 0.060.05Additive concentration [wt %]

Blank

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▲

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■

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Dr. Paul DalbyBiocatalysis for chiral amino diols

With the biocatalytic process developed by Dr. Paul Dalby enzy-mes can be combined and customized for new tasks. This makesbiotechnology a more attractive approach to producing chemi-cals, and it can open up access to new medicines with the help ofeco-friendly and energy-efficient processes.

The new method allows certain enzyme properties to beidentified and customized through genetic engineering for spe-cial tasks. A number of substrates can be converted into chiralamino diols – a substance group particularly well-suited to fur -ther synthesis into pharmaceuticals, agricultural chemicals, andeven fine chemicals. The different variations are then screenedfor the desired properties in an automated process. Because ofthe focused approach, only 400 variations needed to be exa minedinstead of up to 10,000.

The project has resulted not only in innovative enzymes butin stable and scalable biocatalytic processes. The integrated ap -proach opens up, for example, new opportunities for time-criti-cal syntheses in medication development (pre-clinical phase).Potential users include the pharmaceutical, agricultural, andfine chemicals industries. The methodology can also be used toimprove processes in the microbiological rehabilitation of soil,in wastewater treatment, food production, and in medical dia-gnostics.

About 10 percent of chiral compound production today isbased on biocatalysis. For existing technologies, the entire mar-ket for 2009 is estimated to be about € 1 billion. With the newprocess, biocatalysis could surpass the 10-percent mark andcapture another percentage point of the market. This wouldmean additional sales of as much as € 30 million annually. Thebiotechnological process also makes chemical production moreattractive, and can be used to manufacture not only low-cost butentirely new medicines and substance groups. It is also a gentle,eco-friendly, and energy-efficient process.


r. Paul Dalby of University College London is thewinner of the 2008 Evonik European Science-to-Business Award, having impressed the internationaljury with a new biocatalytic route for the asymmetri-

cal synthesis of amino diols. Dalby accepted the award onNovember 12 in Berlin, at a ceremony attended by more than150 guests from goverment, business, and science. Three otherscientists made it to the final round: Dr. Thorsten Eggert andDr. Thomas Drepper for the development of marker proteinsthat emit light in the absence of oxygen, and Dr. ThoreRohwerder, whose research could make acrylic glass from sugara reality.

Intended for young scientists who conduct their research inEurope, the European Science-to-Business Award of EvonikIndustries aims to promote the conversion of scientific discov-er ies into marketable products. The €100,000 in prize moneyranks among the highest endowments of any research award. Inaddition, the winner receives management coaching at theUniversity of St. Gallen in Switzerland. The theme of this year'saward, which Evonik presented in cooperation with theUniversity of St. Gallen and the Financial Times Germany, is“white biotechnology.” Dr. Arend Oetker, president of theDonor’s Association for the Promotion of Sciences andHumanities in Germany, sponsored the award.

“We’re proud that young European researchers have takenpart in the competition and are delighted about the innovative,practical projects,“ said Dr. Alfred Oberholz, member of theExecutive Board of Evonik Industries AG. “This exciting workshows the immense future potential of white biotechnology.“Oberholz commented on one further important aspect, adding,”The projects are all on the threshold of marketability or havealready taken this step. They therefore meet an essential condi-tion of the Evonik Innovation Award: converting scientificinnovations into salable products – ‘science to business,’ just asthe name says.“

D

Biocatalysis for Chiral Amino DiolsDr. Paul Dalby wins € 100.000



Nominated: Dr. Thore RohwerderAcrylic glass from sugar

Dr. Thore Rohwerder, University of Duisburg-Essen, has discov -ered an enzyme that can help convert a branched-chain petro-chemical-based C4 body into a linear one. Built into a sugarmeta bolism, this enzyme can generate a precursor to MMA(methyl methacrylate – monomer for acrylic glass). Up to now,this precursor – 2-hydroxyisobutyrate (2-HIB) – could be pro -d uced only in a purely chemical process based on petrochemicalraw materials. With the new environmentally safer and moreefficient biosynthesis, the vision of manufacturing acrylic glassfrom sugar could become a reality.

In collaboration with Dr. Roland H. Müller from theHelmholtz Center for Environmental Research, Leipzig (Ger -many), Dr. Rohwerder has discovered, in a bacterial strain, anenzyme that serves as the basis for the biosynthesis of 2-HIB.With the help of this enzyme, a biotechnological productionprocess can be developed that can synthesize 2-HIB for use as aprecursor for MMA. This would make it feasible, for the firsttime, to produce acrylic glass in a biotechnological process onthe commercial scale – and, compared to the purely chemicalprocess, under gentler conditions and with minimal environ-mental impact in terms of waste and water consumption.

Conceivably, up to 10 percent of the current MMA demandcould be met through biotechnological processes over the medi-um to long term. Because the world market currently hovers atover 3 million metric tons or € 4 billion, sales of € 150 millionare possible in approximately ten years, and € 400 million there-after. It takes about four years to design a suitable bacterialsystem and a functioning laboratory process. The objective is tohave a pilot plant for the manufacture of several metric tons upand running in five years.

The new process will allow acrylic glass to be manufacturednot only from fossil but from renewable raw materials in the fu -ture. For industry, this means increased flexibility, since it can fallback on sugar or alcohol or similar raw materials for production.

Nominated: Dr.Thorsten Eggert, Dr.Thomas Drepper Marker Proteins as Fluorescent Reporters

Dr. Thorsten Eggert (left), Evocatal GmbH, and Dr. ThomasDrepper, Heinrich Heine University of Düsseldorf have develo-ped new an aerobic fluorescent proteins that make it possible toanalyze cellular processes, even in the absence of oxygen. Forthe first time, these fluorescent reporters, as it were, haveopened the door to observing oxygen-free processes moreclosely and can be used as probes to develop novel tumor agentsor investigate oxygen-limited environmental processes.

In research and diagnostics, fluorescent proteins are used ashighlighters in living cells. The ability to visualize these markerproteins provides an insight into the complex dynamic proces-ses at the cellular and molecular level in vivo. Until now, molecu-lar oxygen was absolutely essential for the fluorescence tooccur, so conventional fluorescent markers could not be used inanaerobic (oxygen-free) systems.

Eggert and Drepper have now developed proteins that alsofluoresce in the absence of oxygen. In bioindustry, for example,production and fermentation processes can thereby be moni -tored and optimized. In the environmental sector, these fluores-cent reporters can be used as biosensors, for example, for label -ing and localizing anaerobic bacteria that are able to break downpollutants. In biomedicine, it is possible to use the fluorescentmarkers to develop anaerobic microorganisms that can selec -tive ly attack cancer cells inside of human tumors.

Potential users include food and food additive companiesor consumer care companies, for example, in the oral and bodyhy giene segments. The pharmaceutical and biotechnology indus -try can use the fluorescent probes in research and development,too.

The fluorescent proteins available under the trademarkevoglow® are forming a new market segment. Conservative es ti -mates place the annual market value in Germany at € 250,000to € 500,000. Other relevant markets include other Europeancountries, as well as Asia and the United States.

The winner of the European Science-to-BusinessAward 2008 has been chosen



The surfaces inside a vehicle should look just as good afteryears of use as they did when they were new. With TEGOMER®

AntiScratch 100, experts from Evonik have developed an additive that imparts superior and long-lasting scratch resis tance to grained components made from polypropylene.

N E W A D D I T I V E F O R S C R A T C H - R E S I S T A N T P O L Y P R O P Y L E N E C O M P O U N D S

Anti-Aging Properties fKATHRIN LEHMANN, ANGELA NAWRACALA




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owadays, anyone who buys a car expects the interior of it to looknew even after years of use. A car with an instrument panel orcenter console that shows ugly scratches even when slightlybumped fails to meet this expectation. With each scratch, resale

value and customer satisfaction drops.Today’s driver also wants high-end appeal. Consequently, surfaces of

plastic components should not be sticky. Only a grained surface looksmatte, top-quality, and is inviting to touch. The desire for dark, grainedsurfaces is nearly universal, no matter what model, manufacturer, price, orcountry: Car buyers in India and Russia also like interiors with a first-classlook and feel.

Today, plastics make up 15 to 20 percent of a vehicle’s weight. From thebroad range of polymers available, polyamide (PA), acrylonitrile butadienestyrene copolymers (ABS), polycarbonate (PC), thermoplastic polyurethane(TPU), and polypropylene (PP) are the materials of choice. Several methodscan be used to make the surfaces of these materials scratch-resistant. Oneinvolves the use of high-quality plastics, such as polyamide or ABS, whichare relatively expensive. Another method is to apply a coating on the sur -face of the plastic part, but this is cost effective only for premium models.

When it comes to mid-range and small cars, every penny in savingscounts. This is why producers of these classes use low-cost polypropylene,which achieves the necessary strength with the addition of 12 to 20 per-cent talc as a filler (PP talc compounds). Worldwide, 2.5 million metric tonsof such compounds are processed annually and their importance is on therise. On the downside, talc-filled PP materials have a poor scratch resistancewhich is not just a purely optical criterion, but also helps to determine theperformance characteristics of a vehicle. Excellent scratch resistance isalso an important parameter in manufacturing: When components are as -sembled, the surfaces are often subject to greater mechanical stress than inday-to-day use.

Wanted: a durable and cost effective scratch-resistant polypropylene

Finding such a material has been a challenge for producers of plastic partsfor vehicle interiors and exteriors. Door handles, instrument panels, bum-pers, door trims, and center consoles must be not only light, mechanicallystable, and cost effective, but grained and as scratch-resistant as possible.

At first glance, ‘grained and scratch-resistant’ seems to be a contradic -tion in itself. Indeed, the one serious drawback of graining is that finger-nails, pens, or the sharp ends of car keys catch on the small structures of thegrain more easily than on smooth surfaces. This is why components with

s for Cars

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The pilot plant of the ConsumerSpecialties Business Unit has all theequipment necessary to conduct prac tice-oriented and reproducibletests for thermoplastic materials. In addition to the twin-screw extruder,pictured here, the equipment includes a single screw extrusion line, an in-jection mold ing machine, a two-roll mill, and various devices for measuringscratch resis tance and mechanical properties of compounds



Developers at Evonik use injection-molded flow spirals to determine the influence of additives on the flowproperties of compounds. This method is a suitable tool for convincingcustom ers that highly structured plastic parts are producible and thehigh through put does not create surface defects; particularly importantin the manufacture of door handles

In the five-finger scratch test, five steelneedles cut the surface of the plasticwith varying force. This helps to deter-mine how much force is required tovisibly damage the surface (right)

In the Erichsen test for determiningscratch resistance, a steel needle cuts afine checked pattern into the surface of the plastic at a defined force of be -tween 5 and 30 N (above)

As little as 2 to 3 percent TEGOMER®

AntiScratch 100 (above right) is enoughto make polypropylene scratch-resistant.Talc particles can be clearly seen on thesurface of the sample without additive(below left); the sample compoundedwith silicone oil (middle plate) shows aninhomogeneous surface caused by themigration of the oil to the surface



grained surfaces are easier to scratch. Additives are often usedto reduce this effect so that pointed objects slide more easilyover these structures.

To make talc-filled PP materials scratch resistant, additivessuch as am ides, silicone oils, and grafted polymers based onpolyolefins grafted with maleic anhydride are added. However,many of these additives are not permanent solutions. Long-termtests show that the substances have a relatively strong tendencyto fog. Sooner or later, the component will lose its scratch resis -tance. Moreover, many of the additives are not odorless, whichcan prove a source of irritation for the vehicle’s passengers.Migration is a problem for silicone oils and amides, which willform unattractive specks or shiny spots on the polymer surface.Grafted polymers and additive combinations migrate less, but asthey can cost as much as € 5–15/kg, they are quite expensive.They also ad verse ly affect the flow property of the compoundwhen it is injection molded.

A new additive from the Consumer Specialties Business Unitat Evonik promises a solution to the problem. TEGOMER® Anti -Scratch 100 is a cost-effective, organically modified siloxanethat displays none of the drawbacks of conventional additives. Ithas proven its capability in a series of comprehensive tests in thepi lot plant of the business unit, which contains all the equipmentne cessary to conduct practice-oriented and reproducible testsof PP materials: twin and single screw extruder, injection mold -ing machine, roller mill, and various equipment for measuringscratch resistance and mechanical properties.

While there are no DIN standards to determine scratch resis-tance, there is a series of tests now routinely used by automo bilemanufacturers and compounders. One of the most important ofthese is the Erichsen test, in which a steel needle with a 1-mm tipcuts a fine checked pattern into the plastic surface at a speed of1,000 mm per minute. The needle pressure can be set between5 N and 30 N, depending on the polymer. For the tests in thepilot plant, Evonik researchers varied the forces (5 N, 10 N), thefineness of the graining (K31, K09), the talc content (12 to 20percent), the particle size of the talc (1.5 to 20 μm), and thequantity of antiscratch additive (two to four percent) used.

The filler plays an important role in all scratch tests: Eachscratched line of the checked pattern makes small quantities ofthe talc visible – the scratches appear white. The deeper thescratches and the lower the scratch resistance, the greater thedifference in brightness between an unscratched, dark surfaceand the talc exposed after scratching. This difference is measuredas the Delta L value. The depth of the line is recorded microscop -ically by CLSM (confocal laser scanning microscopy), whichclearly reveals that PP materials with a high talc content (as muchas 40 percent) are particularly sensitive to scratching. Even theslightest scratch is obvious.

A variety of requirements for additives

New additives must meet a number of requirements. One ofthese is ensuring the short-term scratch resistance of the mate-rial, so the component is not damaged when it is handled by therobots during production. To this end, scratch resistance is mea-sured 24 hours after the sample has been injection molded. Butscratch resistance must also be guaranteed after years of use. Forlong-term testing, the component is exposed to temperatures of70 to 80 °C in a climate chamber for seven days. Additives shouldalso have a slip effect that gives the grain somewhat more sur -face slip. Not least, it should also display these properties in verydifferent polymers or compounds.

With TEGOMER® AntiScratch 100, the results on all thesepoints have been extremely encouraging. Thanks to the favor-able interaction between PP and siloxane, the siloxane additivedoes not migrate. During injection molding, the molecule ori-ents itself on the surface of the component but remains firmlyanchored in the polymer matrix by side chains. This is why com-ponents with TEGOMER® AntiScratch 100 are odorless and thescratch resistance is likely to last the entire lifetime of a compo-nent. Odor and migration are becoming more and more impor-tant as quality criteria. No customer wants to get into a car witha chemical smell.

High scratch resistance with as little as three percent of the new additive

Analyses have shown that the PP compound with three percentanti-scratch additive has a particularly small Delta L value inboth the short- and long-term test. A significant improvementover conventional additives is apparent even at a concentrationof just two percent. The organic modified siloxane ensures a verygood scratch resistance. The use of the additive is not limited toPP only: It will also display its full effect in materials made fromPA, PET, and ABS.

Just as important as effective and durable scratch resistance,easy handling of the additive is important for the customer, too.Liquid additives are hard to dose for compounders. Orga nicallymodified siloxanes are often liquid. Therefore, Evonik de vel -opers had to find a way to convert them to a solid. The solu -tion is a newly developed process that can be used to increase theconcentration of siloxane in PP compounds. The result isTEGOMER® AntiScratch 100, a product that can be dosed


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Because TEGOMER® AntiScratch 100 is firmly anchored in the polymer matrix of a component such as an instrument panel, it ensures long-lastingscratch resistance

Siloxane backbone

Anchorage groups

Polymer matrix (dashboard)

TEGOMER®

AntiScratch 100



easily and precisely. Due to its high siloxane content – up to 70percent siloxane in PP – a compounder only needs to dose asmall amount to achieve sufficient scratch resistance.

TEGOMER® AntiScratch 100 was introduced at the K 2007,the international trade fair for plastics and rubber, in Düssel -dorf. The market interest is strong because the additive showsbetter results than conventional systems and at the same time –compared with silicone oil or grafted polyolefins – it does notcreate additional costs.

Not least, the development of the new additive is an exampleof the change in our understanding of innovation. Today inno-vation means far more than just chemically modifying a mole-cule or changing a formulation. It calls for insight along the en -tire value-added chain. The development team at Evonik man -aged by focusing on the central practical concerns of plasticsmanufacturers to develop an attractive and workable solution:How do we get a solid, easy-to-handle product from a liquidadditive? What price will the market accept? What other techni-cally important polymers can benefit from the knowledge?

Highly promising market potential

The newly developed method which converts liquid siloxanesinto a solid, easy-to-dose additive is also attractive for other ap -pli cations. These include products with an especially high per-

KATHRIN LEHMANNBorn in 1967Kathrin Lehmann studied synthetic chemistry at theHumboldt University of Berlin. After working for a pig-ment manufacturer for five years, she moved to Degussain 1999, where she was responsible for the develop-ment of wetting and dispersing additives until April 2005.Today, she is head of technical ser vice and developmentfor additives in plastics and polymer applications in the Consumer Specialties Business Unit at Evonik. +49 201 173-2824 [email protected]

Scratch resistance of polypropylene, depending on the talc content and addi -tive technology used (Surface K 31, Erichsen 5 N and 10 N)

■■ 12% Talc, dL/10 N ■■ 20% Talc, dL/10 N ■■ dL/5 N

centage of fillers, such as water pipes with excellent mechanicalproperties and white agricultural films. The low percentage ofpolymer in the formulations means that additives have to be ef -fec tive at very small doses and so must be dosable at high con-centrations.

Clearly, TEGOMER® AntiScratch 100 opens up an array ofhighly promising markets in the entire area of thermoplasticpolymers. The potential for the new product in the area of PP talccompounds alone is about 1,000 metric tons per year across Eu -rope. Hinting strongly at future demand, vehicles whose grainedsurfaces are equipped with TEGOMER® AntiScratch 100 will beentered in the market as early as this year. About 2,000 me trictons of PP compound can be produced from the tonnage – orenough to manufacture at least 250,000 permanently scratch-resistant instrument panels. ●

Scratch resistance depending on talc used (Surface K 31, Erichsen 10N); d50 stands for the average particle diameter

■■ Without additive ■■ 3% TEGOMER® AntiScratch 100 ■■ 2% Silicon oil masterbatch ■■ 3% Grafted polymer

Delta L

The scratch resistance of polypropylene with different additive technologies(Surface K 31, Erichsen 10 N)

■■ Without additive ■■ 3% TEGOMER® AntiScratch 100 ■■ 3% Grafted polymer ■■ 2% Silicon oil masterbatch ■■ 0.5% Fatty amide

Delta L

Scratch depth and Delta L value of a sample without an additive (above) and asample with TEGOMER® AntiScratch 100

0.0 2.0 4.0 6.0 8.0 10.0

6.0

4.0

2.0

Supplier 1 Supplier 1 Supplier 1 Supplier 2 Supplier 2 Supplier 2 Supplier 3

3.0 μmd50 5.0 μm 2.0 μm 3.6 μm 1.4 μm 2.4 μm 2.0 μm0.0

8.0

2.0

6.0

0.0

4.0

60% PP/40% Talc, without additive

Scratch depth = 14 μm Delta L = 7.0

60% PP/40% Talc, 2 percent by weightTEGOMER®

AntiScratch 100

Scratch depth = 7 μm Delta L = 3.1

14 μm

7 μm

Without additive

3% TEGOMER® AntiScratch 1003% Grafted polymer

2% Silicon oil masterbatch

Without additive

3% TEGOMER® AntiScratch 1003% Grafted polymer

2% Silicon oil masterbatch

Delta L Delta L after 24 hours Delta L 1 week at 80 °C



“Nano and material technologies for the power generation of thefuture” were the focus of a symposium at the Hanau WolfgangIndustrial Park in September. Organized by the Hessen NanotechInitiative of the Hessen Ministry of Economics, this was the secondconference on the topic of NanoEnergy since a launch event was heldin June 2007. According to event organizers, it was time to take alook at what had been accomplished in research and developmentone year on.

Hessen Economic Minister Dr. Alois Rhiel clearly recognizes theimportance of nanotechnologies: “As key and interdisciplinary tech-nologies, they have the unique potential to pave the way for decisivetechnological breakthroughs in the energy sector,” said the ministerduring his welcome address to the roughly 170 participants fromindustry, science, and politics. The symposium that followed covereda broad spectrum of topics, ranging from overarching issues dealingwith energy policy, all the way to concrete problem-solving strate-gies based on nano and material technologies.

Prof. Christian Schönwiese stressed that the energy sector isdemanding innovative and, above all, fast solutions. Backed by factsand figures, the expert asserted that climate change is far more likelyto be caused by humans than natural forces, and concluded that car-bonaceous energy sources must be replaced and energy efficiency

news

+++ Nanotechnologies in power generation – intensive exchange at symposium

significantly increased. And not just for environmental, but for eco-nomic reasons: “Each metric ton of CO2 that is added to the atmo - sphere by human activity causes eighty-five U.S. dollars worth ofdamage,” said Schönwiese, citing former World Bank Chief Eco -nomist Nicolas Stern.

Practical solutions for greater energy efficiency

Dr. Wolfgang Luther of the VDI Technology Center explained hownanotechnologies can hold the key to efficient solutions. Nano tech -nology-based innovations can be used in all parts of the value-addedchain in the energy sector, from the opening up of primary energysources, through energy conversion, distribution, and storage, toenergy consumption.

A number of solutions came from Evonik Industries, which helpedorganize the event, along with Evonik subsidiary Industriepark Wolf -gang GmbH (IPW). For a long time, Evonik has worked not only tocontinuously boost energy efficiency in its own processes but tomanu facture products that help customers increase their own energyefficiency. One of the company’s goals is to make solar energy morecost-effective and, therefore, competitive. Dr. Claudius Neumannpresented the plastic materials research for photovoltaics from the

current Functional Films & Surfaces ProjectHouse, directed by Dr. Jochen Ackermann.“Our vision is a solar module that can bemanufactured in a roll-to-roll process withthe help of our film systems. In practice, then,it would be really easy to unwind a roll andflexibly mount it.”

Another field in which Evonik is active isenergy storage. Dr. Martin Schuster, em -ployee in the Lithium-Ion Technology unit atCreavis, presented the development status ofnew, powerful lithium-ion batteries used inhybrid and all-electric vehicles. These batte-ries are currently produced on a commercialscale by Li-Tec Battery GmbH, in whichEvonik has a stake. For these applica tions,Evonik developed the SEPARION® ceram icse pa rator, which significantly increases thesafety of large-format lithium-ion batteries,and owes many of its outstanding propertiesto nanoscale oxide materials.

Dr. Alois Rhiel, Economic Minister of Hessen



They develop synthetic metabolic path-ways for new products, expand the product range of bacteria by changingfermentation conditions, use raw mate rials such as methanol instead ofsugar to feed cells, develop biopro cesses,and transfer them to the commercialscale. For nearly two years, the roughly40 researchers of the BiotechnologyScience-to-Business Center at EvonikIndustries hve been working in closecooperation with the business and serviceunits and a large number of externalpartners to expand the company’s prod uct portfolio and ensure greater flexibili ty in the supply of raw materials.These activities are already starting to bear fruit.

io is a high priority at Evonik Industries. In the Con sum -er Specialties and Health & Nutrition Business Units,biotechnology already accounts for part of the existingbusiness. Amino acids, emollient esters, and cosmetic

active ingredients such as phytosphingosine are just a few of thesubstances they produce biotechnologically. For the productionof feed additives, the company is backed by a tradition of morethan 20 years. A recent highlight was a change in the raw mate-rials basis for pharmaceutical amino acids. Chemical hydrolyticprocesses based on animal raw materials are increasingly fallingfrom favor with customers, and are being replaced by biotech-nol ogical production processes based on renewable raw materi-als, especially sugar. In the case of the amino acids proline and va -line, for instance, the conversion has taken less than three years.This shows that biotechnological processes can be devel opedex tremely quickly under certain conditions and has streng th enedthe company’s trust in biotechnology as a key technology.

The Biotechnology Science-to-Business Center develops newbiotechnological production processes in close coopera tionwith the business units: The researchers design new bio logicalproduct syntheses and conduct feasibility studies. Four of theirprojects provide a good illustration of the results they have al -ready achieved: the biological synthesis of 3-hydroxyisobu tyricacid, a precursor of polymers; the synthesis of dihydroxy ace -tone, originally a by-product that became a valuable key prod uctthrough optimization of fermentation conditions; methanol as acarbon source for the purple-colored bacterium Methy lo -bacterium extorquens, whose biomass concentrations are si mi larto those of the established sugar-based production processes; anda bioprocess for the production of the pharmaceutical prod uctα-ketoglutarate.

A biological path to 3-hydroxyisobutyric acid as a building block for polymers

Evonik is a leading producer of polymers. To maintain its long-term competitiveness, Evonik is constantly researching im -proved and even groundbreaking new processes for the pro-duction of polymers. To this end, the company’s chemists iden-tified a possible class of precursors for polymer synthesis thatalso caught the imagination of biotechnologists: hydroxyisobu-tyric acid. This molecule can also be synthesized in various waysbiologically and then converted to polymers chemically – justthe same as 3-hydroxypropionate, which has long been dis -cussed in literature as a building block for a wide variety ofapplications in chemistry.1

With raw material prices on the rise and concerns over sus -tainability, other chemical companies have also recently begunconsidering manufacturing polymers from renewable rawmaterials. Some of them have already turned their plans intoreality. The Cargill company in the Midwestern United States,

W I T H M E T A B O L I C …

… Pathways to Sustainable Che mDR. HENRIKE GEBHARDT, DR. THOMAS HAAS, DR. ACHIM MARX, DR. STEFFEN SCHAFFER, DIPL. ING. ALEXANDER SCHRAVEN, DR. THOMAS TACKE

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for example, biotechnologically produces 140,000 metric tonsof polylactic acid per year from sugar. Since 2007, DuPont hasoperated a sugar-based bioprocess with a capacity of 50,000met ric tons per year for the production of 1,3-propandiol, astart ing material for a line of high-performance polymers.

Hydroxyisobutyric acid occurs in nature in two isomers:2- and 3-hydroxyisobutyric acid. In nature, hydroxyisobutyricacid is formed in the degradation of alcohols and amino acids,but it is not synthesized from sugar, which is the preferred start -ing material for industrial bioprocesses because of its availa bil -

ity and raw material costs. The first step for Evonik re searcherswas to hit their drafting tables and design synthetic – that is,made from vari ous building blocks – metabolic pathways for theproduction of both compounds from sugar. They then analyzedthese pathways for their suitability in a biotechnological processand for potential difficulties in practical implementation.

The biotechnologists tested a number of different biologicalsyntheses for 3-hydroxyisobutyric acid.2 At first, one of theseexisted only on paper – a kind of “dream reaction.” It in volvedconversion of methylmalonic acid, formed naturally from

he mistry

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bacteria through selective hydrogenation of one of the two acidgroups to 3-hydroxyisobutyric acid – an extremely expensivereaction by the chemical route, and one for which no enzymehas yet been found.

The key to success: selective activation of a dicarboxylic acid

They got the inspiration from their cooperation partner Prof.Georg Fuchs of the University of Freiburg. Part of Prof. Fuchs’work involves bacteria that come from hot sources (Fig. 1). Inone of his rare bacteria – Sulfolobus tokodaii – he found activat-ed malonic acid using an extremely sensitive measuring methodas an intermediate step. The advantage is that malonic acid isselectively activated by the enzyme malonyl-coenzyme A syn-thetase only on a carboxyl group as a thioester, and in a secondstep, further converted by a reductase to the aldehyde. This re -action sequence is part of a new bacterial metabolic path way forcarbon dioxide fixation discovered by Fuchs.3 This also explainsthe 100 percent selectivity of the malonyl-coenzyme A reduc-tase: Nature requires the activation of only a single carboxylgroup to manage the carbon dioxide fixation newly discoveredby Fuchs.

To obtain 3-hydroxyisobutyric acid from aldehyde, the alde-hyde group must then be reduced to the alcohol by an alcoholdehydrogenase. This is easy and requires no further activation,since the reaction is exergonic, meaning that it runs voluntarilyin the direction of alcohol formation. Obviously, then, biologyoffers a possibility for the selective hydrogenation and reduc -tion of activated malonic acid to aldehyde, and the subsequentconversion of the aldehyde to the alcohol.

Encouraged by the results of the Fuchs working group, theinterdisciplinary Evonik team composed of biologists, chemists,and engineers addressed the question of whether a similarmeth od could be applied to use the reductase to convert methyl-malonic acid, which differs from malonic acid by just one methylgroup. The answer was yes. The reaction works, and the Evonik

team has applied for a patent on the topic of synthetic metabolicpathways.4 The method, however, is still not achieving the kindof conversion rates typically required of a commercially viablebioprocess.

The researchers at the Science-to-Business Center are con-vinced, however, that this is only a matter of time. Indeed, theworking group of Dr. Ulrich Ermler at the renowned Max PlanckInstitute for Biophysics in Frankfurt – directed by Nobel Prizewinner Prof. Hartmut Michel – has now described the structureof the enzyme with a resolution of about two Ångström and meta key requirement for clarifying the non-specific conversion ofmethylmalonic acid in place of malonic acid.

The structure-function analysis, described here with reduc-tase as an example, is an important tool for metabolic engineer -ing. This method is just one of many, however, needed to estab -

Figure 2. Synthetic metabolic pathways are made up of a number of biocata -lysts . These biocatalysts (here, shown as Enzymes A, B, and C) and, therefore,the reactions catalyzed by them, do not occur in natural systems such as bac -teria, yeast, or other cells – hence the term “synthetic.” The genetic informationfor these biocatalysts (shown here as Genes A, B, and C), is extracted from va rious sources, combined in a test tube, and inserted into bacterial or yeastcells. These then form the corresponding biocatalysts and can convert the raw mate rial (here, corn, from which glucose, the usual raw material for bio-technological processes, is obtained) to the desired product. In addition to natural enzymes, enzymes whose properties (such as stability, activity, pH optimum, etc.) are selectively improved beforehand in a test tube are also used –a process called directed evolution. In addition to realizing the synthetic meta -bolic pathway, scientists usually have to suppress the native reactions of the hostcell (as depicted in the illustration of the host cell) in order to prevent the for -mation of undesired by-products, (here, labeled E and F). They may also have toremove negative feedback mechanisms, if needed (shown by the ex ample of the inhibition of the formation of the intermediate B through high concentra -tions of C), or increase the export of the desired product out of the cell

Figure 1. Thermophilic bacteria like Sulfolobus tokodaii are found in hot springs,such as those in the Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming



lish synthetic metabolic pathways successfully. Increasing theavailability of the substrate of the reductase reaction within thecell is also critical. In cooperation with Dr. Lothar Eggeling of theJülich Research Center and Prof. Rolf Müller of the University ofSaarland in Saarbrücken, the researchers of the BiotechnologyScience-to-Business Center examined such questions as wheth -er the concentration of the activated methylmalonic acid inCory nebacterium glutamicum can be increased within the cell.They demonstrated that this can be done by feeding the cell withpropionic acid as a supplement and selecting an intelligent pro-cess control. Figure 2 summarizes the subdisciplines of metabol icen gineering that are used to design synthetic metabolic path-ways.

Downstream processing affects the cost efficiency of the entire process

In addition to the biotechnological synthesis of products such as3-hydroxyisobutyric acid, the purification of this intermediateand the further processing to the target product also play animportant role in the total process efficiency. Downstream pro-cessing (DSP) is responsible for supplying intermediates andend products in a defined purity (Fig. 3).

Physico-chemical unit operations such as filtration (separa-tion of biomasses), extraction (isolation of the target productsfrom aqueous fermentation solutions), and distillation (isola -tion of the target products in high purity) are utilized to supplythe target product, if necessary, in a skillfull combination withother chemo-catalytic conversions. Only a seamless interactionbetween biology, chemistry, and process engineering can guar -antee the production of the desired product in a cost-effectiveand sustainable overall process. Innovative downstream pro -cess ing steps close the gaps between biology and chemistry.

As a consequence, special requirements have to be takeninto account with regard to downstream processing. TheBiotech nology Science-to-Business Center, for example, is wor-king on highly efficient processes that produce the target pro-

ducts with out the formation of unwanted by-products such asinorganic salts which are currently still state-of-the-art in com-mercial pro cesses. For the greatest possible flexibility withregard to raw ma te rials, processes that also allow biotechnologi-cally produced intermediates to be integrated into existing orfuture chemical processes are also very desirable.

In addition to high product yield, or in other words efficien-cy in raw material utilization, energy efficiency is also a high-priority for a state-of-the-art and sustainable overall process.This is the reason why one of our goals is the development ofenergy-efficient processes that exclude the expensive vapori -zation of the water to isolate the products from biotechnologi-cal processes. Evonik has already applied for a patent for such aprocess.

Bioglycerol: for greater independence in the supply of raw materials

Another task of the Biotechnology Science-to-Business Centeris ensuring the availability of raw materials. Glycerol, for exam-ple, flooded the market at the beginning of the biodiesel boombecause it occurs as a by-product of biodiesel production. As aresult, at prices below € 200 per metric ton, depending on thequality, glycerol was comparatively inexpensive, and the chem -ical industry developed a number of processes with glycerol asthe raw material. Evonik, for instance, has constructed a glycer -ol-based biotechnological process for α-ketoglutarate (see alsop. 31). But to avoid dependence on biodiesel production, thecom pany is developing an alternative manufacturing process.

Because glycerol can be easily produced through the chem -ical hydrogenation of dihydroxyacetone, researchers from theScience-to-Business Center looked for a bioprocess for dihy dro xy-acetone. Since Evonik has spent more than 20 years developingbioprocesses for the production of amino acids, they first lookedin their own backyard and identified dihydroxyacetone in lowconcentrations as a by-product of biotechnological L-lysine pro-duction with the bacterium Corynebacterium glutamicum.


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Figure 3. The figure shows an exampleof a bioprocess. Similar to a chemicalprocess, downstream pro cessing alsohas a big impact on the sustainabilityand cost efficiency of the process

Biomass

Fermentation broth

Water

Water and low boiling by-products

Residualmother liquid

Purification

Ultrafiltration

Evaporation

Crystallization

Product



To boost the concentration of dihydroxyacetone, the scien-tists had to reduce the delivery of certain nutrients. If the bac -teria “feel” a nutrient deficiency, but great quantities of sugar arestill flowing into the cell, it is likely that carbon skeletons arebeing discharged as an overflow. Under these conditions, C. glu-tamicum forms high concentrations of dihydroxyacetone fromsugar.

All key parameters of the fermentation were varied to in -crease the performance data. This is part of the standard reper-toire of the fermentation experts in the Biotechnology Science-to-Business Center. When the researchers changed the pH val -ue of the fermentation medium with Base A from X to Y, theconcentration of dihydroxyacetone increased by a factor of tento over 10 g per liter. When Base A was exchanged for Base B inthe case of pH Y, product formation improved to over 20 g perliter (Fig. 4). These results, now patent-pending, are im pressiveproof of how the concentration of a fermentation prod uct canbe increased through process optimization alone.

With the bioprocess for glycerol, Evonik can reduce depen-dence on biodiesel production and arm itself against a potentialrise in glycerol prices. Similar strategies will be used in the fu -ture to manufacture other products of synthetic metabolic path-ways in high concentrations – instead of speculating on short-term raw material opportunities, work will focus on an overallraw material portfolio.

Methanol as an alternative carbon source

Like the synthesis of 3-hydroxyisobutyric acid recently devel -oped by Evonik, almost all biotechnological processes are cur-rently based on sugar as the carbon source. To have an alter -native process on hand in the event of a rise in sugar prices,re search ers at the Biotechnology Science-to-Business Centerlooked for bacteria that can utilize methanol. Only bacteria that

are genetically accessible and can be optimized made it to theshort list. Since the idea is to build synthetic metabolic pathwaysinto bacteria, all the genetic information, including the genome,must be present, and genetic tools such as plasmides must be inplace.

Ultimately, Evonik selected the methylotrophic (that is, itutilizes methanol) purple-colored bacterium Methylobacteriumextorquens. Methylobacterium types can be found all over leafsurfaces (Fig. 5). Because of their special metabolism, thesemicroorganisms can use methanol produced by the plant andgenerated by pectin metabolism, and thereby live in competi -tion with various microorganisms for carbon and energy sources.

The working group of Prof. Georg Fuchs of the University ofFreiburg contributed to the research by characterizing the en -tire enzymology of the bacterium.5 Moreover, the work inggroup of Prof. Julia Vorholt at ETH Zurich studied this bacte -rium with the most advanced metabolome analyses – a methodthat supplies valuable information about the concentration ofthe most important chemical intermediates in the cell, and alsoabout the existing metabolic pathways and enzymes.6

While the engineering of synthetic metabolic pathways intoM. extorquens is still in its infancy, researchers were still able toachieve a breakthrough with the fermentation. The workinggroup of Dr. Jens Schrader of the Karl Winnacker Institute ofDECHEMA in Frankfurt, in close cooperation with Evonik re -searchers, improved a bioprocess to such an extent by optimiz -ing the fermentation conditions that the cell dry mass concen-tration of M. extorquens reached values of up to 60 g per liter(Fig. 6). This roughly corresponds to a cell wet mass concentra-tion of 300 g per liter, which is similar to the consistency of light-ly diluted apple sauce. The contents of the bioreactor have avivid purple color.

This work has laid a solid foundation for the developmentof biotechnological processes with this bacterium. As a result,

Figure 4. Fermentation of Corynebacterium glutamicum for the production ofdihydroxyacetone. By replacing Base A with Base B to set the pH value – whichwithholds the cell nutrients – and changing the pH value from X to Y, scientistswere able to increase the concentration of dihyroxyacetone significantly

■■ pH Y, Base B ■■ pH Y, Base A ■■ pH X, Base B ■■ pH X, Base A

Dihydroxyacetone concentration [g/l]

Figure 5. In nature, Methylobacterium extorquens, which utilizes methanol, is isolated by shamrocks, for example (courtesy of Dr. Jens Schrader and Prof. Julia Vorholt)

20

10

Fermentation time [h]0 5 10 20

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Evonik has cleared the first hurdle on the way to increased rawmaterial flexibility – for the company as well as for the custom -er. Chief among the company’s next steps is optimizing the prod-uct yield on the methanol substrate – a task it will take on assoon as a relevant synthetic metabolic pathway is selected forinsertion into M. extorquens. The researchers at the Biotechnol -ogy Science-to-Business Center are confident they will be ableto make significant advances in this area through directed andnon-directed metabolic engineering.

Glycerol as raw material for the pharmaceuticalproduct α-ketoglutarate

In another project, the researchers at the BiotechnologyScience-to-Business Center optimized a bioprocess for the pro -duction of α-ketoglutarate and adapted it to industrial produc -tion conditions. The keto acid α-ketoglutarate is an importantcom ponent of physiological infusion solutions.

Currently, Evonik manufactures α-ketoglutarate chemical-ly. Since researchers at the Biotechnology Science-to-BusinessCenter already converted the production of some amino acidsinto biotechnological processes successfully, they were encour -aged to check whether α-ketoglutarate, just like the amino acids,could be manufactured more cost effectively in a biotechno -l ogical process. First, they searched for an organism that pro -d uces the product in large quantities, since this is crucial for thesuccess of a biotechnological process.

They found such an organism in the working group ofDr. Roland A. Müller at the Helmholtz Centre for Environmen -tal Research in Leipzig, where scientists have worked for de -cades with the yeast Yarrowia lipolytica, which can be isolatedfrom certain types of cheese (Fig. 7). The last part of the name“lipolytica” (fat dissolving) indicates that this yeast consumesfats quite readily. Y. lipolytica can also utilize a lot of other


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Figure 6.The purple-colored Methylobacterium extorquens achieved biomass concentrations of 60 g cell dry mass and 300 g cell wet mass per liter – values similar to those of established sugar-basedproduction processes. In the future, scientists will be able to engineer synthetic metabolic pathwaysinto this host organism (courtesy of Dr. Jens Schrader )

Bio dry mass concentration [g/l]

THE AUTHORSAll of the authors are employees in the Biotechnology Science-to-Business Center at Evonik Industries, which is managed by the strategic research unit Creavis Technologies & Innovation, and headed by Dr. Thomas Haas. Dr. Henrike Gebhardt, biotechnologist, works primarily on the development of new bioprocesses and evaluates potential appli cations of bioproducts. The work of Dipl. Ing. Alexander Schraven is focused on the devel opment of intelligent downstream processing for bio-based pro cesses. Microbiologist Dr. Achim Marx is responsible for the FermentationArea of Competence. Dr. Steffen Schaffer, biologist, is responsible for the SyntheticMetabolic Pathways Area of Competence. Dr. Thomas Tacke, chemist, is responsible for the Bio Product &Process Development Area of Competence.

1 Werpy T., Petersen G., 2004. Top Value-Added Chemicals From Biomass, Vol. I,www.nrel.gov/docs/fy04osti/35523.pdf, accession 07.10.2008.2 WO 2007/141208, Marx A., Pötter M. et al., 2007. Microbial production of 3-hydroxyisobutyric acid.3 Alber B., Olinger M., Rieder A., Kockelkorn D., Jobst B., Hügler M., Fuchs G., 2006. Malonyl-coenzyme A reductase in the modified 3-hydroxypropionate cycle for autotrophic carbonfixation in archaeal Metallo sphaera and Sulfolobus spp..J. Bacteriol. 188: 8551–8559. 4 DE 10 2006 025 821. Fuchs G., Alber B., Marx A., 2007. Ein Enzym zur Herstellung von Methylmalo nat semi al dehyd oder Malonatsemialdehyd.5 Erb T.J., Berg I.A., Brecht V., Müller M., Fuchs G., Alber B. E.,2007. Synthesis of C5-dicarboxylic acids from C2-units involvingcrotonyl-CoA carboxylase/reductase: the ethylmalonyl-CoApathway. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 104: 10631–10636.6 Kiefer P., Portais J.C., Vorholt J.A., 2008. Quantitative meta-bolome analysis using liquid chromatography-high-resolutionmass spectrometry. Anal. Biochem. 382: 94–100.7 DD267999 Weißbrodt E., Barth G. et al., 1989. Verfahren zurHerstellung von 2-Oxoglutarsäure durch Hefen.

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Figure 7. The yeast Yarrowia lipolytica, which among other organic acids pro duces α-ketoglutarate, can be isolated from Camembert cheese. The lastpart of the name lipolytica, which means “fat dissolving,” indicates that this yeast con sumes fat quite readily (courtesy of Prof. Gerold Barth)

DR. ACHIM MARX+49 2365 [email protected]

CONTACT

carbon sources and naturally forms large quantities of organicacids, including α-keto glutarate. The working group of R.A. Mül-ler has demonstrated that the biotechnological production ofα-ke toglutarate is generally possible with this yeast7, but thecorresponding fermentation process is based on alkanes ob -tained from crude oil.

Evonik looked for a more cost-effective carbon source andchose glycerol, which is formed as a by-product in the pro -duc tion of biodiesel. With this carbon source, the yeast firstprod uced only small concentrations of α-ketoglutarate. To -gether with the Helmholtz Centre, the Evonik researchersvaried the composition of the fermentation medium and thecultivation conditions in the bioreactor until they identifiedideal condi tions for the yeast cells to produce α-ketoglutarate.

Within one year, they had increased the final concentrationof α-ketoglutarate in the fermentation medium by a factor of ten(Fig. 8). They also shortened the process time and reduced thepercentage of by-products. Finally, the fermentation team at theBiotechnology Science-to-Business Center adapted the opti -mized fermentation to commercial production conditions,which the collaboration partner then tested in its pilot plant.

Thus, by close collaboration between the Science-to-Business Center and the Helmholtz Centre, the process for bio-technological α-ketoglutarate production which had initiallybeen tested in the R.A. Müller working group was optimized interms of product formation and transferred to the industrial en -vironment at Evonik. The result was a new biotechnologicallymanufactured product to expand the Evonik portfolio.

From these few examples – which are designed for themedium and long term, as are nearly all developments of theBiotechnology Science-to-Business Center – the potential thatbiotechnology offers Evonik is clear. It helps expand the productportfolio, allows the manufacture of products that cannot bemade with fossil raw materials and/or chemical catalysis, andincreases raw material flexibility, not only for the company butfor customers. With the Biotechnology Science-to-BusinessCenter, Evonik has accepted the challenge and intends to consis -tently leverage the opportunities generated by biotechnology.The work of the Biotechnology Science-to-Business Center isfinancially supported by the German Federal Ministry of Edu -cation and Research and the Federal Ministry of Food, Agri -culture and Consumer Protection. Funding is also provided bythe state of North Rhine-Westphalia and is co-financed by theEuropean Union. ●

Figure 8. Through continuous optimization of fermentation conditions, the researchers at the Science-to-Business Center were able to increase thefinal concentration of α-ketoglutarate (AKG) in fermentation broth by a factor of ten within one year. The concentration in percentage is based onthe maximum value obtained

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news

+++ Propylene oxide: successful commissioning of first ever HPPO plant

The Korean company SKC of Seoul has started up in Ulsan theworld’s first ever commercial-scale plant for production of propyleneoxide by the HPPO process. The plant has an annual capacity of100,000 metric tons. Evonik Industries, Essen (Germany), and Uhde,Dortmund (Germany), who jointly developed the HPPO process,have licensed it to SKC. Using a catalyst developed by Evonik, theprocess produces propylene oxide from propylene and hydrogenperoxide (H2O2). The joint venture Evonik Headwaters supplies theH2O2 in Ulsan directly “over the fence” to the HPPO plant.

New market for hydrogen peroxideThe commissioning brings Evonik a big step closer to its strategic goalof providing hydrogen peroxide in large quantities for chemical pro-cesses such as the HPPO process. The company expects this firstcommercial-scale application of hydrogen peroxide in the chemicalsynthesis of propylene oxide to result in annual growth of the H2O2market by 200,000 metric tons over the next ten years. Dr. KlausEngel, member of the Executive Board of Evonik responsible for theChemicals Business Area, and Helmut Knauthe, member of theExecutive Board of Uhde, are agreed that the production facility inKorea is now a reference point for the construction of further plantsusing the HPPO process. With an annual capacity exceeding600,000 metric tons, Evonik is the world’s second largest producerof hydrogen peroxide, which has so far been used mainly in paper and

pulp bleaching. The annual worldwide requirement for these classi-cal applications exceeds three million metric tons.

Propylene oxide for AsiaSKC supplies propylene oxide produced by the HPPO process to themarkets of Korea and its neighboring countries. The Asian market,with a volume of about two million metric tons, is currently growingat about seven percent per year. Propylene oxide is a chemical withabove average sales growth of five percent worldwide; the annualrequirement exceeds six million metric tons. Propylene oxide is usedmainly for production of polyurethane precursors. Polyurethanesthem selves are processed into, for example, cushioning for car seatsand upholstered furniture.

The advantages of the HPPO process lie in a significantly lowerinvestment volume, resulting in higher profitability than with theconventional production process for propylene oxide. Moreover, theprocess is extremely environmentally friendly: The yield is high and,apart from water, no by-products are formed in any appreciablequan tity. “With environmental regulations becoming increasinglymore stringent, the by-product-free HPPO process is the process ofthe future,” says Helmut Knauthe. Engel adds: “We at Evonik believethat, with our excellent technological position and our HPPO processexpertise, we will benefit most strongly from the growth of thehydrogen peroxide market.”

SKC’s HPPO plant in Ulsan (Korea)


Evonik Industries is building a plant to manufacture sodium meth ylateat its site in Mobile (Alabama, USA). The groundbreaking took placeat the end of July. Designed for a capacity of 60,000 metric tons, thenew alkoxide plant is scheduled to commence operation in early2009, and will serve customers in the entire NAFTA region. Al k -oxides are required as catalysts in biodiesel production. The Chem -icals Business Area of Evonik is already the world market leader inspecialty catalysts for this application.

With this new facility, Evonik is continuing its strategy of consoli-dating its activities in markets in which the company already holds lead-ing positions and expects long-term growth. Against the backdrop ofthe intense debate over climate protection, the biodiesel market is pre-dicted to experience significant double-digit growth. This is par tic -ularly true of the United States, but also of the South American mar-ket. To meet this demand, Evonik is planning to commence operationof another production plant for alkoxides in Brazil in 2010 that will sup-ply the entire South American continent. “For biodiesel, Brazil is themost attractive market in South America, and is therefore an obvioussite for the production of biodiesel,” explains Dr. Thomas Haeberle,head of the Industrial Chemicals Business Unit at Evonik Industries.

Biodiesel is produced from natural oils such as rapeseed or soy.The Evonik catalyst, which is a ready-for-use mixture of sodium meth -ylate and methanol, is used to produce fatty acid methyl esters, or bio-diesel, through the transesterification of these oils. The advantages ofthe Evonik catalyst are its high yields and the purity of the by-product

+++ Capacities expanded for biodiesel catalyst at Mobile site

glycerol, which is highly marketable in the pharmaceuticals, cosme-tics, and food industries.

Biodiesel is part of a closed circuit. Each kilogram of CO2 emittedinto the atmosphere during combustion was previously removedfrom the air by the plant through photosynthesis. One metric ton ofbiodiesel compensates for approximately 2.5 metric tons of CO2.With biofuels, hydrocarbon emissions are 20 to 40 percent lowerthan with normal diesel. The lubricating properties of biodiesel arealso superior to those of fossil diesel, which requires additives. Bio -diesel comes naturally equipped with these properties, and is sulfur-free.

Biodiesel from JatrophaProduction of biodiesel from these first-generation raw materials,however, has come under fire because rapeseed and sunflowers arealso food products. The fear is that the use of oil-bearing seeds forbio diesel applications will drive up food prices.

But science has already found an answer to this problem: a new,second generation of raw materials such as jatropha curcas, alsoknown as physic nut. This plant is a member of the Spurge family offlowering plants and was once used for such applications as laxatives.It is not a food, and will even grow under desert-like conditions – out-standing properties that could make use of land in certain hot climatesthat would otherwise lie uncultivated. It also does not compete withfood crops.


Evonik Degussa GmbH, Essen (Germany), has granted an exclu sivelicense to Solvias AG, Basel (Switzerland), to develop, manufacture,and market the catASium® and cataCXium® ligand product lines.Evonik, a leading supplier of catalytic system solutions, re mains ac tivein homogenous catalysis as manufacturer and vendor of catMETium®

catalysts for metathesis reactions. Solvias is one of the most capableexcellence centers for homogeneous catalysis and High ThroughputScreening (HTS). “We developed catASium® and cataCXium® in

+++ Homogeneous catalysis: Evonik has granted exclusive license to Solvias

record time and successfully introduced it to the market,” said Dr. Jür -gen Krauter, the head of marketing in the Catalysts Business Line ofEvonik. “We are pleased to pass on these activities to a highly compe-tent partner such as Solvias, who will further advance these technol -ogies.” catASium® is a product line of chiral ligands for asymmetrichy drogenations that consists of highly variable chiral ligands and theirassociated Rh complexes. cataCXium® is a line of CX coupling li gandswith proven success in solving industrial CX coupling problems.

+++ Hydrogen peroxide production in South Africa to be expanded

Evonik Industries is significantly expanding the capacity of the hydro-gen peroxide plant at its Umbogintwini site in South Africa. “In thefirst half of 2009, we expect a 50 percent capacity increase to 15,000metric tons,” announced Thomas Rieche, head of Evonik’s ActiveOxygens Business Line. The expansion is intended to secure marketleadership in South Africa and meet the steadily increasing demandfor hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). Evonik is investing about € 3 millionin the expansion of the production facilities.

Evonik Industries has been active in South Africa for over thirtyyears, and producing H2O2 during the last eight years for the Africanmarket in Umbogintwini, near Durban. The pulp and paper industry

in particular, which is the company’s largest customer in South Africa,has announced that its requirements are increasing. Hydrogen per-oxide is used here as an eco-friendly bleaching agent for pulp. Othercustomers include the chemical companies and the textile industry.

With an annual capacity exceeding 600,000 metric tons, Evonik’sIndustrial Chemicals Business Unit is the world’s second-largest pro-ducer of the eco-friendly bleaching and oxidizing agent hydrogenperoxide. This is used mainly in paper and pulp bleaching, and someproducers have recently begun using it in the synthesis of propyleneoxide. Evonik produces H2O2 in Germany, Belgium, Italy, Austria,the U.S., Canada, Brazil, Korea, New Zealand, and South Africa.



news

Future scenario: biodiesel from algae oilTo uncover more alternatives for the production of biodiesel, scien-tists are also studying the manufacture of biodiesel from algae oil. Ifscience can find a suitable process for extracting sufficient oil fromalgae, it will pose a solution to some of our current problems. Theadvantage of algae is that it is relatively simple to cultivate in largequantities. There are already large algae farms all over the world thatprimarily serve the cosmetics and food industries. In order to grow,algae needs light and – most interestingly – CO2, which it converts byphotosynthesis into biomass such as algae oil and oxygen. Severalresearch teams worldwide are currently searching for suitable pro-cesses for obtaining algae oil efficiently. One possible scenario iscoupling the cultivation of algae with the flue gas systems of powerplants that emit CO2.

It is hard to predict how long it will take before research finds anefficient process. It is clear, however, that the discovery of jatrophahas already created great potential for the efficient, environmentallycompatible, and socially responsible production of biodiesel.

Jatropha: a next-generation raw material for biodiesel

+++ A quantum leap in MMA technology: AVENEER

Under the name AVENEER, Evonik Industries has developed a new,pioneering manufacturing process for methyl methacrylate (MMA).The industrial company thus provides an answer to the question ofhow future methyl methacrylate monomers and polymers can remaincompetitive.

“AVENEER represents a quantum leap in MMA technol ogy. Withthis process, we are further expanding our position as an innovativetrendsetter in methyl methacrylate chemistry. We can there by en suresupplies for our customers in this high-demand market,” statesGregor Hetzke, head of the Performance Polymers Busi ness Unit. Inaddition to the site currently under construction in Shang hai withsignificantly further developed C4 MMA technology, a significanttechnological advance could also be achieved now in the classic ACHsulfur process.

Thanks to significantly improved efficiency in the use of raw mate-rials and energy with regard to all established MMA processes, Evonikviews itself as a future cost leader with the new process in this field.

Like the traditional ACH sulfur process, AVENEER is based on thestarting materials ammonia, methane, acetone, and methanol – with-out the additional use of sulfuric acid. The omission of the reprocessingof sulfuric acid, which has now become unnecessary, both saves costsand conserves resources. “We use fewer raw materials for manufac -turing, and can thus offer our customers the security of continuing todrive competitive MMA prices in the future,” explains Hetzke.

In addition, the new technology is distinguished by its regional andtechnological flexibility: On the one hand, it can be conducted in gene-ral at typical chemical plants around the world; on the other, it allowsexisting Evonik plants to be reequipped.

“This option presents interesting strategic possibilities to us withthe opening of our first world-scale plant,” adds Hetzke. Evonik hasalready proven the feasibility of the new process in test production. Inaddition to further optimizations, the planning of the first large-scaletechnical plant will begin in the next few months. It could be commis-sioned in 2012, according to the current state of planning.


Credits

Published byEvonik Degussa GmbHInnovation Management ChemicalsRellinghauser Strasse 1–1145128 EssenGermany

Scientific Advisory BoardDr. Norbert FinkeEvonik Degussa GmbHInnovation Management [email protected]

Editor in ChiefDr. Karin Assmann Evonik Services GmbHEditorial [email protected]

Contribution EditorsDr. Angelika Fallert-MüllerChrista FriedlDr. Rolf FroböseDr. Ute HeinemannWalter Klöters

DesignMichael Stahl, Munich (Germany)

PhotosEvonik IndustriesDirk BannertKarsten BootmannDieter DeboDr. Bernd Hannebauer (AQura GmbH)Stefan WildhirtCorbis (p. 6)Digitalstock (p. 28)Getty Images (p. 35)

Printed byMediahaus Biering GmbHMunich (Germany)

Reproduction only with permissionof the editorial office

01/28 – 01/30/20094th International Symposium on Separation and Characterization of Natural and SyntheticMacromoleculesAMSTERDAM (THE NETHERLANDS)www.ordibo.be/scm

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06/08 –06/10/2009Annual Reaction EngineeringMeetingWÜRZBURG (GERMANY)www.processnet.org/reakt09

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03/11– 03/13/200942nd Annual Meeting of German Catalysis ExpertsWEIMAR (GERMANY)www.processnet.org/katalytiker09

03/31– 04/02/2009European Coatings ShowNUREMBERG (GERMANY)www.european-coatings-show.com/de

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elements 25, Issue 4 | 2008 - Evonik

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