Braskem and FAPESP to invest in research on renewable polymers

05-Jun-09

In a bid to reinforce its pioneering work in the development of green polymers, Braskem plans to invest R$ 8,25 mln in the expansion of researches on green propylene for the production of polypropylene (PP) based on 100% renewable raw material. Braskem produced the first green polypropylene of the world in 2008, certified as from 100% renewable origin. The investment is planned for application in the next three years through Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (Fapesp), which holds 50% of the project. The plant, with annual capacity to produce 200,000 tons is planned for start up in Q4-2010, and the commercial operations in early 2011. Besides the environmental aspects, the utilization of green polyethylene offers an additional advantage: its application characteristics and properties are identical to those of the traditional plastic, which allows transformation industries to use their current facilities to process the resin of renewable source. The concept of green polyethylene sustainability is linked with its ability to capture and fix CO2 from the atmosphere. Each produced kilo of Green PE captures around 2.5 kg of CO2.