Speaker: Professor Matthew Davidson, Bath Institute of Sustainability and Climate Change
Reducing reliance on fossil carbon is central to the concepts of sustainable development and material stewardship. Whereas decarbonization of the energy sector is feasible through the development of renewable energy, the chemicals sector needs carbon as a building block. The lasting and growing demand for this embedded carbon, especially for production of polymers, must be met in the future through utilization of renewable feedstocks such as biomass, CO2 and recycling of carbon-containing waste. In this context, the transition from fossil to renewable polymers provides a major challenge. Advances in renewable polymers will be exemplified through case studies of two of the most promising bio-based platforms for plastics: lactic acid (LA) and hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF).
This talk is part of the Institute for Energy and Environmental Flows (IEEF) series.
Bread and Cheese lunch available after the talk