Improved material strength and production process for a low carbon synthetic leather produced from brewers' spent grain

这项应用的重点是开发可持续生产的皮革替代品。我们今天消费的皮革是与动物农业相关的一系列碳密集型步骤的净结果，包括动物饲养、皮革收获、制革和加工。除了对动物福利产生明显的影响外，一种可持续的皮革替代品消除了对动物农业的需求，将对气候变化做出重大贡献。申请者Arda Biomaterals是一家最近成立的公司，该公司正在将令人兴奋的研究商业化，该研究表明，从啤酒酿造产生的废粮中生产合成革是可能的-啤酒酿造的副产品通常用作低价值的动物饲料。这实际上是从现有的无处不在的工业过程中提取废物(即啤酒酿造商的废谷物)，省略了动物生长阶段，并生产出了合成革。由于省略了动物生长阶段，这种合成革的碳足迹估计只有传统皮革的0.3%。ARDA生物材料公司可以通过铸造生产少量这种合成革，但这种材料缺乏传统皮革的强度和韧性。阿尔达正在寻求快速启动创新资金，以使该业务能够试验使用桶热挤压仪器作为一种生产手段和一种强化材料的方法。如果企业能够以这种方式加强合成革并扩大规模，以生产更多的材料，阿尔达已经有啤酒供应商和时尚客户等待成为这种新材料供应链的一部分。所附资金申请集中在一项可行性研究和测试计划上，以证明与生态成本最高的传统替代品相比，合成革的等价性。

This application is focused on the development of a sustainably produced leather alternative. The leather we consume today is the net result of a long chain of carbon intensive steps associated with animal agriculture, including animal rearing, leather harvesting, tanning, and processing. A sustainable leather alternative that removes the need for animal agriculture would make a significant contribution to climate change in addition to having a clear impact on animal welfare.The applicants, Arda Biomaterials, are a recently formed company that is commercialising exciting research that has shown that it is possible to produce synthetic leather from the waste grain produced from beer brewing --- a by-product that is typically used as low value animal feed. This in effect takes a waste material from an existing and ubiquitous industrial process (i.e. the brewer's spent grain), omits the 'growing of the animal stage' and produces a synthetic leather. By omitting the animal growth phase this synthetic leather is estimated to have only 0.3% of the carbon footprint than conventional leathers have.Arda Biomaterials can produce small quantities of this synthetic leather in sheets via casting, but the material lacks the strength and toughness of conventional leather. Arda is seeking Fast Start Innovation funding to enable the business to experiment with using barrel heated extrusion instruments as a means of production and as a method for strengthening the material. If the business is able to strengthen the synthetic leather in this way and scale for greater material production, Arda already has brewery suppliers and fashion customers waiting to be part of the supply chain for this new material.The enclosed funding application is focused on a programme of feasibility studies and testing needed to demonstrate the equivalence of the synthetic leather compared to the most ecologically costly conventional alternative.