Decarbonising the Surfactant and Functional Polymer Value Chains by enzymatic processes

通过酶法使表面活性剂和功能聚合物价值链脱碳

• 批准号: BB/Y003292/1
• 负责人: Alex Conradie
• 金额: $ 444.08万
• 依托单位: University College London
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Research Grant
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2023 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=BB%2FY003292%2F1
• 关键词: Decarbonising; Surfactant; Functional; Polymer; Value

As the UK aligns with a global market place outside of the European Union, the UK needs to forge ahead through its world-leading capabilities in science, engineering and technology. Invention and innovation have been a bedrock of Britain's global presence and a key driver of productivity. Exemplifying a history of economic competitiveness, the UK has long held a significant capability in surfactant and functional polymer technology. The purpose of this proposal is to maintain and extend the UK's technical and manufacturing leadership in this sector. In 1883, Unilever pioneered Sunlight Soap; it was innovative and had a purpose: to popularise cleanliness and bring it within reach of ordinary people. Since then, Unilever now has over 400 brands and the company remains driven by purpose. The use of fossil-derived feedstocks and a linear manufacturing paradigm has exacerbated climate change, shifting the future needs of the manufacturing landscape. Remaining competitive in a global setting requires renewed investment into the multi-disciplinary expertise that defines British innovation. This PP is an exemplification of Unilever's transition away from fossil-derived chemicals in product formulations, exploring innovative ways of reducing the carbon footprint of some of the world's biggest cleaning and laundry brands. As a key component of Unilever's Clean Future vision, Unilever expects this programme to markedly contribute to reducing the carbon footprint of product formulations by up to 20%. As such, Unilever aims to contribute globally to UN Sustainable Development Goals such as Sustainable Industrialisation and Climate Action by reducing the carbon intensity of both the manufacture and product life cycle associated with cleaning and laundry products worldwide. The manufacture of surfactants and functional polymers from renewable feedstocks through the transformative power of sustainable engineering science, represents an unrivalled opportunity to decarbonise this value chain though UK technology leadership spanning the global stage.The vision of this Prosperity Partnership (PP) is to achieve appreciable decarbonisation of the surfactant and functional polymer value chain, aligning the current linear (take-make-waste) manufacturing paradigm to greater resource circularity. In common with many materials derived from fossil reserve feedstocks, surfactants and functional polymers have multi-kilogram CO2eq emissions per kilogram of surfactant/polymer associated with manufacturing; depending on feedstock, process technology and location. Against this life cycle assessment (LCA) backdrop, the global scale of surfactant production is 1.5 - 2 million tonnes per year, necessitating action to reduce these carbon emissions globally. This proposal's far-reaching vision integrates both CO2 and process circularity into a comprehensive new paradigm for surfactant and functional polymer manufacturing, aiming to reduce global warming potential by an order of magnitude. Three work packages (WP) fill the knowledge gaps that exist within the proposed circular economy. Overarchingly, the PP aims to establish a techno-economically feasible circular economy with highly favourable life cycle assessment (LCA) outcomes, mitigating climate change through sustainable industrialisation. WP1 entails the redesign of key surfactants and functional polymers in cleaning and laundry products used worldwide. WP2 aims to enhance the techno-economic footing of rhamnolipid bio-surfactants, whilst WP3 looks towards a hybrid bio-refinery for the production of drop-in surfactants from renewable feedstocks. These UK advances in surfactant/polymer technol-ogy will have both national and global deployment capability, representing a first in class demonstration of decarbonisation through resource circularity in the bulk chemicals sector, framing and catalysing knowledge exchange towards net zero in 2050.

随着英国与欧盟以外的全球市场接轨，英国需要通过其在科学、工程和技术方面的世界领先能力向前迈进。发明和创新一直是英国全球影响力的基石，也是生产力的关键驱动力。作为经济竞争力历史的例证，英国长期以来在表面活性剂和功能性聚合物技术方面拥有强大的能力。这项提议的目的是保持和扩大英国在该领域的技术和制造业领导地位。1883年，联合利华率先推出了阳光香皂；它是一种创新，有一个目的：普及清洁，让普通人能够接触到清洁。从那时起，联合利华现在拥有400多个品牌，该公司仍然以目标为动力。化石原料和线性制造模式的使用加剧了气候变化，改变了制造业的未来需求。要在全球环境中保持竞争力，就需要对定义英国创新的多学科专业知识进行新的投资。这项PP是联合利华在产品配方中摆脱化石衍生化学物质的例证，探索了减少一些全球最大清洁和洗衣品牌的碳足迹的创新方法。作为联合利华清洁未来愿景的关键组成部分，联合利华预计这一计划将显著减少产品配方的碳足迹高达20%。因此，联合利华的目标是在全球范围内通过降低与清洁和洗衣产品相关的制造和产品生命周期的碳强度，在全球范围内为可持续工业化和气候行动等联合国可持续发展目标做出贡献。通过可持续工程科学的变革力量，从可再生原料中生产表面活性剂和功能聚合物，是通过英国在全球舞台上的技术领先地位来实现这一价值链脱碳的无与伦比的机会。这一繁荣伙伴关系(PP)的愿景是实现表面活性剂和功能聚合物价值链的显著脱碳，使目前的线性(即制造废物)制造模式与更大的资源循环保持一致。与许多来自化石储备原料的材料一样，表面活性剂和功能聚合物在制造过程中每公斤表面活性剂/聚合物的二氧化碳当量排放量为几千克，这取决于原料、加工技术和地点。在这种生命周期评估(LCA)的背景下，全球表面活性剂的生产规模为每年150-200万吨，需要采取行动在全球范围内减少这些碳排放。这项提议的深远愿景将二氧化碳和工艺循环性整合到表面活性剂和功能性聚合物制造的全面新范式中，旨在将全球变暖潜力降低一个数量级。三个工作包(WP)填补了拟议的循环经济中存在的知识空白。总体而言，PP的目标是建立一个技术经济上可行的循环经济，具有高度有利的生命周期评估(LCA)结果，通过可持续的工业化来缓解气候变化。WP1要求重新设计全球使用的清洁和洗涤产品中的关键表面活性剂和功能聚合物。WP2旨在加强鼠李糖脂生物表面活性剂的技术经济基础，而WP3则着眼于一种混合生物精炼厂，用于从可再生原料中生产插入式表面活性剂。这些英国在表面活性剂/聚合物技术方面的进展将具有国家和全球部署能力，代表着通过散装化学品部门的资源循环实现脱碳的一流示范，框架和催化知识交流将在2050年实现净零。