UKRI Interdisciplinary Centre for Circular Chemical Economy

2016年，英国化工行业的年营业额超过320亿英镑，创造了99000个直接就业岗位。该中心的愿景是将英国的化学工业转变为不依赖化石、对气候有利、对环境友好的循环化学经济。我们项目的整体新颖之处在于，通过创造烯烃的循环资源流（占所有有机化学品生产的70%），开发了一个具有深度循环干预的全行业解决方案。我们的整个系统方法将包括生产、运输/分销、炼油/下游、使用和废物回收等关键部门，以减少对化石燃料的依赖，提高整个过程工业的生产率和可持续性。该中心将建立一个跨学科的平台，结合科学/工程方面的协同创新与社会科学家，以了解整个系统，工业共生和市场/政策/激励设计。核心研究计划围绕三个相互关联的主题进行组织：(1)利用替代/回收废物流生产烯烃的关键技术，并通过先进的催化过程设计更多可重复使用的化学品；(2)流程整合、全系统分析和价值链评价；(3)政策、社会和金融。通过对供应链上的技术解决方案进行详细的过程建模、经济分析和环境评估，将加速理解、机会和最佳解决方案，以实现烯烃衍生资源流的循环。这些活动涉及所有受影响群体的利益相关者，包括当地中小企业和下游用户，并将为政策制定者提供证据和数据。该中心将通过社会研究和有组织的活动与用户接触，并利用创新技术开发与化学系统相关的消费者/商业行为改变，从而实现可持续发展的社区和社会。

The UK chemical sector has an annual turnover of over £32 billion with 99,000 direct jobs in 2016. The Centre's vision is to transform the UK's chemical industry into a fossil-independent, climate-positive and environmentally-friendly circular chemical economy. The overall novelty of our programme is the development of a sector-wide solution with deep circularity interventions, by creating a circular resources flow of olefin-the raw material for 70% of all organic chemical production. Our whole system approach will include key sectors of production, transportation/distribution, refinery/downstream, use and waste recycling, to reduce fossil reliance and improve productivity and sustainability of the whole process industry.The Centre will generate a cross-disciplinary platform combining synergistic innovations in science/engineering with social scientists to comprehend the whole system industrial symbiosis and market/policy/incentive design. The Core Research Programme is organised around three interconnected themes: (1) Key technologies to enable olefin production from alternative/recycling wastes streams and design more reusable chemicals via advanced catalytic processes; (2) Process integration, whole system analysis and value chain evaluation, and (3) Policy, society and finance. Through detailed process modelling, economic analysis and environmental assessment of technology solutions along the supply chain, accelerated understanding, opportunities and optimum solutions to achieve circularity of olefin-derived resources flow will be attained. These activities are embedded with stakeholders involving all affected groups, including local SMEs and downstream users, and will provide evidence and data for policymakers.The Centre will engage with users through social studies and organised events, and exploit consumer/business behavioural change related to chemical systems enabling a sustainable community and society with innovative technologies.