Biomass Roadmap
In this blog, we continue elaborating on the previous one where we unfolded the key role biomass plays in the decarbonisation of the chemical industry.
The roadmap for the chemical industry to achieve net zero emissions is in fact composed of different sub-elements, such us the use of biomass als alternative feedstock. These elements present their own dynamics within their own value chains. Therefore for the total sum of elements to reach the ultimate goal, if we use the simile of gears to visualize the process, all the gears must anchor together and move at similar pace. And here is where synchronization of plans becomes crucial, and THE roadmap has to embed the same narrative included in the roadmaps of the sub-elements that participate in the equation to achieve results, specially if they have been drafted earlier. The best way to ensure cohesiveness is to include the same actors, and stakeholders in the creative process of all the interrelated plans, ensuring synergies and integration as much as possible.
A good example of this layered process is how intentionally the Road to Bio Strategy (2019), which is the Roadmap for the Chemical Industry in Europe towards a Bioeconomy, is built. It is designed to describe the actions needed from all stakeholders to incentivise the use of bio-based feedstocks and intermediates in the chemicals industry between now and 2030.
The renewable share of the EU chemical industry’s raw material use was around 10% in 2015.
Nearly 70% of the renewable or bio-based raw materials are from vegetable oils (18%) and animal fats (7%), sugar and starch (20%), and bioethanol (21%). Other important bio-based raw materials in use are natural rubber (15%), chemical pulp (6%), and glycerol (6%).
Roadmap for the Chemical Industry in Europe towards a Bioeconomy
Next, we give a flavour of how the RoadToBio looks at the industry. In its scope, the chemical industry is divided in nine product groups, which are adhesives, agrochemicals, cosmetics, lubricants, man-made fibres, paints/coatings, plastics/polymers, solvents, and surfactants. It aims to deliver a set of key messages and actions for each of the nine product groups to achieve the overarching objectives. Plastics/polymers comprise the largest volume of chemicals/products among the nine product groups in the EU. However, the share of bio-based is around 2% for plastics/polymers. On the other hand, bio-based share is higher in lower volume product groups such as surfactants (31%) and paints and coatings (19%).
So, what is stopping such a globalized and competitive industry to increase the bio-based share in each and every product groups?
The answer to the question is the existence of different barriers, from competition with the stablished fossil industry, regulatory hurdles and access to feedstock, to name a few. The competition with the food chain and increasing feed demand is the most obvious and argued one, I would say. On the other hand, the incetives are a recurrent topic. Within industrial processes, incentives exist to utilise the biomass for bioenergy purposes, while no similar incentives are available for biomass utilisation for chemicals, materials or products. It is clear though that for each and every barrier, in every product group, or granularity level, actions must be taken in order to pave the way and increase the usage of sustainable biomass in the chemical industry.
