Bioeconomy

Article - 10/07/2010

WEE-Solve GmbH – removing troublemakers

The purification and fractionation of polymers using innovative methods is of huge importance in many areas, including pharmacy and cosmetics. This is due to the fact that some polymers can only exert their full effect after fractionation. WEE-Solve GmbH offers innovative methods and scientific experience in polymer fractionation and rheology.

Article - 03/07/2010

"Biodegradability needs to have an additional benefit"

Dr. Michael Thielen had worked in the plastics industry for many years before he entered the realms of journalism in 2006 the year in which he created the Bioplastics Magazine the only worldwide journal that focuses exclusively on bioplastics. In an interview with Christoph Bächtle Thielen spoke about polylactide biodegradability the properties of bioplastics and their role in comparison with traditional petrol-based plastics.

Press release - 30/05/2010

Loss-free plastics production from plant oil

At present plastics are produced from crude oil or gas. The research group of Professor Dr. Stefan Mecking chair of chemical materials sciences at the University of Constance has found a way to produce plastics from plant oil a regenerative resource.

Press release - 24/05/2010

University of Stuttgart – biopolymers as construction material of the future?

The Institute of Building Structures and Structural Design (ITKE) at the University of Stuttgart is investigating whether it is possible to replace traditional plastics in the building industry with natural fibre-reinforced biopolymers. As part of the project, which is being funded by the Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt, the ITKE researchers are working with the Nimbus Group to develop transparent lightweight building boards from biopolymers with…

Article - 03/05/2010

In order to innovate, we must come down from the ivory tower

At talks given at the recent Biotechnology Days in Berlin representatives of a number of different BMBF-funded clusters showed that numerous strategies to enable the industrial production of biopolymers and biomaterials from resources other than oil are now available.

Article - 10/04/2010

“We need to tap alternative energy sources”

Prof. Dr. Christoph Wittmann from the TU Braunschweig is a partner in the BiopolymersBiomaterials cluster. He is developing mathematical models of metabolic processes to optimise microorganisms for use in biotechnology. In an interview with Christoph Bächtle Wittmann talks about systems biology drawing-board organisms biobased plastics and biotechnologys capacity to complement existing large-scale methods.

Press release - 01/03/2010

fischer group of companies – innovation in plastics technology

The fischer group of companies is treading an innovative path in the field of plastics technology. The new biopolyamide plug has the same values as the tried and tested product made of conventional nylon and it also takes the technology a step further towards sustainable fixing systems. The close cooperation between the cluster partners is what makes such developments possible.

Article - 14/12/2009

Marvel GmbH – ecological materials with a sophisticated design

Marvel GmbH, based in Bad Teinach, has set itself the goal of combining innovative materials with sophisticated design and where safety, fire protection and acoustic properties go hand in hand with attractiveness, high-quality design and sustainability. The company uses its own innovative biomaterial called “Marvel Bioresin”.

Article - 30/11/2009

well ausstellungssystem GmbH – promoting the use of sustainable wooden materials

Hanover-based well Ausstellungssystem GmbH sells environmentally-friendly wooden materials for furniture and booth construction, interior and product design and promotes its new wooden sheeting kraftplex® for use in high-tech innovations. Wellboard, the wooden composite in waves, is already being used in theatres, shop windows and museums.

Article - 12/10/2009

Brückner – Global market leader in film stretching technology

Brückner Maschinenbau has been doing pioneering work in film stretching technology for around 50 years. With a market share of over 50%, Brückner is the worldwide leader in this area. About 600 Brückner lines are used all over the world. All the major international film producers in Europe, USA, Latin America, the Middle East and Asia appear in the company’s customer list.

Article - 24/09/2009

Bacteria to produce bioplastics

Polyhydroxyalkanoates are storage substances produced and stored by many cells plants and bacteria only in times when they lack lack important nutrients. A particular property of these plastics-related biopolymers is that their composition and hence their material properties can be regulated by the fermentation process.

Dossier - 18/09/2009

From plants to plastics

In these times of changing climate sustainable thinking and the growing desire to become less dependent on crude oil the interest in biobased plastics is growing. Biobased plastics can be either entirely or partially produced from renewable resources using biotechnological methods.

Article - 01/09/2009

POLYFEA – a strong partner in compostable plastics

The company POLYFEA Polymer- und Produktentwicklung, based in the southern Black Forest (Germany), offers consulting for and contract development of polymer-based materials and products. Using the biodegradable material system CAPROWAX P, the company has successfully developed an innovative product.

Article - 01/07/2009

KIT - Competence in bioprocess engineering

The purification of microbially produced substances such as proteins and polysaccharides and their separation from or release from within the cell are complex tasks in the field of biotechnology. The Bioprocess Engineering department of the Institute of Process Engineering in the Life Sciences TH deals with the development of integrated bioprocesses and is also involved in the separation of biopolymers.

Article - 30/04/2009

Biopolymers/Biomaterials Cluster partners awarded two prizes

At the recent Hanover Trade Fair several partners in the BiopolymersBiomaterials Cluster were awarded prizes. A project group which includes scientists from BASF SE and Daimler AG were awarded the Prize for Innovative Material Applications from the VDI Society for Materials Engineering. The bio-based ARBOFORM plastic of TECNARO GmbH of Ilsfeld-Auenstein was awarded the Industry Award from the Huber Verlag für Neue Medien.

Article - 27/04/2009

Takata-Petri focuses on human safety

The dream that one day there will be zero victims due to traffic accidents was the reason the company Takata was initially set up. Takata has been focusing on saving human lives for over 75 years. The company is no longer exclusively active in safety technology but it now also develops plastics from renewable resources as the basis for the future production of own products. This it does in cooperation with other partners from research and…

Article - 22/04/2009

Nylon from the biotank

The project Bio-based polyamides through fermentation undertaken by members of the BiopolymersBiomaterials Cluster started in early 2009 and has the goal of using biotechnological methods to produce materials as the basis for polyamides with new properties.

Article - 05/04/2009

JOTEC – artificial blood vessel specialist

JOTEC GmbH a medical device company based in Hechingen has a broad range of solutions on offer for the therapy of vascular diseases including artificial blood vessels and stentgrafts and is an international leader in this field. The company not only produces traditional vascular grafts from high-quality plastics but also absorbable bioartificial vascular grafts and cell-coated grafts made from biomaterials. Such an approach is currently unique in…

Article - 04/02/2009

“Fermentative production of succinic acid” project on the way

Succinic acid could well become an important raw material for the plastics industry if it is possible to produce the acid biotechnologically and cost-effectively. A research project focusing on the biotechnological production of succinic acid under the leadership of BASF SE has now been granted funding by the German Ministry of Education and Research.

Article - 14/01/2009

GEHR Kunststoffwerk – new applications for bioplastics

GEHR Kunststoffwerk GmbH & Co. KG, founded in 1932 and owned by the Gehr family ever since, is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of semi-finished thermoplastics. The company’s headquarters are in Mannheim.

Press release - 16/12/2008

The Biopolymers / Biomaterials Cluster

BIOPRO Baden-Württemberg GmbH’s Biopolymers/Biomaterials Cluster was one of five clusters to come out top in the German BioIndustrie Competition in 2007. The BMBF will provide a total of 10 million euros in funding for the implementation of the proposal from 2007 to 2021.

Cells are like factories only smaller Tiny machines assemble large proteins from very small molecules. But where do the machines come from? Researchers at the University of Würzburg have now found an answer to this question.

Press release - 14/10/2008

ARBOCAR project to develop natural materials for cars

Seven BiopolymersBiomaterials Cluster partners from industry and research are joining forces to develop a new natural material based on lignin a natural material found predominantly in wood.

Press release - 13/10/2008

Nature as chemical factory

The fact that petrol is becoming more and more expensive has a knock-on effect on the chemical industry. At Biotechnica 2008 Fraunhofer researchers showed how chemical products can be produced from rape whey and crab shells.

Prof. Dr. Harald Krug a toxicologist who runs the Materials-Biology Interaction division at Empa - Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Testing and Research in St. Gallen Switzerland and his team are investigating the interactions of synthetic materials with biological systems. The team of 25 researchers is focusing in particular on the effect of particles and nanomaterials such as CNT on human and animal cells. The division has been an…