Genomatica Develops Method to Replace Oil in Plastic-Making Process
Genomatica, a San Diego-based sustainable chemical company, announced today that it has developed a process to make an important component of plastic without the use of petrochemicals.
The chemical, 1,4-butanediol (BDO), has an annual production value of over $4 billion in the automotive, textile, and consumer goods industries.
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Company scientists genetically engineered E. Coli bacteria to digest sugar and produce BDO. Genomatica’s announcement is a huge development for the plastics industry—currently, BDO is only produced using non-renewable petrochemical feedstocks based entirely on oil and natural gas.
Genomatica is still putting the final touches on their microorganism, but the company expects it to be cost-competitive with petrochemical-based BDO within a year. It will remain competitive even if oil drops to $50 a barrel.
Even if sugar prices rise, Genomatica has a plan to remain cost-competitive, as scientists could easily change their production process to use a cheaper feedstock within a 3 to 6 month span.
The company, which has already raised $24 million, expects to have a pilot plant running by the end of 2009.
As someone who has long been concerned about the impact that peak oil will have on plastic production, I’m heartened to see progress made in this field. If we can move away entirely from using petroleum in plastics, we will be able to wean ourselves off oil much more easily.
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You can make plastic out of HEMP!
And it won’t kill you!
Go ask Henry Ford.
This is a truly groundbreaking moment. This is the first time scientists have genetically engineered an organism to produce a RECREATIONAL DRUG!
1,4-butanediol is a GHB prodrug - it’s quickly converted by the human body into gamma-hydroxybutyrate. It has indistinguishable subjective effects.
That sucks. Now everyone will start planting sugar cane instead of food and humans will all starve. But hey, at least we won’t be dependent on foreign oil.
now the question is:
How much petrol is required to refine/produce sugars?
they need to do something. Its gettting ridiculous.
Jiff
http://www.datools.net.tc
Hold on a sec… E. coli genetically mutated? Does anybody else have concerns once this is in major production? Maybe I’m jumping a bit, but there’s no “we’ve rendered it harmless to humans” bits in there…
If they have, great, I’d love to invest.
If this helps us conserve oil for applications than require its potency more such as aviation then that’s a good thing.
However, if it allows us to carry on using plastics as we do, it may make things worse. We also need to be looking for ways to make recyclable or biodegradable plastics so that they don’t go to landfill or end up floating around in the oceans.
HempHero is right about hemp, which is more easily grown than sugar cane but has been banned by interested legislators who owned petroleum companies or shares from them.
It is important to consider the effects that the increase of demand on sugar would have on the environment through cultivation. There will be 2 instant reactions from South America: those making money from sugar cane cultivation will rejoice, and the others will think of their forests being devastated, causing desertification in many areas.
It is, however, probably, other coma, all in all, much better than the use of petroleum. I’m just saying there are maybe other even better options.
Food industry will definitely complain, but my say is they will have to suck it up…
While Wilkinson is correct in saying 1,4 butanediol is a prodrug for GHB, they do not have indistinguishable effects. 1,4 as well as GBL have GABAgeric effects of their own, as well as periphery effects.
Still very interesting
Hemp is legally grow in Canada, and as soon as we can get real free trade working we are going to swamp the U.S.A. with high grade Hemp and Hemp products in exchange for smaller American cars, as long as you price them closer to current Korean and Chinese imports. We can sell Hemp to you for less than your current supplier, Communist China, because we don’t have as far to ship it. Most of us use Microsoft products because they are not Communist, and we expect you to take preference for our Hemp for the same reason. We are not Communists, we are socially responsible democrats, a new concept for the U.S.A., and probably a welcome one, now that you have government bail-outs keeping things going - a sort of socially responsible democratic move for a previously totally Capitalistic system, so now that we don’t look so bad, with our “Medicare’ and all, buy out product, make plastic from it, you’ll like it!