Mater-Biotech - the first world industrial plant for the production of bio-butanediol from renewable sources

Mater-Biotech plant
Type of organisation or company
Country
Italy
City
Bottrighe (RO - Veneto Region)
Language for original content
Project elaborated in partnership
Yes
Scope
Submitted by
ICESP
Ongoing
Yes
Type of funding
ICESP - Italian Circular Economy Stakeholder Platform
Description

Inaugurated in 2016, Mater-Biotech is the first world industrial plant for the production of 1.4 bio-butanediol (BDO) directly from sugars, paving the way for the production of new chemical intermediates from renewable sources.

Mater-Biotech is the result of the reconversion of a decommissioned site that Novamont acquired in 2012, in a logic of territorial regeneration and enhancement of previous skills and expertise. The plant was designed to reuse the by-products for its energy needs, thus optimizing the life cycle of the entire process.

The 1.4 BDO produced by Mater-Biotech is used as a fundamental building block for the production of Mater-Bi, Novamont’s family of completely biodegradable and compostable bioplastics.

Main results

Mater-Biotech enables the production of the fourth generation of Mater-Bi, with an even higher content of renewable raw materials and a reduced level of both dependence on fossil raw materials and greenhouse gas emissions.

  • The Mater-Biotech plant employs around 80 people and indirectly around 40 people.
  • Approximately 40% of the plant is completely new, while the remaining 60% is the existing plant which has undergone major restructuring.
  • Energy efficiency solutions have been adopted such as the use of inverters, IE3 high efficiency motors and LED lighting where possible.
  • A cogeneration plant and the exploitation of by-products through the installation of a biodigester for the production of biogas, allows the company to reduce CO2 emissions by around 16,000 tons / year.