Biobased Acrylic Acid
The Future of Green Plastics, Coatings and Adhesives
Acrylic Acid is a commodity chemical which has been historically made from petroleum, but can now be made from bio-mass. It is used in a wide variety of commercial and consumer products, such as acrylic paints, coatings, adhesives, textiles, and hygienic products, such as disposable diapers, detergents, and water treatment chemicals.
The U.S. acrylic acid market is 2.7 billion pounds per annum
KSE is developing a technology which can convert crude glycerol into acrylic acid. The steady increase in domestic biodiesel production has led to an oversupply of glycerol; the primary byproduct of biodiesel manufacture.
A novel "oxydehydration" process for Acrylic Acid manufacture:
- UV light and a photocatalyst convert crude glycerol to acrolein (Dehydration)
- In the same reactor Acrolein is oxidized to form Acrylic Acid (Oxidation)
- The key attribute of the KSE technology is the bifunctional property of the photocatalyst to both dehydrate and oxidize in a single reaction vessel.
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The technology to manufacture Acrylic Acid combines KSE’s core competency and patent position in:
- Photocatalysts and processes for oxidation of organic molecules at high activity.
- Processes for dehydration of organic molecules at high selectivity.
- Polymer chemistry for conversion of Acrylic Acid into useful commercial end products.