Pecologix Political Ecology Blotter

In Minnesota, TetraKO, maker of a cornstarch based fire suppressant, reports that Technology Council of the International Association of Fire Chiefs have published a white paper on their product. Based on two days of testing, the fire knockdown tests demonstrated that TetraKO yielded a significant advantage over water and foam.TetraKO is also the first fire [...]

# 2. Monomers Produced by Bacteria for Polymerization * Hydroxyalkanoic Acids * d- and l-Lactic Acid * Succinic Acid * 1,4-Butanediol * 1,3-Propanediol * Bioethylene * Biopropylene * Bioethylene Glycol and Bioaromatic Monomers for Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) and Its Mimics # 3. Technologies for Polymerization of the Bio-Monomers * 3.1. Polymers Produced Completely by Biosynthesis [...]

We present a solid-acid catalyzed one-pot method for the selective conversion of solid hemicellulose without its separation from other lignocellulosic components, such as cellulose and lignin. The reactions were carried out in aqueous and biphasic media to yield xylose, arabinose, and furfural. To overcome the drawbacks posed by mineral acid methods in converting hemicelllulose, we [...]

An energy and greenhouse gas (GHG) balance study was performed on the production of the bioplastic polyethylene furandicarboxylate (PEF) starting from corn based fructose…With an annual market size of approximately 15 million metric tonnes (Mt) of PET bottles produced worldwide, the complete bottle substitution of PEF for PET would allow us to save between 440 [...]

Glycerol carbonate is one the glycerol derivatives which attracts attention for industrial applications. This review compares strategies for its synthesis, and their analyses lead to the conclusion that (indirect) procedures starting from glycerol- and/or CO2-derivatives are the most attractive. These are described and compared, taking criteria of industrial feasibility into account. As a result, the [...]

In its monolayer form, graphene is a one-atom-thick two-dimensional material with excellent electrical, mechanical, and thermal properties. Large-scale production of high-quality graphene is attracting an increasing amount of attention. Chemical vapor and solid deposition methods have been developed to grow graphene from organic gases or solid carbon sources. Most of the carbon sources used were [...]

A potential strategy for tackling the negative environmental impact of conventional plastics is to produce them from renewable resources. However, such a strategy needs to be assessed quantitatively, by life cycle assessment (LCA) for example.This screening LCA is intended to identify key aspects that influence the environmental impact of sugarcane low-density polyethylene (LDPE) and compare [...]