AROUND - Alternative ROUtes for Sustainable Diamines in the Circular Economy

 

Background

The use of renewable resources in industrial production processes unlocks significant potential for achieving a climate-neutral society. The CO₂ footprint of products can be significantly reduced through innovative bio-based production routes by lowering emissions associated with raw materials and intermediate products and enabling a circular bio-economy.

In the ecological evaluation of new approaches, it is important to always include the entire product life cycle. This avoids simply shifting emissions into the upstream product supply chain and thus allows consideration of the total actual CO₂ emissions associated with the production of a product. An established systematic methodology for a holistic analysis and evaluation of the environmental impacts of products and processes is Life Cycle Assessment (LCA).

 

Goal

The AROUND project investigates the production of novel diamines from renewable resources for technical applications. Diamines are an important chemical raw material for the production of high-quality insulation materials, coatings and adhesives. The developed diamines are not so-called drop-ins for existing petrochemical diamines, but rather novel building blocks that might enable new and/or improved properties in the application areas due to their new chemical structure.

The focus of the Chair of Technical Thermodynamics' work is on the ecological analysis and evaluation of selected innovative production routes through LCA. The holistic ecological assessment can thus capture the actual CO₂ saving potential at an early stage.

The results enable decisions on the continuation of work, which could include the transfer of the identified routes to pilot and eventually production plants. The AROUND project thus contributes to the path towards sustainable chemistry based on a circular bio-economy.