{"id":70097,"date":"2019-08-22T07:22:02","date_gmt":"2019-08-22T05:22:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/?p=70097"},"modified":"2019-12-26T13:43:31","modified_gmt":"2019-12-26T12:43:31","slug":"launch-of-bio-based-cyrene-to-replace-toxic-solvents","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/launch-of-bio-based-cyrene-to-replace-toxic-solvents\/","title":{"rendered":"Launch of bio-based Cyrene to replace toxic solvents"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"image_newsitem-small\"Researchers from Green Chemistry Centre of Excellence (GCCE)<\/a>\u00a0and Circa Sustainable Chemicals UK, two partners of GREEN-CHEM,\u00a0developed a new and safer bio-based solvent named \u2018Cyrene\u2019 which is produced in two steps from renewable cellulose obtained from plantation softwood sawdust, resulting in a significantly lower environmental footprint than traditionally used solvents.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The GCCE researchers working with \u00a0Circa staff showed in several experiments that Cyrene can successfully be employed as a solvent in common synthetic chemistry reactions and in graphene processing in place of two frequently used but toxic solvents, dimethylformamide (DMF) and N-methylpyrrolidone (NMP). \u201cCyrene is a response to soaring demand for safer, greener alternatives to DMF and NMP\u201d says Jeff Eaves, General Manager of Circa Sustainable Chemicals Ltd.<\/p>\n

Non-toxic and eco-friendly<\/h3>\n

The novel bio-based solvent \u2018Cyrene\u2019 can meet the demand for safer alternatives for certain hazardous solvents. Jeff Eaves: \u201cCyrene has an acute toxicity ten times lower than the caffeine that most of us ingests with our coffee or tea at breakfast.\u201d Cyrene is not mutagenic, unlike DMF, it does not sensitize the skin, it is completely biodegradable and is not toxic to any of the microorganisms in receiving waters or aerobic waste water treatment plants.<\/p>\n

Broadly used<\/h3>\n

Solvents are involved in the production of many everyday products. Worldwide, more than 20 million tons of solvents are used every year for the manufacturing and processing of pharmaceuticals, food, plastics and many chemical products. Solvents are the major ingredient in paints, cosmetics, coatings and home cleaning products. However, the majority of these solvents are a possible risk for human health and\/or the environment. \u201cAs the use of certain hazardous solvents becomes untenable, there is an urgent need to replace them with safer substitutes\u201d says Jeff Eaves.<\/p>\n

Sustainable Solvent Selection Service<\/h3>\n

Under European regulations (REACH) and other global legislation, the use of certain solvents in formulations, cleaning applications, and chemical manufacturing is being restricted.<\/p>\n

Therefore, the Sustainable Solvent Selection Service, or \u2018S4\u2019, was developed by the GCCE. S4 offers advice and scientific expertise regarding solvents, solvent use and replacing hazardous solvents, and promotes bio-based and sustainable products. \u201cWe want to develop new bespoke solvents according to the specific application required\u201d explains Professor James Clark, Director of the GCCE.<\/p>\n

Switch to renewable resources<\/h3>\n

We are facing several global challenges, such as depleting fossil resources, increased demand for energy and chemical products and global warming. In this respect, more sustainable and green chemistry is crucial and can be partly achieved by using more sustainable, renewable and biodegradable materials. \u201cCyrene complies with these future requirements, as it is made from renewable cellulose and it is bio-degradable\u201d states Jeff Eaves.<\/p>\n

Commercialization<\/h3>\n

Circa will now focus on the commercial opportunities for Cyrene. That is why they are bringing on stream a 50 ton\/year plant to produce Cyrene in Tasmania together with joint-venture partner Norske-Skog. Plans are underway for a fully commercial scale plant. REACH Annex VII has been achieved for Cyrene and work is progressing for Annex VIII which they expect to achieve in the first half of 2018.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe launch of Cyrene is only a first step in the replacement of hazardous solvents with safer and more sustainable substitutes. We aim for a greener future with a substantial amount of bio-based solvents\u201d, concludes Professor James Clark.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Researchers from Green Chemistry Centre of Excellence (GCCE)\u00a0and Circa Sustainable Chemicals UK, two partners of GREEN-CHEM,\u00a0developed a new and safer bio-based solvent named \u2018Cyrene\u2019 which is produced in two steps from renewable cellulose obtained from plantation softwood sawdust, resulting in a significantly lower environmental footprint than traditionally used solvents. The GCCE researchers working with \u00a0Circa […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":59,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","nova_meta_subtitle":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5572],"tags":[6162,10408,12390],"supplier":[13469,10192,1315],"class_list":["post-70097","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bio-based","tag-cellulose","tag-greenchemistry","tag-solvents","supplier-circa-group","supplier-ghent-university","supplier-university-of-york-uk"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70097","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/59"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=70097"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70097\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=70097"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=70097"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=70097"},{"taxonomy":"supplier","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/supplier?post=70097"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}