SusChem Flanders helps celebrate Solvay anniversary

SusChem Flanders and the Flanders Strategic Initiative for Sustainable Chemistry (FISCH) will be helping to celebrate 40 years of industrial activities by Solvay in Antwerp at the end of September.

Solvay is holding a three-day event on ‘Sustainability and Innovation at its facility at Lillo in the Antwerp port area. As part of this event SusChem Flanders/ FISCH is hosting an afternoon meeting on 24 September in collaboration with the Flemish Government and essenscia flanders. SusChem Flanders was launched in April this year.

The two themes of the meeting are ‘cluster intensification’ and ‘sustainable development’ in the Antwerp harbour region.

At the meeting Christiane Malcorps and Jean-Marc Chamberland of Solvay will discuss the importance of FISCH/SusChem Flanders to Solvay and the chemical cluster in Antwerp and Flemish Innovation Minister Ingrid Lieten will address how innovation and support policies can support the cluster amongst other speakers.

Eight SusChem projects
In the final part of the programme delegates will be introduced to eight significant socially relevant SusChem/FISCH projects that have just been launched. These are on micro algae as a feedstock, microprocessing technology, separation technology, renewable chemicals, valorization of waste and side streams, an open innovation-infrastructure cluster, a sustainable chemistry knowledge centre, and Hexagon – a meeting and visitor centre where the public can find out more about the impact of sustainable chemistry on society.

To find out more about the Solvay/SusChem Flanders event and the eight SusChem projects, please contact Carl Van der Auwera (essenscia flanders).

Matthias Beller wins new European Sustainable Chemistry Award

SusChem board member Matthias Beller has been chosen as the first winner of the European Sustainable Chemistry Award an initiative launched this year by the European Association for Chemical and Molecular Sciences (EuCheMS).

Prof. Beller will receive the award at the 3rd EuCheMS European Chemistry Congress in Nürnberg, Germany on Sunday 29 August 2010.

Matthias Beller is Director of the Leibniz Institute for Catalysis in Rostock, Germany (LIKAT), and has been recognised for his exceptional research in the field of homogeneous catalysis. His main research focus is on investigating the environmentally sustainable conversion of small molecules into recyclable or reusable materials.

Ger Spork, Innovation manager at CEFIC, and on behalf of SusChem, congratulated Prof. Beller saying: “Catalysis is a key technology for sustainable chemistry and Matthias has made some outstanding contributions to European research in this area. We are very pleased to have a SusChem Board member receiving this recognition.”

Catalyst for sustainability
In the past decade alone, Matthias Beller and his team have developed three catalyst systems that are already being applied in industry to produce valuable materials on a large scale (tonnes). “This is something uncommon that academic research goes straight into industrial application,” says Beller.

Matthias Beller has also conducted fundamental research that has inspired numerous other academic groups around the world. “Catalysis is the science that tries to explain how chemical reactions can be accelerated and controlled,” he says. “It is not only important for the chemical industry but also for the life sciences, environmental and energy applications.”

The main interest of his work has been the use of precious metal catalysts, such as palladium, in a variety of catalysed reactions.

In the field of synthesis for new pharmaceutical ingredients, Matthias Beller’s research group has worked on the regioselective addition of amines to double bonds and carbonylation reactions. In cooperation with pharmaceutical companies, the research has helped to develop new analgesics, anti-Alzheimer active ingredients and kinase inhibitors.

Bio-inspired catalysis
More recently he has been active in the development of new catalysts based on bio-relevant metals, especially iron, that are cheaper and more available than precious metal equivalents. “These ‘bio-inspired’ catalysts have not yet been implemented in industry,” explains Beller. “But nature shows that these metals can be used as biocatalysts in a very efficient manner.”

An example of this ‘bio-inspired’ catalysis is Beller’s recent work on hydrogen production using bio-relevant, or biomass-derived compounds, or water. “One of the most efficient catalysts that nature has developed are iron and iron/nickel hydrogenases,” explains Beller. “Very recently we have developed an iron-based hydrogenase that catalyses the production of hydrogen from formic acid .”

Formic acid is a major product of biomass processing and could be a stable and widely available carrier for hydrogen for use in fuel cells and other clean energy applications. The new catalyst is cheap and activated by visible light to liberate hydrogen at room temperature.

“Hydrogen production is very important to the chemical industry but is also of major interest for energy applications,” says Beller. “In combination with fuel cell technologies hydrogen can deliver a very clean form of energy.”

For more information visit the EuCheMS website.

Record-breaking FP7 calls announced

The latest calls in the European Commission’s Seventh Research Framework Programme (FP7) announced today (July 20) cover research and innovation projects worth some €6.4 billion.

Discussing the calls at a press briefing on 19 July Commissioner Máire Geoghegan-Quinn said: “Investment in research and innovation is the only smart and lasting way out of crisis and towards sustainable and socially equitable growth. This European package will contribute to new and better products and services, a more competitive and greener Europe, and a better society with a higher quality of life.”

The project calls focus on the big economic and societal challenges: climate change, energy and food security, health and an ageing population. The calls will cover both research and innovation actions.


Commissioner Máire Geoghegan-Quinn sees the package as a key element within the EU's Europe 2020 Strategy and in particular the Innovation Union flagship initiative, which she will be launching in autumn 2010.

51 calls
A total of 51 FP7 calls were announced on the Cordis website on 20 July. From a SusChem perspective the new calls include €270 million allocated to the NMP area with a focus on research that could lead to patenting and commercialisation opportunities, the building up of the knowledge based bio-economy in Europe is supported with €240 million and a total of €210 million is devoted for energy research. €436 million will be devoted to the generation of innovative industrial products, processes and services.

Material for environmental friendly production receives a budget of €210 million. Development of new materials for energy generation, storage and efficiency is allocated €145 million. The three public-private partnerships launched in the automotive, construction and manufacturing sectors will be allocated €130 million.

Environmental research projects will get about €205 million. In this area the Commission is introducing steps to speed up sharing of environmental research results. Beneficiaries of EU funding from this environmental call will be obliged to make their research findings freely available via publication after an agreed embargo period.

For more information see the Commissioner's press release and accompanying memo.

Key Enabling Technologies for sustainable European industry

The inaugural meeting of the European Commission’s High Level Group (HLG) on Key Enabling Technologies (KETs) took place in the Berlaymont building in Brussels today (13 July 2010). The chemical industry, and the wider chemistry community, is committed to playing an active role in the deliberations of this vital strategic initiative for European competitiveness and innovation policy.

The HLG is an initiative of Commission vice-president Antonio Tajani (enterprise and industry) with the active support of vice-president Neelie Kroes (digital agenda) and commissioner Maire Geoghegan-Quinn (research and innovation).

At the opening meeting Antonio Tajani said: “Most of the goods and services that will be available in 5 to 10 years are yet unknown, but surely they will be based on key enabling technologies. The advice of the high-level expert group as to how to deploy these key enabling technologies is crucial for the renewal of our industrial base.”

The Group consists of representatives of key Member States and various industry high level executives, including Wolfgang Plischke, Cefic Vice-President and Bayer Board member. “We are committed to actively contribute to shaping and implementing concrete actions for the deployment of these technologies into value for society”, he commented.


Suschem board member Gernot Klotz (second right above), executive director of Cefic R&I, who attended the initial meeting for Dr. Plischke commented: “Looking at the value chain from the chemical industry perspective brings you different angles and new opportunities for breakthrough solutions that can benefit innovation in many sectors, for instance flat screens, imaging, lighting, data storage, sensors, lightweight cars or self-cleaning surfaces.”

As SusChem is already showing, new innovative ways of working together between various industry sectors and public bodies are key to turning these technologies into competitive advantage for Europe.

The HLG exercise should ease the path for other emerging technologies. What is valid for nanotech or biotech today could be deployed to ensure rapid market application for all future technologies.

KET HLG role
Establishing the KET HLG was the main recommendation of the Commission’s Communication ‘Preparing for our future: Developing a common strategy for key enabling technologies in the EU’ published at the end of September last year. The importance of Key Enabling Technologies was also underlined in the recent Europe 2020 strategy communication.

The group will assess the competitive situation of the relevant thematic technology areas, including nanotechnology, micro and nanoelectronics, photonics, advanced materials, biotechnology and advanced manufacturing systems, with a particular focus on industrial deployment and their potential to contribute to addressing the major challenges facing society.

The HLG will then analyse the available public and private R&D capacities for KETs in the EU and propose specific policy recommendations for more effective industrial deployment. The group is expected to consider many policy aspects including innovation, technology transfer, joint programming, state aid, climate change, public procurement, international cooperation, trade policy, financing and skills. A report outlining policy recommendations will be the main deliverable of the Group.

A list of members of the HLG is available.

SusChem relevant calls in FP7- July 2010

Following the SusChem Info day on June 4 covering the forthcoming Summer 2010 calls in FP7 a spreadsheet describing calls with relevance to SusChem in the KBBE, NMP, Energy and Environment themes has been collated.

The spreadsheet can be downloaded here. The spreadsheet includes theme, area and individual call information, a brief description of the research topic itself, the type of funding scheme (large-scale , small-scale etc.), and the likely deadline for initial submission of a project proposal to the Commission.

The sheet also includes details of contact details from the Info Day of people who have expressed an interest in this area and an area for project notes and comments.

For more information, or if you want to express an interest in collaborating in any of the projects, please contact the SusChem secretariat.

Hybrid report delivered to EC

A report compiling the conclusions from the successful SusChem/ DPI Hybrid Materials workshop held in March was officially handed over to the European Commission on Wednesday 9 June.

Present at the meeting in the Commission's Champs de Mars offices in Brussels were (from left to right in the picture below) John van Haare from the Dutch Polymer Institute (DPI), Renzo Tomellini, Head of Unit for 'Nanosciences and Nanotechnologies' at DG Research European Commission, Ger Spork Innovation Manager at Cefic/ Suschem, Helge Wessel of DG Research, and Jacques Joosten from DPI.



Common trends
The report highlights the conclusions from the intensive workshop sessions in Luxembourg that covered future materials needs in five key sectors: automotive; solar energy; solid state lighting; civil engineering; and aviation and aerospace.

The workshop aimed to identify technical hurdles and potential technology bottlenecks; capture new ideas; define potential R&D projects; and prioritise those projects.

A number of common technology trends or requirements were identified across the five sectors including better energy management (in terms of consumption, conservation and generation), improved and cost effective hybrid materials and better prediction tools.

Material needs
The report lists some desirable characteristics and functionality that new hybrid materials should possess. These include light weight but with sufficient mechanical properties, smart capabilities such as sensing, self-monitoring, self-cleaning, self-healing etc, resistance to corrosion, wear, UV and moisture, the capability to generate or store energy, halogen-free flame retardancy, be easier to recycle as useful devices, be low-cost and/ or produced from renewable resources.

New multi scale modeling tools are needed to help predict material properties, optimise structural design and the lifetime of different devices amongst other tasks. High throughput screening tests are also needed for assessing different materials and their properties, and validation tools are needed to shorten the time needed to evaluate new hybrid materials to replace existing components.

In terms of manufacturing and recycle processes the workshop is looking to standardised evaluation processes to make, assemble and disassemble hybrid materials and to help in scale-up of materials to industrial quantities. Improved life cycle analysis and recyclability is required, as is lower manufacturing and recycle process costs.

Finally fundamental studies are needed to investigate the influence of molecular structure on material properties, compatibility between different hybrid materials, and interface properties between hybrid materials.

The full report is available to download from the SusChem website. For further information, please contact the suschem secretariat.

SusChem Brokerage 2010 – First Phase

For the 2010 FP7 calls SusChem is taking a multi-step brokerage process. The first stage was undertaken on 4 June in Brussels with an Information Day highlighting SusChem-relevant parts in the current FP7 draft calls and a briefing on collaboration building and other non-FP7 opportunities for funding.

Ron Weerdmeester of PNO (left) outlined the new Grant-it service that is available for Cefic member companies to help them navigate the maze of EU funding opportunities and facilitate consortium building.

A second full brokerage event will be staged in Brussels on September 20 after the final calls have been published but well before the deadlines for proposal submission.

Strategy
Ger Spork (below) outlined SusChem strategy in the short to medium term. Innovation and a full ‘value chain approach’ were key elements – but Ger emphasized that SusChem was still very much committed to research.

The primary aim is to address societal challenges by creating sustainable chemistry solutions that use the value chain to connect new (and existing) technology with innovation to ensure societal implementation. One aspect of this approach is a drive towards programmes, via public private partnerships (PPPs), that connect value chain related industry partners with academia, centres of expertise and also include regions to ensure actual proof of concept or demonstration in real-life conditions. This would require efective use of the SusChem network of national platforms and concret linkage between all elements in the SusChem work plan.

He highlighted the Hybrid workshop undertaken in March 2010 that investigated the chemical materials needs for five value chain sectors. A formal report on the meeting will be published on the SusChem website soon. Engagement with other technology platforms in areas where chemistry plays an important role was also a key element of SusChem strategy.

A final element was the inclusion of training and education in the SusChem plan to fully address the knowledge triangle.

Draft calls
Frederic Gouarderes of DG Research outlined the draft proposals for the forthcoming FP7 call in the NMP area. The focus was on smart, sustainable, inclusive growth as described in the EU Recovery package otherwise known as the ‘2020 Strategy’.

He noted that there were calls across 46 topics for 2010 and that the total annual budget for NMP for the 2010 calls was increased compared to that for 2009. The total for NMP is €450 million including topics in the recovery package PPPs (Factory of the Future, Green Cars and Energy Efficient Buildings). The budget would continue to increase towards the end of FP7.

Frederic described the individual topics in detail and SusChem-relevant topics across all the calls described at the Information Day have been collated in an Excel spreadsheet that can be downloaded at the SusChem website.

The final calls should be published at the end of July. The selection for NMP will be two-stage with a first stage submission deadline of (probably) 4 November and probable second stage deadline of 19 April 2011.

Maria Fernandez Gutierrez described the 2010 calls for KBBE. In the main industrial biotechnology area the indicative budget for the 2010 call was just over € 70 million and Maria outlined some 17 call topics of general interest to SusChem stakeholders. The selection process for the calls would be single stage with the deadline for submission probably 25 January 2011.

Finally Alexis Bazzanella of Dechema outlined the relevant topic calls in the environment and energy calls. All presenters emphasised the need for delegates to check carefully the final texts of the call as they are published at the end of July.

Life+ etc
Ron Weerdmeester gave a brief overview of other EU funding opportunities such as LIFE+ and eco-innovation that are part of the Competitiveness and Innovation Programme (CIP). Both these later programmes could be undertaken without the need for partners. He also described other aspects of FP7 such as the ICT calls and elements of the FP7 People programme.

Ron gave examples of successful case studies and encouraged delegates to think wider for funding opportunities. A particular example is the Marie Curie Actions funding that has a specific programme for industrial partners to work with academics often with only two or three partners: the Industry-Academia Partnerships and Pathways (IAPP) scheme. The IAPP scheme was valuable in its own right as a research vehicle, but could also be used to build the basis for later, more extensive collaborative programmes.

After lunch a number of parallel workshops on the various specific calls were organised followed by a plenary feedback session.

Finally delegates were reminded of the SusChem Brokerage Day to be held on 20 September in Brussels.

All the presentations made during the SusChem Info Day 2010 are available and will be sent to participants. For more information contact the SusChem secretariat.