Renewable Chemicals Overview

Virent’s proprietary technology offers a route to sustainable bio-based chemicals which can serve as direct replacements for their petroleum-derived counterparts.

Clothing, packaging, electronics, building materials, cars — all contain a significant amount of petroleum-derived polymers. These materials have delivered significant benefits to consumers everywhere. They are inexpensive, lightweight, strong and offer a wide variety of performance benefits.

Virent’s patented BioForming^® technology enables the economical production of many of these same polymers from bio-based feedstocks, delivering the same benefits with the added advantage of being derived from atmospheric carbon and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Our process produces the foundational chemicals that are the building blocks of polyesters, polyurethanes, polycarbonates, synthetic rubbers, polystyrene, nylon and more. In addition, these bio-based chemicals have other wide-ranging non-polymer uses in solvents, dyes, food preservatives, detergents and pharmaceuticals.

Using its demonstration plant in Madison, Wisconsin, Virent has demonstrated the production of bio-based aromatic chemicals, including paraxylene, mixed xylenes, toluene, and benzene.

Virent’s bio-based chemicals:

• Offer 100% bio-based renewable carbon content
• Are direct drop-in replacements
• Meet typical industrial specifications
• Are TSCA listed (xylenes, toluene, benzene)
• Reduce Greenhouse Gas emissions (GHGs)
• Are fully compatible with existing supply chains and recycling infrastructure
• Offer companies an opportunity to diversify their raw material supply