Anellotech sends first shipment from Texas biobased aromatics plant for testing

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In Texas, biobased aromatics company Anellotech has sent its first shipment of BTX to partners IFPEN and AXENS for purification studies to make biobased para-xylene—a key component of polyethylene terephthalate bottle resins.

The TCat-8® pilot plant in Silsbee, Texas, employs a thermal catalytic process to converts non-food biomass feedstock material into BTX aromatics. The first two-week continuous pilot trial was run in March 2018. Since then, the Silsbee plant has been on-stream a total of 1,200 hours.

Anellotech also continues to produce other aromatic products, including benzene and toluene. These can be used to make a range of biobased polymers such as nylon, polycarbonates, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene, and industrial chemicals such as linear alkyl benzene.

“We continue to move the technology towards commercialization, and shipping the pilot plant’s product for downstream evaluation is another major milestone,” David Sudolsky, President & CEO of Anellotech. “Having collaborated with Suntory since 2012 to advance development of cost-competitive bio-aromatics, we hope bio-based plastics made from our Bio-Tcat  process and a 100% bio-based bottle soon become a reality.”