32 Introduction to Renewable Biomaterials
neglected resources like municipal waste and industrial emission will help to reduce
the biomass demand pressure as well. Together with further disseminating high-yield
agricultural methods and technologies it appears feasible to meet the demand of future
food and feedstock demand. However, it needs the joint effort of agriculture and
industry scientists, farmers, processing engineers, and last but not least economical,
societal, and political leaders to make the indispensible agricultural transformation
happen.
1.4.4.2 Public Acceptance
The latter paragraph already raised the role of public leadership in gaining acceptance
of the bio-economical transformation process. Leadership is the more requested as
the bio-economy is not only a technical and economical transformation, it has as well
a transformative impact on the society itself. It includes comprehensive recycling of
industrial processing streams and after-use consumer products, thus changing our way
of using materials and products. Today, the production and consumption chain from
a raw material (e.g., fossil oil) up to a consumer product (e.g., the plastic housing for
a smart phone) and later to after-use waste is a linear one. There is a beginning with
raw material and an end with waste. The bio-economy will form circular production
and consumer chains because a product after use becomes the raw material for the
next production cycle. To make it a reality, it needs not only technologies but also, for
example, (i) the public administration to specify recycled goods in contrast to waste
materials, (ii) the manager of an urban waste disposal facility to integrate recycling into
operation and find industrial customers for the resulting materials, (iii) the industrial
supply manager to accept recycled raw materials, and last but not least (iv) the ordinary
consumer to buy products made from recycled materials. In other words, governments,
public administration, industries, and the whole economical sector as well as the
societyassuchmustpulltogether.Thisiswhatmakesthebio-economyandthecircular
economy transformative.
1.5 Research Advances Made Recently
Academic and industrial scientists work hard on basic bio-economy know-how and
industries test methods and processes. Here is a selection of press releases about recent
advances. It gives an impression how academia, SMEs, and big industries cooperate
internationally to make the bio-economy real.
1.5.1 First-Generation Processes and Products
December 12, 2014 – Algenol Biofuels (USA, founded 2006) was named the recipient
of the 2014 Global Energy Award for Industry Leadership in Biofuels, presented by
PLATTS Global Energy Awards. Algenol’s algae technology platform for production
of the four most important fuels (ethanol, gasoline, jet, and diesel fuel) uses algae,
sunlight, CO 2 , and saltwater for high-yield, low-cost fuel production. The technology
recycles CO 2 from industrial sources.
September 19, 2014 – Lufthansa made commercial flight with bio-based jet fuel. It
contained 10% farnesane produced by yeast from sugar. The process was developed
