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Alternative feedstocks: a continuing trend in the polymer industry?
Author(s) -
Dijkstra Dirk J,
Langstein Gerhard
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
polymer international
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.592
H-Index - 105
eISSN - 1097-0126
pISSN - 0959-8103
DOI - 10.1002/pi.3209
Subject(s) - oil refinery , fossil fuel , raw material , global warming , environmental science , waste management , chemical industry , natural resource economics , engineering , climate change , economics , environmental engineering , chemistry , ecology , organic chemistry , biology
Polymers as we know them today have been developed from the feedstock available at the time of their formulation, i.e. crude oil in particular. Fossil feedstocks are used primarily for heating, cooling and fuelling engines in automobiles and power plants. Due to environmental awareness, increasing oil prices and strong progress in biotechnology in recent decades, new feedstocks will become available for fuels. Bio‐refineries will emerge in parallel with the existing oil refineries, and the feedstocks produced by these bio‐refineries will in part also be used to make polymers. This paper elucidates the historical developments and the possibilities for protecting our planet from pollution and global warming. Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry