French tyre firm Michelin, IFPEN, and Axens have announced advancements in the BioButterfly project, supported by ADEME, Région Nouvelle Aquitaine and Bordeaux Metropole, which aims to produce bio-based butadiene from bioethanol.
Following the startup of the first industrial-scale demonstrator in July 2023, the project has achieved several key milestones, reinforcing the viability of the technology, the firms claim.
The BioButterfly project has successfully tested on the demo-plant both bioethanol and advanced bioethanol (second generation ethanol) as feedstocks for producing bio-based butadiene, guaranteeing a 100% bio-sourced origin.
The performance of both sources has been confirmed, demonstrating the flexibility and adaptability of the process to utilise diverse bioethanol inputs.
In a significant development, the butadiene produced at the demonstration plant has been used to synthesise butadiene rubber (BR) and styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) in a polymerisation unit. The process was successful, marking a crucial step in validating the application of bio-based butadiene in the production of synthetic rubbers.
The butadiene produced has been confirmed to meet stringent polymer grade specifications, ensuring its suitability for high-quality. This achievement underscores the potential of bio-based butadiene as a sustainable alternative to its fossil-based counterpart production with a more favourable carbon footprint.
They add the R&D phase of the BioButterfly project is on track to become the most advanced technology on the market, developed via a demonstration plant to de-risk the scale-up and bring operational feedback to the future plant owners.
The partners are focused on achieving technology homologation by mid-2026, paving the way for the commercialisation of this groundbreaking process.
Axens offers a complete range of solutions for the conversion of oil and biomass into cleaner fuels, the production and purification of major petrochemical intermediates, the chemical recycling of plastics, natural gas treatment and conversion options, water treatment and carbon capture.
Meanwhile, IFPEN is the French national institute for research, innovation and training in the fields of energy, mobility and the environment.