Date: Jul 23, 2010 Author: Kyle Alspach Source: bizjournals (
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Kyle Alspach
Technology Editor- Boston Business Journal
Novomer Inc. has received $18.4 million from the U.S. Department of Energy for a project that seeks to convert waste carbon dioxide into plastics for use in bottles, laminates and other applications, the company announced.
The Boston-based company said the award is the second phase of a DOE grant and is part of a national effort to capture CO2 from industrial sources for storage or beneficial use.
In March, the company reported that it had been awarded $2.1 million in the first phase of the project grant. The first phase was pilot development, and the company now will move into larger-scale development of its CO2-to-plastics process.
In a release, the DOE described Novomer's catalyst technology as "novel," allowing CO2 to react with petrochemical epoxides to create a family of thermoplastic polymers.
"The project has the potential to convert CO2 from an industrial waste stream into a lasting material that can be used in the manufacture of bottles, films, laminates, coatings on food and beverage cans, and in other wood and metal surface applications," according to the DOE release.
Novomer has secured site commitments to perform the next phase of the work in Rochester, N.Y.; Baton Rouge, La.; Orangeburg, S.C.; and Ithaca, N.Y.
Founded in 2004 and based on technology developed at Cornell University, the company announced in 2008 its plans to move Novomer's marketing and business development operations from Ithaca, N.Y., to Boston, while the company's research and development would remain in Ithaca.
