Danimer Scientific Receives U.S. Department of Energy Grant to Support Bioplastic Production

Danimer Scientific, a leading developer and manufacturer of biodegradable materials, today announced that the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has selected the company as one of eight organizations receiving a total of nearly $5.7 million in support to conduct research and development projects within the biomanufacturing industry. Of the eight recipients, Danimer Scientific is the sole organization focused on the manufacture of biodegradable plastics.

The project will accelerate the commercialization of polyhydroxyalkanoate, a material verified by the University of Georgia as a truly biodegradable alternative to traditional petrochemical plastic. To carry out the work, Danimer Scientific will work closely with research teams at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden Colorado and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, Washington. With access to state-of-the-art facilities and expertise provided by the DOE program, Danimer Scientific will produce tunable combinations of PHA with different chain lengths, enabling the creation of new biodegradable plastics for a greater range of applications.

“Reducing the environmental impact of single-use plastic waste is one of the most pressing issues facing our planet, and with the DOE’s support, we can explore potential new areas of applications for PHAs that have not been tried before,” said Phil Van Trump, CTO of Danimer Scientific. “We thank the DOE for its support of this project and are looking forward to breaking new ground in the world of biodegradable plastics.”

Part of the Agile BioFoundry (ABF) consortium, the eight projects selected by the DOE will leverage National Laboratory capabilities to address challenges in biomanufacturing.
Sponsored by the DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy’s Bioenergy Technologies Office, the Agile BioFoundry (ABF) aims to advance biomanufacturing by uniting and expanding the capabilities of the National Laboratories to develop a robust, agile biomanufacturing platform accessible to researchers across the private and public sectors. ABF partners include Argonne National Laboratory, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, and more than a dozen university and industry partners.

Danimer Scientific’s signature Nodax PHA possesses seven TUV AUSTRIA certifications and statements of industrial and home compostability, is biodegradable in anaerobic soil, freshwater and marine environments and is 100% bio based. All of Danimer Scientific’s biopolymers, including its Nodax PHA, are FDA approved for food contact.

Source

Bioplastics MAGAZINE, 2020-07-29.

Supplier

Agile BioFoundry
Argonne National Laboratory
DaniMer Scientific
DOE's Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO)
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Los Alamos National Laboratory
National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL)
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory PNNL
Sandia National Laboratories (USA)
TÜV AUSTRIA Group
US Department of Energy (DoE)

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