Combined expertise will accelerate scale-up of sustainable materials production to reduce global reliance on single-use, petroleum-based plastics.
Alfa Laval, a global leader in heat transfer, centrifugal separation, and fluid handling technologies, and RWDC Industries, a biotechnology company developing biopolymer material solutions, recently signed a joint development agreement to improve equipment development and closed-loop processes used in the manufacture of alternative materials to unsustainable plastics.
The two companies are exploring process-improvement opportunities for biopolymer manufacturing, including equipment refinement to enhance commercial scale production of high-quality and cost-effective biopolymers. The collaboration will leverage Alfa Laval's expertise in heat-transfer and separation technologies aiming to develop advanced manufacturing practices using RWDC’s proprietary biopolymer production systems.
“I am thrilled by the dynamics of our two innovative companies combining knowledge to accelerate commercialization of tomorrow’s sustainable materials,” says Karin Forsberg, President BU Energy Separation at Alfa Laval. “This collaboration allows us to take a holistic approach to the entire production process in terms of product recovery, water circularity, and energy efficiency.”
“Whenever teams from RWDC and Alfa Laval sit down together, great things happen,” says RWDC Chief Operating Officer Ryan Adolphson. “We look forward to a mutually rewarding partnership as we collaborate in creating solutions that eliminate our global reliance on single-use plastic products.”
RWDC has developed proprietary technologies for harvesting outputs from a microbial fermentation process that produces a naturally occurring biodegradable polymer known as PHA (polyhydroxyalkanoate). RWDC's PHA, branded as Solon™ PHA, has been certified by TUV Austria as fully biodegradable in soil, water, and marine conditions. It decomposes completely, leaving no toxic residue.Alfa Laval and RWDC are confident this partnership will yield groundbreaking solutions and fast track the scale-up of commercial production capabilities worldwide.
