Project

The transition to a sustainable bioeconomy seeks to connect environmental objectives with industrial value creation in the long term. The chemical and plastics industries, in particular, face the challenge of replacing fossil-based raw materials with bio-based alternatives without disrupting existing industrial structures and performance requirements. (Meth)acrylates play a central role as platform-relevant feedstocks, as they form the basis of numerous polymer applications and industrial production processes.

Biotechnological processes are increasingly enabling the production of novel chemical building blocks from biological resources. At the same time, it is becoming apparent that, particularly for platform chemicals, there are high demands regarding process integration, scalability, regulatory integration and industrial compatibility. The integration of bio-based molecules into existing value chains therefore requires not only technological development but also a systematic assessment of application assumptions, transfer pathways and institutional frameworks.

In an international context, these issues take on even greater significance. Countries such as Thailand are making targeted investments in expanding biotechnology research and production capacities and are promoting international research and innovation partnerships in the field of the bioeconomy. This opens up new opportunities for collaborative development processes along global value chains. A prerequisite for successfully harnessing this potential is a transparent understanding of the underlying technology and transfer logic.

The TerpAcryl project addresses this challenge by developing an integrated platform for monoterpene-based (meth)acrylates, utilising microbiologically produced biogenic feedstocks. The aim is to provide novel monomers that both contribute to the substitution of fossil-based (meth)acrylates and, due to their specific biogenic molecular structures, open up new application prospects in polymer systems.

In addition to technological development, TerpAcryl aims to systematically structure the project’s approach to application and transfer. The contribution of Fraunhofer ISI lies in providing an analytical foundation for the project and positioning the developed solutions within the context of the National Bioeconomy Strategy as well as the Bioeconomy International funding programme of the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR). On this basis, the project results will be prepared for integration into international bioeconomy value chains.

The project combines literature and document reviews with qualitative expert interviews to systematically map technological developments and their integration into industrial and international contexts. Academic publications, project and programme documents, as well as strategic and funding policy documents, are analysed to structure the state of the art, relevant application contexts and overarching framework conditions.

In addition, expert interviews are conducted with stakeholders from academia, industry and innovation policy. These serve to clarify project-specific assumptions regarding applications, transfer pathways and international cooperation contexts, as well as to classify key requirements along the value chain of bio-based platform chemicals.

The "Value Driven Innovation and Technology Assessment" (VITA) model, developed by the Innovation Acceptance Unit, is used as the overarching methodological framework. VITA structures the results from the literature review and expert interviews and links technological development goals, application assumptions and bioeconomic objectives within a consistent analytical framework. The findings will be presented at a German-Thai policy workshop and discussed there with relevant stakeholders.

The project results comprise the following conceptual and analytical contributions:

• the application of the VITA process model, in the course of which the technological identity of TerpAcryl and key assumptions regarding application, transfer and value creation are systematically developed and integrated,
• the translation of these results into a project-specific transfer strategy for TerpAcryl,
• the presentation and discussion of the results within the framework of a German-Thai policy workshop,
• as well as conceptual foundations for further research and innovation activities in the international bioeconomy context.

All results are geared towards compatibility and international applicability and contribute to the implementation of the National Bioeconomy Strategy in an international context.

The project is being carried out through a division of labour within an international consortium. Technical coordination and biotechnological development are the responsibility of the Fraunhofer Institute for Interfacial Engineering and Biotechnology (IGB). The microbial production of monoterpenes is being carried out in collaboration with the National Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (NSTDA/BIOTEC) in Thailand.

Fraunhofer ISI is responsible for the VITA-based project foundation, the structured application of the process model, and the integration of the project results into bioeconomic and innovation policy contexts.

1.1.2025−31.12.2027

TerpAcryl is part of the "Bioeconomy for Public Value" project family run by the Innovation Acceptance Unit at Fraunhofer ISI. Within this project family, TerpAcryl is a technology-focused initiative concentrating on bio-based platform chemicals; it complements material-, energy- and system-oriented projects by establishing an early presence in industrial value chains.

The project is funded by the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) as part of the "Bioeconomy International" funding programme and is managed by Project Management Jülich (PtJ).

TerpAcryl is situated within the field of the international bioeconomy and addresses key components of the National Bioeconomy Strategy, in particular "Biological knowledge as the key to the bioeconomy", "Transfer from idea to application" and "Global research collaborations".

www.biobasedasia.com (This website is still under construction)