Michelin advances bio-based butadiene project for synthetic rubber production

Rueil-Malmaison, France – Michelin and its partners, IFP Energies Nouvelles (IFPEN), and Axens have announced “significant advancements” in their joint bio-butadiene project BioButterfly.

In an 11 Dec statement, technology supplier Axen said that the partners confirmed the industrial viability of producing bio-based butadiene from bioethanol and its use in synthetic rubber applications for the tire sector.

According to the release, the demo plant in Bassens, nearly Bordeaux tested both bioethanol and advanced bioethanol (second generation ethanol) as feedstocks for producing bio-based butadiene.

“The performance of both sources has been confirmed, demonstrating the flexibility and adaptability of the process to utilise diverse bioethanol inputs,” it added.

Furthermore, the butadiene produced at the demonstration plant was used to synthesise butadiene rubber (BR) and styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) in a polymerisation unit.

The successful trial marked “a crucial step in validating the application of bio-based butadiene in the production of synthetic rubbers,” the release said.

The butadiene produced has also been confirmed to meet stringent polymer grade specifications, it added.

The project partners described the BioButterfly project as “the most advanced technology for producing biobased butadiene from bioethanol, with favourable carbon footprint.”

The demo plant will be used to “de-risk the scale-up and bring operational feedback to the future plant owners,” the partners said.

Moving forward, the project partners will focus on achieving technology homologation by mid-2026, paving the way for the commercialisation of the “groundbreaking” process.

The project, supported by ADEME, the Region Nouvelle-Aquitaine and Bordeaux Metropole, currently operates an industrial-scale demonstrator which was launched in July 2023 with the aim to produce bio-based butadiene from bioethanol. (ERJ report)