Faced with resource scarcity and the need to reduce our environmental footprint, the current model of the so-called “linear” economy – extract, produce, use, dispose – has reached its limits. Arkema plays a central role in materials processing and has made transition to the circular economy a major focus of its sustainable growth strategy. To drive this decisive development, the Group is taking action on three fronts. Namely, the choice of raw materials, seeking to promote renewable and recycled materials; the optimized management of resources during manufacturing at its sites, to become even more efficient and streamlined; and its range of solutions, with a strong focus on sustainable and recyclable applications.
1. PRIORITIZING RENEWABLE AND RECYCLED RAW MATERIALS
There is now strong market demand for solutions based on renewable raw materials, and this is increasingly a criterion of choice for consumers. Arkema is a pioneer in this field. Its 100% bio-based Rilsan® polyamide 11 has been an uninterrupted success for more than seventy years for a wide variety of applications (see p 42). It is produced from castor oil, of which Arkema is the world’s largest buyer. Castor seeds are grown by hundreds of small producers in Gujarat, India on marginal land not competitive for food crops, using techniques to minimize water consumption. In addition to the Rilsan® ranges, which account for 40% of the Group’s sales of products made from renewable resources, Arkema’s bio-based offering includes SensioTM specialty surfactants, the Synolac® and Synaqua® resins for alkyd-based decorative paints, Vikoflex® epoxy plasticizers, and Bostik® hot-melt adhesives, to cite just a few examples. The Group now provides suppliers with an assessment of the proportion of renewable and recycled materials in the products it purchases.
2. WATER, ENERGY, WASTE PROCESSES: DOING MORE WITH LESS AT OUR SITES
For a manufacturer, the first step towards the circular economy happens at the factory level, through the selection and optimization of processes. Arkema has been rolling out two major transformation programs at its 147 sites for several years. “ArkEnergy” aims to reduce the Group’s net energy consumption by 20% between 2012 and 2030, and the “Optim’O” program has set a target of a 60% reduction in pollutant emissions between 2012 and 2030. The Group is taking action on different fronts, making technical improvements, working on operational rigor, involving all employees, replacing or adjusting certain processes, and implementing recovery loops and industrial integration. Arkema is also fully investing in a third rich seam of efficiency—the reduction and recovery of its waste and by-products (see p 47).
3. OUR SOLUTIONS: SUSTAINABILITY AND RECYCLABILITY
Occupying a central position in the value chain, Arkema is leading the way for its partners and clients, designing materials and solutions that contribute to the emergence of a circular economy, reducing the amount of material used, extending the lifetime of clients’ finished products, and improving the separability of materials and components, as well as their recyclability and degradability. These approaches feed into the Group’s entire innovation policy and are reflected in one of Arkema’s five strategic innovation platforms, which is dedicated to natural resource management. Many of the Group’s solutions already contribute to this: Kercoat® and Opticoat® technologies triple the lifetime of returnable glass bottles, our Kynar® Aquatec coating provides hardwearing protection for reflective roofs while reducing air-conditioning requirements by up to 30%, and Cecabase RT® additives increase the amount of recycled aggregate in road asphalt by up to 15%. The issue of products’ end of life – and recyclability – now arises at the eco-design stage, which relates to the entire value chain, particularly suppliers, customers and other partners. Arkema, which has created a disruptive new product with its 100% recyclable Elium® thermoplastic resin, is now investing in the development of recycling processes and industrial pathways for its high-performance polymers (see p 46).
LIFECYCLE ANALYSIS: IDENTIFYING PRODUCT IMPACTS
To guide its industrial policy toward the most sustainable solutions, Arkema is engaged in a systematic process of lifecycle analysis (LCA). This scientific methodology consists of quantifying, for a given product, all the environmental impacts related to its production (raw materials, energy, emissions). Arkema provides this data at the request of its clients to enable them to calculate, throughout the value chain, the environmental impact of the products they bring to market. Within the Group, a team of specialists are working on this methodology, collecting data from both our business units and our suppliers. The project is growing rapidly, with the aim of covering 50% of the Group’s sales by 2023, and ultimately the entire portfolio.
