The nova-Institute is pleased to introduce its remarkable team of biopolymer experts, who specialize in everything from advanced polymers to sustainable carbon solutions, from mass balance and attribution to basic building blocks and from the vibrant marketplaces of Asia to the cutting-edge landscapes of North America. With its market and trend reports, this exceptional team, possessing unmatched worldwide expertise and in-depth knowledge, is spearheading the shift in the chemicals and materials industry towards a fossil-free future. Welcome to a brand-new, sustainable era that is being ushered in by forward-thinking trailblazers in the field of green innovation.
8 October 2024, Hürth: Among the most trustworthy and well-respected sources available, the nova-Institute’s well-known market and trend reports are created by nova scientists in association with top international specialists.
The nova studies go deeply into the many feedstocks used by the chemical industry, ranging from CO2 to biomass to chemical recycling. They offer thorough analyses of the Chinese bio-based and biodegradability landscape, as well as guidelines, standards, and labels for bio-based products. They also provide a comprehensive overview of bio- and CO2-based building blocks and polymers, the advanced recycling landscape, and particular renewable building blocks like naphtha. Every business study provided by Nova-Institute is
The nova Biopolymer Expert Group has been in operation for a number of years, primarily focusing its expertise in the annual report “Bio-based Building Blocks and Polymers – Global Capacities, Production and Trends.” However, the group has also shown in the past and more recently that it has in-depth knowledge of a number of specialized areas, including PHAs, alternative naphtha, bio-based building blocks, and the bio-based and biodegradable plastics industries in China. The team is prepared to create customized reports for its clients in addition to the reports that have already been released.
Expanded and updated knowledge and experience are needed to keep up with the rapidly changing chemical and materials industries. The nova-Institute is happy to announce the twelve members of the Biopolymer Expert Group, both new and old, in alphabetical order for the first time, in response to this need.
Tanver Ali is an independent consultant from the UK who holds degrees in both business management and chemistry. She has worked all over the world and specializes in bio-based performance chemicals and tailored polymers for downstream market sectors. 25 years of strategic business development experience working for global companies in North America, the EU, and China. Since 2017, there has been a focus on developing sustainable, renewable, and circular products and applications using bio-based monomers and polymers.
Lars Börger, Re+Spire Beratung (DE), received his PhD in Material Science from the Max Planck Institute for Colloids and Interface Science after studying general management and chemistry in Bielefeld, Marburg, and St. Gallen. Before joining Neste to grow the renewable and circular feedstock business for the chemical industry, he worked for 17 years in Germany and China at BASF in leading positions in the fields of polymer research, specialty chemicals, and biopolymers. This included initiating the first lead for mass balancing and global responsibility for the biopolymers business. In addition to being the founder of Neste Germany, he has written books and served on the boards of the Renewable Carbon Initiative and European Bioplastics.
Michael Carus, nova-Institute and Renewable Carbon Initiative (DE), is a physicist and one of Europe’s leading experts, market researchers and policy advisors on the renewable carbon economy – including bio-based, CO2-based and recycling. In late 1994, together with five other scientists, he founded the private and independent nova-Institute for Ecology and Innovation. From the beginning, Carus has been involved in the company as an owner and one of the two managing directors. Today, the nova-Institute employs nearly 50 scientists from a wide range of disciplines, covering markets, technologies, sustainability, communication and policy. In 2020, Carus founded the Renewable Carbon Initiative (RCI), which today has almost 70 members from the chemical and materials industries.
The only owner of Green D Market Analytics LLC, an independent worldwide consulting business specializing in the global market for renewable chemicals, is Doris de Guzman, Green D Market Analytics (US). After starting her career as a market editor, Doris has distinguished herself as a significant contributor to the global advancement of the renewable chemicals sector in her role as an industry consultant. Her knowledge of sustainable materials is broad and includes plastics and renewable chemicals. She is also the owner and writer of the Green Chemicals Blog, a well-known information source that was established in 2007 and is well-known for its perceptive news and analysis on the market for bio-based chemicals.
With more than ten years of experience as an independent consultant in the chemicals and energy sectors, Matthew Hartley of EH Consultants (TH) has supported and managed projects spanning a variety of value chains, from projects involving algae, renewable diesel, and biogas to those involving building blocks like olefins and specialities. Matthew’s areas of expertise include strategic planning, decision-making, and technology evaluation. He graduated from Imperial College London with a PhD in chemical engineering.
Chemist Harald Käb of Narocon Innovation Consulting (DE) has devoted his thirty-year professional career to “sustainable chemistry and plastics,” emphasizing circular and bio-based solutions. He established “European Bioplastics” in 1999 and served as its chair until 2009; this organization represents Europe in this sector. Since 1998, he has supported corporate development and communications on all levels and in a variety of fields of endeavor as a strategic consultant and sparring partner to important actors. He operates in close proximity to markets and decision-making mechanisms. Prominent manufacturers and consumers of plastic appreciate his experience.
GO!PHA (NL/US) Rick Passenier is an industrial product designer by background and an inventor in the bio- and circular economy. He is one of the co-founders of the nonprofit Global Organization for PHA (GO!PHA), whose mission is to hasten the global adoption of PHAs. Additionally, he joined the Dutch National Growth Fund Biobased Circular in 2024, which aims to advance the country’s biobased and biodegradable polyester industry. Graduated from Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands, Rick has degrees in both industrial product design for his bachelor’s and master’s degrees.
Osmania University awarded Narendar Poranki, nova-Institute (DE), a Bachelor of Technology in Chemical Engineering, and the Management Development Institute awarded him a Master of Business Management.
New Delhi Institute. He has over ten years of expertise in business intelligence, market research, and strategic support. He has worked in a variety of industries, including chemicals and materials, oil and gas, and bio-based technologies and products. Early in 2024, Narendar started working in the Technology and Markets division of nova-Institute.
Pauline Ruiz, nova-Institute (DE), is a graduate of the European School of Chemistry, Polymers and Materials Science (France) with a master’s degree in polymer engineering. She has training in chemistry. She accumulated numerous years of expertise in project management and research and development in various disciplines including the coating and rubber industries. In 2020, she became a member of the Nova team within the Sustainability division. As a specialist in bio- and CO2-based chemicals and polymers, she assists the Nova team on multiple projects pertaining to markets, technology, sustainability, and life cycle evaluation.
Pia Skoczinski, nova-Institute (DE), has a background in biology and has worked in the fields of enzyme engineering, enzyme-catalyzed polymerization, and optimizing microbial cell factories for several years. She worked as a postdoctoral researcher in macromolecular and polymer chemistry for a year before joining the Technology and Markets division of the Nova Institute in 2018. Here, she focuses on carbon capture and utilization (CCU), industrial biotechnology, and bio-based building blocks and polymers.
With over 30 years of expertise in the chemical business, Gillian Tweddle of Stripe Consulting (BE) has knowledge of both technical and commercial sides of the sector. In addition to covering a wide range of chemical intermediates and specialty chemicals, including market histories and forecasts for bio-based and biodegradable polymers, Gillian has worked as a senior consultant on strategic, market, and technical assessments and projects for chemicals and value chains since 2002. Since mid-2021, Gillian has served as an external specialist to support the Technology & Markets department of Nova.
Ann Zhang is a senior industry expert at nova-Institute (CN) with a focus on the carbon economy that is sustainable and biobased. In China, she speaks for nova-Institute. Ann has worked in China for more than 20 years in business development. She spent the first ten years of her career concentrating on new company ventures and product development in the petrochemical and life sciences sectors. She transitioned into strategic investment consulting in 2009, helping European and Chinese high-tech businesses with their strategic foreign ventures. She has been involved in sustainable development projects since 2016, collaborating with start-ups and international conservation organizations. Ann is presently enrolled at Wageningen University & Research’s MSc program (2022–2024) in Biobased Science, with an emphasis on the circular and bio-based economies.
