Current Opinion in Green and Sustainable Chemistry 1 (2016) 28e32

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Current Opinion in Green and Sustainable Chemistry

journal homepage: http://www.journals.elsevier.com/current-opinion-in-
green-and-sustainable-chemistry/

Review article

European chemical industry's contribution to sustainable

development
Pierre Barthelemy*, Esther Agyeman-Budu
The European Chemical Industry Council, Avenue E. van Nieuwenhuyse 4, Box 1, 1160, Brussels, Belgium

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Chemical research and innovation is a key enabling factor in achieving a sustainable and equitable global
Received 3 June 2016 society. The European chemical sector is a key player in the global chemical and pharmaceutical market
Received in revised form and has been working to improve its own sustainability for many decades. Initiatives such as the Eu-
1 August 2016
ropean Technology Platform for Sustainable Chemistry are developing new solutions that will further
Accepted 3 August 2016
Available online 11 August 2016
reduce the environmental impact of the sector, while boosting its energy and resource efficiency, and
introducing new materials and processes based on renewable resources for use by society. These
innovative solutions catalyse sustainability in other sectors and value chains and will help realise con-
cepts such as a truly circular economy. To effectively implement such solutions requires close coopera-
tion between government, industry and research bodies.
© 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction Europe to be innovative. The European chemical sector is extremely

To address the global sustainability goals outlined in the United
Nations (UN) Sustainable Development 2030 Agenda [1] will
require innovations enabled through sustainable chemistry and the
chemical sector. Through its processes and products, the chemical
sector is a major driving force for innovation in Europe and
essential for smart and sustainable growth across all sectors.
In 2013, the European chemical industry contributed to 17% of
the world's chemical sales and generated V 527 billion of revenues
[2]. However, the European Union is emerging from the longest
recession on record, coupled with a sluggish recovery, which has
undermined the strong industrial basis of its economy. Europe is a
far cry from reaching the 20% target for industry's contribution to
European GDP by 2020 put forward by the European Commission
in its Europe 2020 Strategy [3,4]. Although an important sector for
Europe, the situation of the European chemical sector on the global
scene is changing. In the past decade, the sector has seen its share
of world chemicals output decline as emerging markets' sales
surge. In particular, China has seen its share of global chemical sales
jump from 9% in 2004 to 34% in 2014, representing close to a
fourfold increase. Fig. 1.
All these factors make it ever more important for the sector in
* Corresponding author.
E-mail address: PBA@cefic.be (P. Barthelemy).
well positioned to tackle the challenges of sustainability given its
proven track record in rejuvenating itself in terms of its feedstock,
process technologies, materials and waste valorization. From 1990
to 2013, the EU chemical industry (including pharmaceuticals)
effectively decoupled its production and environmental impact. For
example, Green House Gas (GHG) emissions decreased by 58%
while production increased by 71% [2] (Fig. 2).
Achieving sustainability goals will require the further develop-
ment of innovative technologies and the collaboration of different
stakeholders from society, private sector and public authorities.
2. How chemistry enabled innovations contribute to solving
societal challenges
The grand economic, environmental and social challenges facing
our society, such as meeting future energy demands, reducing en-
ergy and feedstock requirements, reducing pollution, minimizing
water consumption and waste water releases and achieving a cir-
cular economy (i.e., recycling, improving waste management,
making best use of essential raw materials or finding substitutes
etc.), can only be solved through a sustainability based approach
and sustainable chemistry has a central role to play.
The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development
(OECD) [5] defines sustainable chemistry as “the design, manu-
facture and use of efficient, effective, safe and more environmen-
tally benign chemical products and processes”. This definition can

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cogsc.2016.08.002
2452-2236/© 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
 P. Barthelemy, E. Agyeman-Budu / Current Opinion in Green and Sustainable Chemistry 1 (2016) 28e32 29

Fig. 1. World chemicals sales by region.

Fig. 2. EU chemicals production and greenhouse gas emissions decouple.

be further enlarged to include the three pillars of sustainability
(people, environment, competitiveness), a life cycle approach with
the acceptance of trade-offs, innovation in materials and technol-
ogies, the adoption of new business models and an inherent value
for society.
Sustainability is a top priority for the European chemical in-
dustry and, therefore, the European Chemical Industry Council
(Cefic) was a founding member the of the European Technology
Platform for Sustainable Chemistry (SusChem) which was founded
in 2004 in partnership with the European Commission (EC) to
“initiate and inspire European chemical and biochemical innova-
tion to respond effectively to society's challenges by providing
sustainable solutions” [6].
In 2015, SusChem updated its innovation priorities for the
chemical sector and outlined a portfolio of sustainable chemistry
research and innovation actions in its updated strategic agenda [7].
The document is organized around five of the seven key societal
challenges outlined in the EC's Horizon 2020 programme [8] and
highlights the sustainable solutions from chemistry and industrial
biotechnologies needed to address them while at the same time
improving the sector's industrial competitiveness (Fig. 3).
Chemical industry is a key solution provider in virtually all value
chains, with technologies and advanced materials that help Europe
achieve a more sustainable and prosperous future. The break-
through technologies needed to transform our society to a more
sustainable future will be enabled through chemistry and work is
already underway in several domains such as the development of
advanced materials for the sustainable production of renewable
electricity, including new composites for wind turbine blades and
materials for photovoltaic technologies while ensuring the recy-
clability of materials.
The development of energy storage solutions through advanced
materials and technologies for renewable energy storage is also
ongoing. Important advances have been made in the development
of materials for advanced batteries, chemical energy storage
through advanced materials and process technologies (hydrogen
and CO2 based energy carriers via power-to-gas and power-to-
liquid technologies) and novel thermal storage of energy via
phase change materials or via reversible thermochemical reaction.
The chemical industry also provides energy efficiency solutions
for buildings [9] such as advanced materials for thermal insulation,
highly energy efficient lighting, and phase change materials for
thermal storage.
The chemical industry is both a user of water and also an
30 P. Barthelemy, E. Agyeman-Budu / Current Opinion in Green and Sustainable Chemistry 1 (2016) 28e32
Fig. 3. SusChem Strategic and Research Agenda: Addressing key societal challenges.
important solution provider of innovative products, technologies
and services, which can enable more sustainable water manage-
ment. New technologies and products for water and waste water
treatments, (e.g., biocides, new membranes, reduction of nitrogen
and phosphorus emission) are contributing to better quality for
water resources. Chemistry is also key to better energy efficiency in
water treatment, for example by development of advanced mem-
branes for water purification [10]. The SusChem-inspired E4Water
project has demonstrated on an industrial scale level our ability to
decouple economic activity and water consumption by closing
water loops and enabling reuse of water in the chemical industry.
To achieve more sustainable transport systems and mobility
options [11] chemistry must play a key role by providing light-
weight structural materials, materials for more fuel efficient tyres,
advanced materials and process technologies for battery produc-
tion, and sustainable alternative fuels for transport including CO2
based fuels such as methanol, methane, gasoline and kerosene.
Many of these enabling technology solutions brought forth by
the chemical industry and its partners in academia, Research and
Technology Organisations (RTOs) and other industrial players from
a variety of different value-chains will also contribute to the
implementation of major EU policy initiatives.
3. Sustainable chemistry's contribution vital to achieve major
EU policy objectives
For example, sustainable chemistry will have an important role
in Europe's new and ambitious sustainability policy initiatives such
as the Circular Economy and the Energy Union. Technology devel-
opment (enabled through sustainable chemistry) will be required
for these initiatives, as the sustainability objectives in the packages
cannot only be achieved through the implementation of new reg-
ulations, services and business models. Indeed, the integration of
all aspects of sustainability will be essential to the implementation
of these major EU policy initiatives. In order to ensure added value
for European society, while minimizing environmental impact and
maintaining economic growth, a sustainability-based approach
across all value chains will be a prerequisite for the Circular Econ-
omy and the Energy Union.
4. Circular economy
Technology development is required for a sustainable circular
economy. Advanced technologies are essential to enable a better
use of existing resources along the whole life cycle to develop new
production and recycling paths and the expertise of the chemical
industry as a material supplier is highly valuable and important
here. In its position paper [12] on the circular economy [13] Sus-
Chem proposes that the main technology developments should
take place in the following three areas:

Utilisation of sustainable alternative feedstock including sec-
ondary raw materials, ligno-cellulosic biomass and waste or CO2
from industrial flue gases.

Design of sustainable materials enabling ‘eco design’ of products
that are easy to recycle while maintaining or improving
performance.

Improved efficiency for production processes to maximize the
use of all resources entering the system including primary and
secondary raw materials, water, and energy.
These technologies are more fully described in the SusChem's
2015 Strategic Innovation and Research Agenda (SIRA) and should
be supported through the appropriate European funding
instruments.
5. Energy union
The European Commission's Energy Union strategy, adopted in
February 2015, dedicates one of its five pillars to research, inno-
vation and competitiveness. The integrated Strategic Energy Tech-
nology (SET) Plan plays a central role in a new European energy
Research and Innovation approach designed to accelerate the
transformation of our energy system.
Advances in sustainable chemistry are key elements in
achieving the objectives of the European Commission's Energy
Union and SET-Plan. SusChem's SIRA dedicates a chapter to the
challenge of, and solutions for, Secure, Clean and Efficient Energy.
The chapter covers energy efficiency in chemical processes and
proposed solutions that are key to the competitiveness of the
 P. Barthelemy, E. Agyeman-Budu / Current Opinion in Green and Sustainable Chemistry 1 (2016) 28e32
chemical industry. It also describes how the industry's technologies
and products contribute to energy efficiency and clean energy
productions and storage for the wider society.
Examples of innovations that will contribute to further
improving energy and resource efficiency in the chemical sector
include:

Increased energy efficiency of process technologies through
advanced high performance catalysis, process intensification,
and advanced process modeling and control.

Better utilization of alternative sources of carbon such as
biomass, waste, and industrial gaseous effluents (including
CO2).

Industrial symbiosis making connections with and across in-
dustries for improved energy and resource efficiency via better
valorisation of heat, improved water management and use of
materials from waste and side streams.

Equally important are the solutions provided by the chemical
industry to the development of a low carbon economy and en-
ergy efficiency in other sectors.
6. Joining forces to address societal challenges
To tackle these pressing challenges, we need industry, govern-
ments, EU Institutions and other stakeholders to work together to
find solutions. The chemical industry is working with other
stakeholders in order to address societal challenges through several
channels and instruments.
Through our engagement in Public Private Partnerships (PPPs)
[14] such as the Biobased Industries Joint Undertaking (BBI) [15]da
new V3.7 billion partnershipdwhich is dedicated to the develop-
ment of a sustainable biobased industry sector and the Sustainable
Process Industry PPP (SPIRE) [16]da new V2 billion contractual
partnershipdwhich is dedicated to innovation in resource and
energy efficiency and enabled by the process industries, we will be
able to expand our sustainability efforts and speed up achievement
of our footprint reduction targets.
Through our engagement in European Innovation Partnerships
(EIP) [17] such as Smart Cities, the chemical sector is putting for-
ward solutions for energy efficiency in housing and mobility and
working together with other sectors such as the construction and
transport to develop insulation materials for buildings and light-
weight materials for cars to drive down emissions and reduce our
overall carbon footprint. We are also working with the EIP on Water
to boost innovation in the water sector to help achieve sustainable
use and treatment of water and to contribute to the further
development of water policy. For the EIP Raw Materials, we hope to
ensure improved supply and use of non-energy raw materials in
Europe e in particular by recycling. This will contribute to mid and
long term raw material supply security, to increased resource effi-
ciency in the EU, and to the development of new European recy-
cling activities (that are largely SME-based).
Through our engagement in the High Level Group [18] on Key
Enabling Technologies (KETs) we also support the deployment of
KETs (namely nanotechnology, biotechnology, advanced materials,
photonics, micro-nanoelectronics, and advanced manufacturing) in
and from Europe. Cefic was a member of the High Level Group on
KETs which advised the European Commission on the imple-
mentation of the strategy to foster the industrial deployment of
KETs in Europe.
Within the broad framework of sustainable development, gov-
ernment, academia and industry should strive to maximize
resource efficiency through activities such as energy and non-
erenewable resource conservation, risk minimization, pollution
31
prevention, minimization of waste at all stages of a product life-
cycle, and the development of products that are durable and can
be re-used and easily recycled. Nevertheless, we must keep in mind
that innovation and the required continuous improvements in
terms of sustainability are stimulated by appropriate framework
conditions that secure industrial competitiveness on the global
scene.
7. Conclusion
We have reviewed the current status of the European chemical
industry and its contribution to a more sustainable society. The
current progress in sustainable chemistry and how it is enabling
solutions for many of our societal challenges has been outlined. The
importance of sustainable chemistry and its contribution to the
achievement of the ambitious targets defined by new major Euro-
pean policy initiatives, such as the Circular Economy and Energy
Union, was discussed. Finally, to address today's pressing chal-
lenges, we outlined the need for industry, governments, non-
governmental institutions and other stakeholders to work
together to find and implement truly sustainable solutions.
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