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Company that turns CO2 into eco-friendly plastic gets new CEO




Company that turns CO2 into eco-friendly plastic gets new CEO

Company that turns CO2 into eco-friendly plastic gets new CEO

mongabay.com
October 20, 2008



Novomer, a firm developing biodegradable plastics using carbon dioxide instead of petroleum as a feedstock, today announced the appointment of Jim Mahoney as its new chief executive officer and the relocation of company headquarters from Ithaca, N.Y. to Boston, Mass.



Mahoney recently served as the CEO of Surface Logix, a small molecule drug discovery and development company.



Novomer has been lauded by sustainability experts for its novel technology that “allows carbon dioxide and other renewable materials to be cost-effectively transformed into polymers, plastics and other chemicals for a wide variety of industrial markets”. The process — akin to how plants convert carbon into energy — is catalyzed by limonene oxide, a compound found in orange peels, and produces a 100-percent renewable, non-fossil fuel based polymer, according to Novomer President Charles Hamilton, who presented Sunday at the Bioneers conference in San Rafael.



“The demand for alternative materials is set to explode, based on the need to reduce environmental impact and cut costs while vastly improving performance,” said Mahoney.



In June of this year, Novomer announced its first commercial product, a clean-burning binder for manufacturing processes.



Novomer is backed by DSM Venturing, Flagship Ventures, and and Physic Ventures. The company has received support from the Department of Energy and the National Science Foundation.




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