Henkel and Avantium sign offtake agreement to introduce innovative high-performance polyurethane adhesives

Avantium, a leading technology company in renewable chemistry, has signed a five-year offtake agreement with Henkel Corporation, a global leader in adhesives, sealants and functional coatings and a leading manufacturer of well-known consumer brands. Under the agreement, Avantium will supply Henkel with FDCA (furandicarboxylic acid) produced by its FDCA flagship plant, which is currently under construction in Delfzijl, the Netherlands. Avantium expects the world's first plant-based sugar-based FDCA facility to come on stream in 2024.

Henkel, headquartered in Düsseldorf, will purchase FDCA to introduce innovative, high-performance polyurethane adhesives for electronics applications that enable its customers to achieve their sustainability goals.

Since Henkel joined the PEFerence Alliance in 2019, Henkel and Avantium have maintained a partnership. The alliance, coordinated by Avantium, aims to establish an innovative FDCA and PEF (furandicarboxylic acid and polyester) supply chain. As part of the PEFerence project, Henkel has tested and actively evaluated the feasibility of FDCA for polyurethane adhesives. Now Henkel has decided to go ahead and bring these adhesives to market for electronic applications such as consumer devices.

Henkel has been committed to sustainable business practices for many years. As the market leader in adhesives, sealants and functional coatings, Henkel is making a significant contribution to climate protection by promoting innovative solutions that promote recycling and reduce CO2 along the entire value chain. "Henkel is constantly innovating high-quality and sustainable adhesives to support our customers and ecosystem partners in implementing the circular economy. Avantium's 100% plant-based FDCA strengthens our strategy to incorporate renewable carbon into our technology roadmap while delivering better performance in our products." We look forward to continuing our partnership with Avantium in the years to come." For us, this is just the beginning, as we see high potential for FDCA applications beyond electronics, such as packaging, wood construction or textile lamination," says Adrian Brandt, Head of the Biorenewable Materials Team at Henkel's Adhesives Technology Division.

Bineke Posthumus, Director of Business Development for Avantium's Renewable Polymers, commented: "We are delighted that another partner in the PEFerence Alliance has decided to enter into an offtake agreement with Avantium. One of the benefits of working with so many well-known companies in the consortium is that it allows us to create new applications for FDCA and PEF. Henkel's decision to use FDCA for polyurethane adhesives for electronics applications is an excellent example of the possibility of using our high-quality plant-based chemical ingredient FDCA in a variety of markets and applications. ”