MADISON, WI (October 16, 2020)--- Pyran, a company that makes renewable plastics out of corn cobs, is announcing today that their Co-Founder Dr. Kevin Barnett is among Chemical & Engineering News’ Talented 12 Chemists. These enterprising chemists are rising stars who are being honored for solving some of science’s toughest problems using chemical know-how to change the world.
Barnett discovered the plant-based method while working on his Ph.D. in chemical engineering at UW-Madison in professor George Huber’s lab. Huber and his team had a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to focus on more sustainable production of everyday chemicals that are typically made from petroleum. Barnett used his passion and perseverance to create Pyran after graduating in 2018. Barnett and other Pyran co-founders Professor George Huber, and Dr. Kefeng Huang utilized a new chemical pathway to make an oil-based chemical called 1,5-pentanediol (1,5-PDO) out of corn cobs. Products made from 1,5-PDO can be found in many everyday items such as nylon in your clothing, paint in your local home improvement store, and plastics in your car. All 1,5-PDO is currently made from oil, which Pyran will replace with its renewable corn cob-based 1,5-PDO at less than half the cost.
“There’s a lot of issues with global warming and climate change, and (petroleum) is a non-renewable resource. It’s going to run out one day,” Barnett said. “If we want to still have paints and coatings in 50 years, we need to find other ways to make them.”
“Narrowing our pool of outstanding nominees to just 12 is an increasingly daunting task,” said Chemical & Engineering News representatives. “Yet, each year we’re thrilled to learn how these scientists stand on the cutting edge of chemistry.”
This year, Pyran plans to deliver its first 10–20 metric tons of product to its customers, priced at about $3,000 a metric ton—40% less than petroleum-derived 1,5-PDO sold by large chemical companies. Barnett estimates that the market for the molecule will be about $100 million–$200 million in a few years, although that figure could rise further in the future. Pyran is working with academic collaborators to explore making new polymers for 1,5-PDO, including biodegradable plastics—an application previously left untapped due to the molecule’s historically high cost. Pyran’s future plans include manufacturing in Wisconsin and helping farmers and others in rural communities to better use their resources which will impact the world in a positive way.