Wilmington, DL, November 22--DuPont Co. is close to selling a new fiber, whose key ingredient is made by a corn-fed bacteria.
The No. 2 chemicals company aims to generate revenues of several hundred million by 2010, Dupont executives said in a recent interview.
The fiber, called Sorona, is made from PDO, or 1,3 Propanediol, which is produced by the bacteria. For decades, DuPont scientists have known about PDO as a byproduct of petroleum, which made it too costly to make on a mass scale.
Now researchers at DuPont have found a way to produce PDO from a genetically engineered bacteria that acts like a tiny chemical factory, they say. It cranks out PDO after feeding on corn sugar, which is cheaper than oil and renewable.
So while worker bees make honey and worms spin silk, these DuPont bacteria will produce 100 million pounds of PDO in 2006, company officials hope.
"After 7 years and an estimated $350 million to $400 million investment, DuPont has commercialized its Sorona polymer," said Deutsche Bank chemical analyst David Begleiter.
Sales of Sorona -- which will be woven into clothing, carpeting and car seats -- are expected to total $300 million to $600 million by 2010, according to Begleiter.
DuPont claims Sorona offers the best qualities of both nylon and polyester -- softness, resilience, easy care and stain resistance.
DuPont hopes Sorona will compete against nylon, polyester and cotton, in a global textile market that consumes 100 billion pounds of fiber each year. One key market is Asia, DuPont said.
"I'm very comfortable with the technology, the market spaces we're picked. It's a matter of getting out there quickly," said John Ranieri, vice president of applied biosciences.
The company will open a plant in Louden, Tennessee, in 2006, producing 100 million pounds a year of PDO, the company said.
Until then, DuPont wants to build up the market using the traditional petroleum-based fiber. The company is ramping up oil-based production at its North Carolina plant, Ranieri said. Right now, the plant's capacity is constrained, he said. Production is currently sold out, at 20 million pounds a year.
But the company expects to notch sales of $30 million in 2005, double this year's level.
DuPont wants to expand the Sorona market in Asia, a huge textile market, where they believe Sorona can compete, Ranieri said.
Company officials are in talks with several plant owners to convert their facilities to make Sorona. DuPont would license Sorona's recipe and the equipment need to make it, with typical plants aiming to generate 100 million pounds a year.
DuPont declined to say who the talks involve.
The goal is "to bring new technology into market places and offer products that wouldn't necessarily be possible without (our) core know-how," Ranieri said.
