Hemp-derived cellulose offers superior absorption and eco-friendly solutions

The manufacture and discard of traditional superabsorbent materials — typically made from synthetic polymers, primarily polyacrylate-based compounds — are affecting the planet. Purdue University researchers are developing biodegradable materials that retain water in a cleaner, more sustainable way and have much less environmental impact.

Senay Simsek leads a team of researchers in Purdue’s College of Agriculture using cellulose extracted from hemp and refined through a sequence of treatments to create the patent-pending, superabsorbent materials. Simsek is a professor in and the head of the Department of Food Science, and holds the Dean’s Chair in Food Science.

“We are passionate about the potential of our product to make a significant environmental impact,” Simsek said. “By introducing a commercial product that helps save our planet, we aim to lead the way in sustainable innovation — helping to heal the planet one application at a time.”

Drawbacks with traditional superabsorbent materials

Traditional superabsorbent materials are used around the globe in multiple applications including disposable diapers, feminine hygiene products and agricultural water retainers.

“This widespread use exacerbates their environmental impact due to the volume of waste generated and the universal nature of the problems they cause,” Simsek said.

Production of traditional superabsorbent polymers often requires significant energy inputs, which contributes to their overall environmental footprint. Also, they are made from raw materials derived from nonrenewable resources, like petroleum-based products, which also are used to make plastics and various chemicals.

“The reliance on petroleum-based materials in their production is a further concern, as it ties these products to fluctuating oil prices and geopolitical tensions,” Simsek said, noting that this also leads to the depletion of limited resources. “Transitioning to materials like hemp-based cellulose could mitigate this issue by utilizing a renewable resource to produce superabsorbent materials.”

Finally, the waste from used, nonbiodegradable, disposable diapers alone is impacting the planet’s health. The World Economic Forum reported in August 2023 that over 300,000 disposable diapers are incinerated or taken to landfills each minute. Babies use between 4,000 and 6,000 diapers before they are potty-trained. Those numbers don’t include the billions of menstrual pads and tampons discarded annually in the U.S. alone.

Purdue innovative materials

Simsek said hurds and bast are two parts of the hemp plant that offer unique benefits for sustainable material development, particularly in absorption technologies.

“Hemp hurds, found in the inner woody core of the hemp stalk, are highly absorbent due to their high cellulose content and low lignin levels. This makes them an excellent alternative for superabsorbent applications,” she said. “Hemp bast, the fibrous outer layer, while less absorbent, provides strength and durability.”

She added, “The cellulose extracted from these parts is particularly effective because its molecular structure can be modified to enhance its water retention capabilities, making it ideal for products requiring high absorbency.”

Simsek said the Purdue process to refine the cellulose extracted from hemp involves a carefully designed sequence of treatments.

“The treatments break down the natural structure of the cellulose, increasing its surface area and porosity. This enhancement allows the cellulose to absorb and retain more water,” she said. “A fitting analogy would be turning a compact sponge into a more open, fluffy one. This alteration dramatically improves its ability to soak up and hold moisture, which is crucial for applications that demand high absorbency. The uniqueness of our technology lies in its versatility, making it highly tunable for diverse applications of superabsorbent materials across various industries.”

Along with diapers and hygiene products, the Purdue-developed material could be applied to water retention in agriculture.

“For water retention in agriculture, the improved water efficiency helps maintain crop health during droughts, offering a sustainable alternative to traditional superabsorbents that can harm the soil and plant growth,” Simsek said. “Our approach conserves water and supports the ecosystem by providing a biodegradable solution that integrates seamlessly into natural cycles.”

Another application is biosensors used in a variety of industries.

“These include glucose strips and pregnancy tests,” Simsek said. “The versatility stems from the material’s ability to respond dynamically to environmental changes. This trait is essential for timely and accurate biosensing.”

Validation and next steps

Simsek and her team tested the Purdue superabsorbent materials made from hemp using standardized absorbency tests, which compared them against traditional superabsorbent materials such as polyacrylate-based products.

“The hemp hurd, due to its enhanced surface area and porosity from our refining process, showed significantly higher absorption capacity than both hemp bast and many traditional materials,” she said. “This validation underscores not only the effectiveness of our technology but also its potential to replace less sustainable options in the market, offering a biodegradable and renewable alternative.”

Simsek said the next step to bring the superabsorbent materials to the market is to scale up the technology to industrial levels.

“This scaling phase is vital not only for refining our process but also for demonstrating the practical applications of our innovation in agriculture and food packaging, areas where sustainable solutions are urgently needed,” she said.

“We are passionately pursuing further collaborations with industry leaders who share our vision of replacing traditional superabsorbents with our biodegradable, sustainable alternative,” Simsek said. “This support will be instrumental in helping us meet regulatory requirements and achieve widespread adoption, ultimately allowing us to provide future generations with a cleaner, more sustainable way to retain water and reduce environmental impact.”

Simsek disclosed the superabsorbent hemp-based materials to the Purdue Innovates Office of Technology Commercialization, which has applied for a patent from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to protect the intellectual property. Industry partners interested in developing or commercializing the work should contact Dipak Narula, assistant director of business development and licensing — physical sciences, at [email protected] about track code 70273.

Gevo, Inc. (NASDAQ: GEVO), along with its wholly owned subsidiary, Verity Holdings, LLC, (“Verity”), and ClearFlame Engine Technologies, Inc., (“ClearFlame”) announced today a collaboration to drive decarbonization traceability from field-to-fleet for the road freight transportation market in the United States, which consumes an estimated 29 billion gallons of fuel every year.

Under this collaboration, the parties intend to use Verity’s proprietary carbon accounting software to authenticate the carbon intensity (CI) of biofuels derived from crops grown on U.S. farms to their consumption in ClearFlame-equipped trucks. The Verity platform would track environmental attributes from field-to-fleet. At the field level, data regarding the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions required to grow a crop are tracked to calculate a CI score for the crop, e.g., corn. That corn is then processed by an ethanol plant where the energy usage, potential carbon capture and other carbon abatement efforts would be quantified to deliver low-carbon ethanol for use by ClearFlame and their customers.

By replacing diesel fuel with engines that run on 100% ethanol, ClearFlame has shown greenhouse gas emissions reductions of 42%, helping companies to meet their ESG goals while supporting rural communities. In addition, a ClearFlame retrofit changes fewer than 5% of parts on an existing vehicle. With the addition of access to low-carbon ethanol that would be tracked and verified by Verity, the ClearFlame technology has a path to deliver net zero solutions to the freight industry.

“ClearFlame is the only engine and technology design offering the lowest cost per mile and carbon output with performance comparable to a diesel engine,” said BJ Johnson, CEO and cofounder of ClearFlame Engine Technologies. “Customers have been looking for a way to report these savings and secure emissions credits more easily. Through our collaboration with Gevo and Verity, we are making tracking carbon abatement easy, effective and efficient.”

“Consumers are demanding real, authenticated steps toward decarbonization. Verity’s end-to-end carbon accounting solution (e.g., from the field to fuel producer to use in a fleet), enables our partners to show verifiable progress in their decarbonization efforts. We believe this will foster demand for low carbon intensity biofuels, accelerate the transition to regenerative agriculture practices and incentivize further investments in decarbonization.” said Ron Zink, COO of Verity.

Honor recognizes 30 professionals in Indiana’s advanced manufacturing and logistics industries

Conexus Indiana today announced the newest members of the Conexus Indiana Rising 30, an exclusive group of young professionals recognized for their early-career accomplishments in the advanced manufacturing and logistics industries.

The Rising 30 program, presented by KSM, is in its fourth year and is part of Conexus Indiana’s mission to strengthen Indiana’s advanced manufacturing and logistics industries. Program honorees represent Indiana’s top talent under the age of 30 who will drive the state’s advanced manufacturing and logistics industries successfully into the future.

This year’s winners exemplify leadership and innovation in Indiana’s largest industry sector and are poised to become Indiana’s future industry leaders.

“The dynamic professionals named to this year’s Rising 30 cohort are defining what it means to be a young leader in Indiana’s AML sector,” said Fred Cartwright, president and CEO of Conexus Indiana. “I’m more optimistic than ever about the future of industry in Indiana after meeting this year’s honorees and learning about their accomplishments and plans for the future.”

This year’s honorees represent diverse professions, including engineers, entrepreneurs and business owners, educators, CEOs and product developers who exemplify leadership and innovation in their workplaces and across the industry at large. The companies they work for range from global companies to local start-ups located in cities and towns all across the state, from Elkhart to Columbus to Evansville.

Rising 30 candidates are nominated by their employer or an industry representative, and winners are selected based on their career accomplishments to date. In the coming year, the Rising 30 honorees will participate in Conexus Indiana’s work by serving as thought leaders on subjects ranging from emerging technologies and smart manufacturing to talent development.

2024 Rising 30 honorees are being honored during a special event this evening in downtown Indianapolis.

To meet each honoree, visit www.conexusindiana.com/rising-30.

Funding will accelerate manufacturing of 100% compostable seedpods used in anu’s smart gardens

Anu™, a health and wellness brand developing innovative controlled-environment agriculture systems, has received a $194,197 grant through the National Science Foundation’s Technology Enhancement for Commercial Partnerships, or TECP, program.

Purdue University alumni Scott Massey and Ivan Ball founded anu, which has received funding from Purdue Innovates. Anu currently is led by partners Sven Nelson, Ball and Massey.

Anu commercializes fully automated, in-home and commercial smart gardens that grow daily servings of produce using compostable seedpods and aeroponics. Aeroponics is a form of hydroponics, the technique of growing plants without soil.

CEO Massey said the grant marks a significant milestone in anu’s journey to redefine home gardening and localized production.

“This TECP funding from the NSF will help us in the final push to commercialization,” he said. “It will support the development for high-throughput manufacturing of 100% compostable seedpods.”

The supplemental funding opportunity is for active NSF Small Business Innovation Research or Small Business Technology Transfer Phase II grant awardees. The NSF awarded anu a Phase II SBIR grant for $970,993 in 2023.

Simplifying aeroponics, addressing energy concerns

Massey said anu’s technology is based on aeroponics, a soil-free growing method developed by NASA. It grows food three times faster and uses 90% less water than traditional gardening, and it enables monthly harvests year-round without pesticides or preservatives.

Massey said the anu technology also enables users to grow fresh produce near or at the point of consumption.

“This eliminates the need for perishable produce supply chains that are prone to losses as much as 40% from field through the end consumer,” he said. “These losses exacerbate an already stressed environment that must overproduce to account for supply chain losses.”

Massey said anu’s innovations simplify traditional aeroponic cultivation, which requires skilled labor and expensive equipment to manage nutrients and pH levels. He draws a parallel between the company’s seedpods and Keurig’s single-serve coffee makers.

“Keurig transformed coffee brewing from a time-consuming task into a quick, convenient process,” he said. “Similarly, our compostable seedpods simplify home and commercial cultivation by packaging seeds, growth media and nutrients into a single consumable that can be composted or replanted in soil. This eliminates the complexity and skilled labor associated with traditional systems, which addresses the greatest barrier to widespread adoption.”

Massey said anu’s innovations also address criticisms of high power consumption leveled against the traditional controlled-environment agriculture industry.

“Our proprietary Rotary Aeroponics® system, refined quietly over the past few years, significantly enhances energy efficiency in terms of grams of produce per kilowatt-hour,” he said. “The system is inspired by biomimicry of trees and optimizes light exposure. It reduces the total number of LEDs needed to illuminate the aeroponic tower expanding outer plant canopy, demonstrating our commitment to reducing energy consumption while improving yield.”

Expanding produce options

Massey said anu is expanding its Pure Produce® offerings into flowering and fruiting plants like peppers, tomatoes and cucumbers. He said these plants have a longer growth cycle and more specific lighting requirements, making them much harder to grow than leafy green produce due to energy demands.

“Traditional nonrotary systems struggle with managing thermodynamic heat from lights, leading to high costs or unwanted heating in homes, making it impossible to profitability grow fruiting varieties beyond less light-intensive leafy greens varieties such as lettuces, kales, etc.,” he said. “Anu’s remarkably efficient system operates at about $5 per month in power for daily servings of produce, a small fraction of the power costs of other systems, with the potential to be even more efficient in the near future.”

Anu received a $75,000 investment from the Ag-Celerator Fund, co-founded by the Purdue Research Foundation and Purdue’s College of Agriculture. It has received Phase I and Phase II SBIR grants from the National Science Foundation and matching funds from Elevate Ventures, as well as a $200,000 Indiana Manufacturing Readiness Grants award.

Massey recently was named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 in the Manufacturing and Industry category. Anu received the AgriNovus Indiana HungerTech Challenge Award at the 25th annual TechPoint Mira Awards, recognizing its work in market-driven technologies that enhance food distribution and security. TechPoint, a Central Indiana Corporate Partnership initiative, supports Indiana’s digital innovation economy and tech ecosystem.

“Indiana’s long-standing industry expertise of appliances and advanced polymer materials for consumer packaged goods has been instrumental in anu’s initial success, leading to profound and lasting impacts toward sustainability and food sovereignty,” Massey said.