Circa and iFormulate Collaborate to Launch Biosolvant

On August 16, 2017, Circa Group, a biotechnology company, announced a collaboration with formulation science consultancy iFormulate to launch Cyrene, a biosolvent. Created through the conversion of platform chemical Levoglucosenone, Cyrene is a chiral dipolar aprotic solvent and bio-based alternative to polar aprotic solvents such as N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP), dimethyl carbonate (DCM), and dimethyl formamide (DMF), which are under regulatory pressure worldwide due to their toxicity.

According to company, more than two years of testing and trialing has shown the biosolvant to be a safer alternative to traditional solvents.

Commenting on the partnership, Dr. Jeff Eaves, general manager at Circa subsidiary company Circa Sustainable Chemicals UK, said in a company press release, “The market understands there is no direct drop-in replacement for traditional, toxic solvents; therefore, process and formulation trials are crucial for developing bio-based alternatives. As Cyrene is introduced across the market, we are grateful for iFormulate’s considerable industry experience and strong reputation as expert consultants to formulators across the UK and Europe. We look forward to using their formulation knowledge to support our customers.”

Dr. David Calvert, director and co-founder of iFormulate, added, “Sustainability is a critical driver for many new formulation programs. We have followed the development of Cyrene over a number of years and are looking forward to helping the Circa team as they work with customers across a number of the formulation sectors.”

Circa specializes in converting waste biomass into advanced bio-based chemicals, with a portfolio including biosolvents, flavors, and biopolymers. iFormulate provides R&D services in formulation science and technology to companies who develop and produce formulated products across a range of sectors.

Source: Circa Group