The original system had been designed with expansion in mind. “The demand for Globanone® has steadily increased since then, and so we continued to develop production plans and are now working with three times the capacity,” says Esser. It is important to the chemist, however, that Symrise think beyond emissions when planning expansion. “We always have an eye on optimizing the process as well.”
In the case of Globanone®, this means that Symrise has improved the already extremely effective process based on the twelve principles of green chemistry. But optimizing an established, successful process is not easy. “We are on a constant learning curve that has enabled us over the years to greatly enhance our understanding of how certain technologies function,” says Dr. Tom Brunzel, manager at Bushy Park for the last year. The 32-year-old was involved with Globanone® during his doctorate and enjoys tinkering with processes to make them better. “For example, we still use the same catalyst as before, but use far less material,” he explains, describing one of their successes.
The consumption of solvents has fallen drastically, and the solvents used are now based on renewable raw materials. “We can also recycle both solvents by condensing them from the gas byproducts and keeping them in the cycle,” says Brunzel, explaining another benefit. Other decisive factors for process improvement are efficient energy recovery and a clear reduction in water consumption. Both have been achieved. Symrise uses what is known as vapor recompression to recover evaporation heat. This means that much less external energy is required and far less water is used. “The first stage of our production is free of process wastewater. We are currently working on solutions for the further stages in order to eliminate the very small amounts of wastewater,” says Dr. Tom Brunzel.
All these steps mean that Globanone® can be produced with virtually zero waste. “Globanone® works on both a sensory and a practical level,” says Peter Esser. “Our perfumers have told us that the fragrance molecule gives a warm, velvety and long-lasting musk note. It lifts other fragrances but doesn’t overpower them. It also offers substance, stability and volume.” The investment in Bushy Park has been very worthwhile, says Esser – both for the product and the environment.