Corporate Manufacturing and Environmental

Corporate Manufacturing and 
Environmental Management:

Outline

Examples of Industry‐Academia‐Government 
Alliances, and Collaboration with NPOs

1. Environmental management at the Asahi
Kasei Group
2. Examples of cooperation between industry,
academia,
d i andd governmentt

October 6, 2012

2-1. Successful examples
2-2. Promising future examples

Yoshihiko Nagasato, Ph.D.
Counsellor, Asahi Research Center
Chairman, Sub-Committee
on Industry-Academia-Government Cooperation,
Committee on Industrial Technology, Keidanren

3. Conclusion

2

World Events and Asahi Kasei Group Developments

Business Development Meeting the Needs of the Times

Worldwide

Japan

Asahi Kasei Group

1905–

Spread of electric
power

•Hydroelectric
Founding
generation
phase
•Ammonia production
(using hydropower)

1950–

Rachel Carson’s
Silent Spring (1962)

•Cadmium
poisoning (Toyama)
•Mercury poisoning
(Minamata)
•Asthma ((Yokkaichi))

Ion-exchange
membrane (chloralkali without
mercury)

Development
phase

1970–

•Club of Rome’s The
Limits to Growth
(1972)
•Rhine River pollution
•Oil shocks

•Photochemical
smog
•Development and
spread of energy
conservation
technology

•Hebel Haus™
•Neoma™ foam
(energy conserving
products)

Development
phase

1990–

•Earth Summit in Rio
de Janeiro (1992)
•Johannesburg
Declaration (2002)

Enactment of Basic
Environment Act

Microza™ (product
protecting water
quality)

Stable
growth
phase

4

3

Improving Water Quality

Contributing to the Development of a Recycling‐oriented Society
～ aiming for zero emissions ～

Microza™ microfiltration for large-scale water treatment

Reducing waste for final disposal (landfill) by recycling and reuse

Removing pathogenic protozoa and
particles by passing feed water
through hollow-fiber membranes

•Purifying municipal and
industrial wastewater, recycling
water
•Securing safe drinking water
(removing Cryptosporidium etc.)
5

Approximately 50% share in US
membrane water treatment technology

6


Application of Materials and Devices for the Environment

Harmony with the Environment in Housing Business
Home (product)
Utilization of
natural energy

Other

Homes with solar/fuel-cell
power generation

Environmental manufacturing
•Reducing unit energy
consumption
•Reducing waste

Homes with geothermal
heating/cooling system
Homes with rooftop gardens,
l f
leaf-covered
d walls
ll
Reducing the
environmental
footprint

•High-efficiency heat-pump
water heaters
•Home-use fuel-cell system
•Improved thermal insulation
performance (Neoma™ foam)

Environmental distribution
•Resource circulation
center (separation and
recycling)
Environmental construction
•Return and reuse of
packaging materials

•Recycling of panel
trimmings

7

8

New Environmental Cities for an Aging Society
City Hall

Cinema

Ｐ

Outline

Concert hall

1. Environmental management at the Asahi
Kasei Group
2. Examples of cooperation between industry,
academia,
d i andd governmentt

Bank

Waste treatment
facilities

City with ring-shaped light rail

Concentrating services for residents
Distributed power generation (fuel cells,
gas turbines,
t bi
etc.)
t )

Shopping center

Smart grid

2-1. Successful examples
2-2. Promising future examples

Zero emissions
Power supply centers

Restaurant

Ｐ

Interchange of
electricity and heat

3. Conclusion

School
Hospital
Hotel

Retirement home

Solar panels,
fuel cells

9

10

from AIST

2‐1. Successful examples

Insulating Resign with Electric Insulation 
Performance and Flexibility

Outline

“8th Industry‐Academia‐Government Collaboration Contribution Award” (2010)
Kazuhiko SATO
Principal Research Scientist
Research Institute for Innovation in Sustainable Chemistry,
National Institute of Advanced Science and Technology (AIST)

Hiromichi SHIMADA
Deputy Director
National Institute of Advanced Science and Technology (AIST)

Hiroshi UCHIDA
Corporate Fellow

Showa Denko K. K. (SDK)

Outline
Kazuhiko SATO
¾Design of catalysts suitable for selective oxidation reactions with hydrogen peroxide.
¾Development of organic solvent- and halogen-free epoxidation process.

Hiromichi SHIMADA
¾Direction of AIST R&D team and SDK as a project leader.
¾Acceleration of R&D by the suitable measure.

Hi hi UCHIDA
Hiroshi
¾Design of a novel hardening agent
¾Complete development of the resist combined with the epoxy compound.

Results

Some products including the insulating resign.

There is a problem of the long-term performance degradation for the
conventional epoxy resigns, because of the organic chloride impurities
contaminated during the manufacturing process. SDK and AIST developed
under close collaboration a novel epoxy compound and hardening agent by
using hydrogen peroxide oxidation technology, which generate only water
as a by-product and can be carried out without any chlorine-based solvent
or chemicals. As a result, created epoxy resigns showed high flexibility and
long-term stability. Furthermore, it had more than 100 times higher
electrical resistance than the traditional ones. Thus this new resign is
expected to contribute to the compact, high-performance, and long-lived

electronics products.
11

1. Environmental management at the Asahi
Kasei Group
2. Examples of cooperation between industry,
academia,
d i andd governmentt
2-1. Successful examples
2-2. Promising future examples

3. Conclusion

12


from COCN

2‐2. Promising future examples

Biofuels from Microalgae

• Jointly established an open innovation research association
• Developing full-scale production technologies
Process

Raw material
production

Harvesting,

transportation,
and storage

Enzyme
saccharification

Pretreatment

Yeast
fermentation

• COCN "Development of Biofuels from Microalgae" Project in progress
• Establishing technology roadmap to achieve full-scale production process
Concentration
and dehydration

Culture
Cellulose
(acts as main
reinforcement)

Ethanol

Open pond

reinforcement)

Large-scale, highLargehighefficiency plant
material production

Low -cost
Lowenzyme

High--efficiency
High
pretreatment

saccharification

High--efficiency
High
fermentation

Concentration
and dehydration
energy reduction

Bio reactor
Toyota, Kajima, JX NOE

Oils and
fats

Micro
algae
l

Anhydrous
ethanol

(C6 sugar)
Difficult-to-ferment

Issues

Fuel
production

Extraction of
oils and fats

Condensation/dryness
Culture
fl id
fluid

Easy-to-ferment
sugar

sugar
Energy-source plants Lignin
Hemicellulose
Non-arable land
(grass, wood fiber)(acts like cement) (acts as supplementary
(C5 sugar)
Harvesting,
transportation, and
storage cost
reduction

from COCN

2‐2. Promising future examples

Bioethanol from Cellulosic Materials

JX NOE, Mitsubishi, Toray

JX NOE, Sapporo

（Dried）
Extraction

Centrifugal Dryness
condensation
Algae volume In
culture
fluid(ex.): 0.1%

Oils and fats
volume in dried
algae(ex): 30%

Refining

Extraction residue

Issues

The University of Tokyo

Agriculture, forestry and fisheries-related research institutions

Joint
research

Selection of Micro Algae,
High-efficiency Cultivation
High-

Low Energy
Condensation and
dry method

Low Energy
extraction method,
effective use of extraction residue

Process
Optimization
14

13

Tsukuba Innovation Arena
for Nanotechnology (TIA‐nano)

Technologies to Solve Environment and Energy Problems

3 Core
Infrastructure

N-MEMS

Nano-Green

Carbon Nanotubes

Nano-Material Safety

Solar thermal 
Power generation

Fuel Cell

Heat resistance 
materials

Insulation/
Radiation 
materials

Fundamental materials
Rare metal 
free
(Platinum etc.)
Rare earth free
(Dy etc.)

Nanodevice Research Foundry
Nanotech Open User Facilities

Hydrogen

Thermoelectric 
Conversion

Thermal 
power 
generation

Power Electronics

Fuel

Networking School of
Nanotechnology

15

Mine

Environmental
Catalyst

Next generation
Power transmission

TThermal Energy

Artificial

photosynthesis
Solar light

Nanoelectronics

Secondary 
Battery

electrolysis

Electric Energy

Photovoltaics

Global Center for Nanotechnology Research Base
formed by AIST・NIMS・Tsukuba Univ. ,
with support from Keidanren

6 Core
Research
Domains

from NIMS

2‐2. Promising future examples

2‐2. Promising future examples

Fuel cell bus
Fuel cell bus

Safe battery
EV/HV

Local power 
transmission

Green Building

matters/
materials/
resources
EV/HV

Magnet

16

3. Conclusion

Evolution of Corporate Manufacturing and
Environmental Management 

Outline
1. Environmental management at the Asahi
Kasei Group
2. Examples of cooperation between industry,
academia,
d i andd governmentt

Solution driven R&D requires diverse knowledge
Strengthening R&D for environmental technology
is a national issue

2-1. Successful examples
2-2. Promising future examples

3. Conclusion

Industry‐University‐Government Cooperation
is the Key
17

18