Bio Polyamide Companies

October 2023

The specialty chemicals manufacturer Evonik has unveiled a new grade of bio polyamide 12 powders with the goal of enabling large-scale, sustainable 3D printing. INFINAM eCO PA12 is the first PA12 powder material in the world for industrial 3D printing. It uses a mass-balancing process to replace all fossil feedstock with bio-circular raw materials made from used cooking oil. Compared to the castor oil-based polyamides of Evonik's own INFINAM Terra development grade, the new, ready-to-use powder has a 74% lower carbon dioxide emission. Evonik is now completely aligning its portfolio of polyamide 12 powders with its circularity approach, having already introduced a new PA12 grade with a lower carbon footprint in late 2022.

Bio-circular raw materials are the foundation of true circularity. Food service providers such as restaurants, grocery stores, hotels, casinos, and others generate over 15 million tonnes of waste cooking oils every year.  

October 2023

Arkema has achieved a 46% reduction in the carbon footprint of its bio-based Rilsan polyamide 11 grades, to less than 2 kg CO2e/kg, by utilizing low-carbon or renewable energy sources and implementing various energy efficiency upgrades at its production facilities. It is about a 70% improvement over conventional polyamide resins, which are made with raw materials derived from fossil fuels and conventional energy sources.

The source of Rilsan polyamide 11 is solely renewable castor seeds, making it 100% segregated biobased. The synthesis of the amino 11 monomer and the subsequent polymers also requires a sizable amount of low-carbon and renewable energy, such as electricity and combustible fuels.

Competitive Landscape

• Arkema (France)


• DuPont (US)


• Evonik Industries AG (Germany)


• EMS-CHEMIE HOLDING AG (Switzerland)


• Lanxess (Germany)


• BASF SE (Germany)


• Mitsui Chemicals, Inc (Japan)


• Toray Industries Inc (Japan)


• AdvanSix Inc (US)


• KOLON PLASTIC INC (South Korea)