Furfural and furanics (FDCA): Feedstocks
Why plants sit next to maize mills and sugar factories
What this tab covers What it is made from and what it feeds: the raw materials and energy per tonne with their share of cost (linked to the commodity table), who is low-cost and why, and the chemicals made from it.Furfural uses waste: corncobs, bagasse, rice husk. Feedstock is cheap but bulky and the process needs a lot of steam, so plants sit at maize processors or sugar mills with spare bagasse. FDCA needs fructose or glucose, so it ties to sugar and starch, and its cost depends on catalysis rather than feedstock.
Inputs per tonne
| Input | Quantity per tonne | Role | Share of cost | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mz Maize | about 8-12 t per t furfural (indicative) | pentosan source; IMARC's largest feedstock | low cash cost but large handling cost (indicative) | IMARC 2025; indicative |
| Su Sugar | not published | pentosan source at sugar mills; sugar for FDCA | low for bagasse; significant for FDCA (indicative) | IMARC; Avantium; indicative |
| Ri Rice | not published | pentosan source in India | low | IMARC; indicative |
| Steam | about 20-30 t per t furfural (indicative) | hydrolysis and stripping | large share of cost (indicative) | indicative |
| Sulphuric acid | small | catalyst | small | indicative |
Who is low-cost, and why
Chinese corncob plants with coal steam are lowest cost but face environmental curbs; sugar-mill plants using bagasse for both feed and steam are competitive (indicative). European prices of $2,000-2,500/t (2026) leave room for import competition (IMARC).
Raw materials on the commodity table
Mz MaizeSu SugarWhat it is made into
| Product | Note |
|---|---|
| PET PET resin | PEF (FDCA plus MEG) is a bio-based alternative for bottles and films |
| Adh Adhesives and sealants | furan resins for foundries |
| MEG Monoethylene glycol | MEG is the co-monomer in PEF |