5. Glossary

biomass; biomass

Material of biological origin, produced by living organisms, with the exception of material of geological or fossil origin.

biopolymer; biopolymer

Polymers produced by living organisms, extracted from biomass. Examples: polysaccharides, proteins, bacterial polymers.

biobased polymer; polymère biosourcé

Synthetic polymer partially (generally > 20%) or totally obtained from biomass derivatives. The bio-sourced nature of a polymer can be determined by its C14 content, in accordance with ASTM D6866. For materials of totally fossil origin, the C14 content is zero.

bio-refinery; biorefinery

By analogy with a conventional refinery that operates from fossil resources, a refinery that processes biomass to...