The MACBETH consortium provides a breakthrough technology for advanced downstream processing by combining catalytic synthesis with the corresponding separation units in a single highly efficient catalytic membrane reactor (CMR). This disruptive technology has the ability to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) of large volume industrial process by up to 45 %. Additionally, resource and energy efficiency will be increased by up to 70%. The revolutionary new reactor design will not only guarantee substantially smaller and safer production plants, but has also a tremendous competitive advantage since CAPEX is decreased by up to 50% and OPEX by up to 80%. The direct industrial applicabilty will be demonstrated by the long term operation of TRL 7 demo plants for the highly relevant and large scale processes: hydroformylation, hydrogen production, propane dehydrogenation. The confidence of the MACBETH consortium to reach its highly ambitious goals are underlined by two special extensions that go well beyond the ordinary scope of an EU project: 1) Transfer of CMR technology to biotechnology: Within MACBETH we will demonstrate that starting from building blocks of TRL 5 (not from a TRL 5 pilot plant), that fit the requirements of selective enzymatical cleavage of fatty acids with the combined support and system knowledge of the experienced CMR partners, a TRL 7 demo plant will be established and operated 2) Creation of the spin-off European “Lighthouse Catalytic Membrane Reactors” (LCMR) within MACBETH: A European competence center for CMR will be established already within the MACBETH project with an actual detailed business plan including partner commitment. These efforts will ultimately lead to the foundation of the “Lighthouse Catalytic Membrane Reactors” (LCMR) that will provide access to the combined knowledge of the MACBETH project .

The CO2Fokus project aims to realise the full potential of a number of concrete strategies to exploit the direct use of CO2 for the production of dimethyl ether (DME) by CO2 hydrogenation. With CO2 utilisation at its heart, CO2Fokus will seek to exploit the inherent advantages of both chemical and electrochemical systems to establish robust, industrially optimal proofs-of-concept, reaching TRL 6 by the end of the project. The project will explore energy-efficient processes for two separate, potentially integrated systems, namely a 3D printed multichannel reactor and a solid oxide fuel cell (for co-electrolysis and electrolysis/reverse operation). Both systems will be evaluated for operational flexibility in an industrial environment with a CO2 emission point source. H2, as a renewable energy source, will be supplied via the solid oxide cell operating in electrolysis mode, The central focus will be on producing tangible improvements to the industrial processes in terms of energy efficiency and cost saving, by optimising the most promising conventional catalyst systems as well as innovative carbon-based ones. To this end, the catalyst will be printed and assembled as multi-channel arrays into modular, mobile prototype demonstration units. To enhance the effectiveness of the partners’ innovation efforts and reach ambitious commercial goals, CO2Fokus draws on expertise from partners across the industrial value chain, from industrial CO2 emitters, experts in catalyst manufacturing, petrochemical process engineering, chemistry and fuel cell specialists, offering a wealth of inter-disciplinary and market-oriented experience.

OxiGEN aims at developing an innovative SOFC technical platform, including an all-ceramic stack design and a modular hotbox, for small stationary applications. Thanks to its higher durability and simpler design, this novel stack can fulfill the customers’ needs for long lifetime, high efficiency and low cost, in micro-CHP and other segments. A broad pan-European consortium of seven major players (ICI Caldaie, R&D centers Fraunhofer-IKTS, EIFER, CEA Liten, SINTEF, utility ENGIE, global ceramist and project coordinator Saint-Gobain) will partner to integrate the all-ceramic stack into an original hot box solution. Functional specifications will be set by a qualified Advisory Panel, gathering European system integrators and gas utilities in addition to the JRC and other consortium members. The solution’s design will be modular and will address the specifications and standards suggested by the Advisory Panel, in order to provide a technical platform serving several market segments while fostering open competition between industry players. This new platform is of European ownership and leverages a European supply chain, thus supporting the emergence of a European fuel cell industry fully independent from Asian fuel cell technology. The projects’ technical objectives address all the call challenges: • Define, with input from the Advisory Panel, the most suitable hotbox functional specifications for residential and commercial segments • Develop a higher power stack to reach the call’s technical targets • Develop a modular hot box concept and build a 1kWe prototype (in practice, 500We to 1500We depending on preferred micro-CHP power specification) • Assess the performance of the prototype in system-like conditions • Study the cost-of-ownership of the solution • Propose material-based solutions for future long-term improvements • Ensure the manufacturability and compatibility of the new hotbox with the EU supply chain • Disseminate results and build the exploitation plan