ENABLING is the initiative of 16 partners in 13 EU and associated (IL, NO) countries. The main goal is to support the spreading of best practices and innovation in the provision (production, pre-processing) of biomass for the BBI (Bio-Based Industry). In particular, ENABLING aims at creating appropriate conditions for the development of efficient biomass to BBPs (Bio-Based Products and Processes) value chains. The consortium’s vision is that Europe bears a huge potential for optimising the supply of biomass into innovative bio-based processes and products. Upscaling biomass production and pre-processing, and combining streams towards the BBPs with those of more traditional bioenergy chains would enhance at least three interlinked types of impact. a) biomass production gains scale to meet higher demand in both sectors (bioenergy and the BBI); b) the reinforcement of biomass supply for the BBI benefits smaller BBI players, helping them diversify and consolidate biomass input sources; c) reinforcing the biomass and BBPs linkages may contribute to job-creation, due to the increased need for specialised workers. To realise such potential, ENABLING also anticipates its longer term exploitation pathways. In the intention of the consortium, the project should aggregate and engage partners for the establishment of a permanent innovation brokerage platform, likely to become in the future, one of the main marketplaces and innovation transfer accelerators at European level. In this sense, the project organises its work around two building blocks: one relates to animating the stakeholders (on the farming and BBPs sides), identifying best practices, turning them into easy to access content (in the EIP format) for their potential users and providing stakeholders with coaching and guidance on innovation. The other one looks at future developments, with the consolidation, in a self-sustainable way, of the innovation brokerage platforms after the end of the EU funded initiative.

The platform chemicals sector is currently highly dependent on fossil-fuels. The small volumes of current biobased platform chemicals are reliant on sugar/starch/oil crops which diverts them from food uses and there are also high environmental impacts linked with their land-use and supply cycles. Lignocellulosic feedstocks, particularly residues, are more sustainable but to date the range of chemicals that have been demonstrated at-scale from these has been limited. In particular, there are a range of functionalities associated with fossil-derived platform chemicals that current biobased chemicals cannot replicate. BIONEER addresses this issue by demonstrating production of a new range of carbohydrate-derived building blocks and platform chemicals at TRL6/7. A selection of additional functionalities obtained through carefully controlled optimised modifications and involving both chemical and enzymatic approaches are conferred to the new building blocks that, for the first time at-scale, allow for the mass-market substitution of fossil-derived chemicals in a range of application markets. BIONEER builds on the TRL4/5 advances made in the development of resource and energy-efficient processes for the production of these building blocks in prior projects. The BIONEER consortium and advisory board covers all stages of the value cycle, ranging from the sourcing of sustainable feedstocks to the extraction and modification of biomass fractions, leading to the production of building blocks that are then application tested in the UV-cured-coatings and personal care sectors by industrial partners. Safety and sustainability aspects are integral to BIONEER, which follows, and seeks to improve, the EU’s safe-and-sustainable-by-design (SSbD) framework. It is expected, due to the involvement of key technology developers and industrial partners, that the BIONEER technologies will be rapidly commercialised post-project.

LIGNOFUN is a groundbreaking initiative founded on the transformative idea to replace fossil-derived aromatic chemicals with sustainable, lignin-based alternatives while addressing environmental challenges like greenhouse gas emissions and resource depletion. In the phase one, the project aims to advance two key lignin depolymerization technologies (METNIN and OHRIGINS) to industrially relevant scale (TRL6-7) and valorize low-value underutilized lignin from paper mills into valuable aromatic molecule rich streams. The second phase focuses on validation and TRL progression for each of these depolymerized streams into high-value demonstration prototypes (such as foams, nylon 66, adhesives, coatings, composites, wood panels, cosmetics, personal care products and rubber products), showcasing their potential for superior performance and economic viability. LIGNOFUN will also conduct a thorough impact assessment through process simulations and curated mass balance data, utilizing TEA, S-LCA, ssBD, and LCC analyses to optimize sustainability, economic feasibility, and social impact. The project’s robust consortium of 18 partners (7 SMEs, 1 large company, 9 RTOs, and 1 cluster) unites expertise from both industry and research, ensuring end-user engagement and the industrial adoption of results. By engaging stakeholders across the value chain, LIGNOFUN will foster industry uptake of sustainable, bio-based alternatives. The project will revolutionize lignin utilization and empower EU industries to reduce fossil dependence, driving sustainability, innovation, and competitiveness for a greener future.

The main objective of the SOLRESS project is to propose an integrated biorefinery system to replace the chemical origin of some of the most widely used solvents in the industry, such as ethyl acetate, ethyl lactate and butyl acetate with a bio-based origin from second generation sugars from post-consumer coffee grounds and lignocellulosic feedstocks. The aim is to reinforce the integration of bio-based research and innovation throughout industrial bio-based systems. Moreover, in the valorisation process of these feedstocks, not only the cellulose fraction will be valorised, but also the hemicellulose fraction to obtain 2 of the most notorious green solvents of today, 2-MeTHF and GVL, from an additional line dedicated to the processing of furfural. The challenges will lie in improving downstream purification (DSP) processes and the techniques employed to achieve a technology that is efficient and cost-competitive with current chemical production systems for solvents. At the end of the project, all solvents will be validated in at least 3 of the most relevant applications (productive processes, formulations and recycling technologies) & at least 3 of the sectors with the greatest use of solvents (paints & coatings, cosmetics & materials processing) with the aim of evaluating its performance in comparison with its fossil-based counterparts, but also as a replacement for other dangerous and toxic solvents, such as NMP, CCL4, THF or toluene. Thus, the ambition of the SOLRESS project is triple: To replace the use of fossil, non-renewable raw materials with specific bio-based feedstocks in the production of some of the most widely used solvents. Offer SSbD alternatives to controversial solvents in terms of danger & toxicity (including the ones under the SVHC & SoCs categories). To improve the competitiveness of these processes by incorporating new methods & technologies that increase efficiency & sustainability, demonstrating their scalability & industrial applicability.

Celignis is an SME service provider focused on the compositional analysis of biomass for advanced biofuels and biorefinery applications. We are also active in several research projects related to the analysis, pre-treatment, and valorisation of biomass. Celignis is now expanding its horizons to develop innovative solutions for the production of biobased products, such as hydrogels from plant biomass. SAPHIRE “Self-Assembling Plant-based Hydrogels Induced by Redox Enzymes” is a novel process designed to produce environmentally-friendly, 100% plant-based hydrogels for food, cosmetic and pharmaceutical applications. Hydrogels from natural polymers, especially polysaccharides, are non-toxic and biodegradable, unlike synthetic hydrogels. The SAPHIRE process converts polysaccharides from underutilised agricultural residues to high-quality biobased hydrogels that can substitute for synthetic petroleum-based non-biodegradable hydrogels. The production of hydrogels from plant cell wall components using specially-designed enzyme cocktails is the key innovation of the SAPHIRE process. Celignis aims to grow as an actor in the biobased products industry by implementing the disruptive innovating SAPHIRE technology. However, while the laboratory infrastructure and many of the key multidisciplinary skills required for advancing the concept exist at Celignis, the innovation project needs additional research and development, particularly in the area of enzymes and plant cell wall modifications. An Innovation Associate, recruited through the Horizon 2020 INNOSUP programme, will complement the interdisciplinary innovation team of Celignis and fast-track the research to realise the potential of SAPHIRE. The Innovation Associate will benefit from integrating in Celignis’s dynamic and creative entrepreneurship environment and from training programs designed for personal and professional skills development and for setting a clear path to the scale-up and commercialisation of research.