Project description
Enzymatic recycling process makes PET more circular from complex wastes
The ubiquitous nature of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) means it is a suitable candidate for more efficient recycling methods, which would significantly reduce complex waste as well as emissions. To achieve this, the EU-funded WHITECYCLE project plans to introduce a twofold process that will allow the conversion of PET waste into high-added-value products. First, it will design technologies to increase complex waste stream PET content to 80 % and then establish a recycling method based on enzymes for the extraction of PET monomers in a sustainable manner, from all kinds of waste streams. The monomers will then be repolymerised and recycled. The innovative process will be demonstrated in a series of real cases in preparation for market uptake for high added value applications (tires, lay-flat hoses and multimaterial textiles).
Objective
PET is widely used in plastics and textiles leading to over 20 Mt/y of complex waste worldwide for which no closed-loop recycling is viable today. Most complex waste is landfilled or incinerated. There is an urgent need to develop a circular solution to convert complex PET wastes from plastics and textiles back into high-added value products.
WHITECYCLE unites 3 brand-owners, 1 PET converter, 2 waste managers, 1 digital deeptech for smart sorting, the world leading enzymatic recycling SME, 1 LCA company, 3 UNIs/RTOs, 1 cluster and 1 management firm. They aim to demonstrate two new processes combining strong scientific and industrial know-how: (i) innovative identification, sorting and separation technologies that will dramatically increase the PET content of complex waste streams to 80%, and (ii) a disruptive enzymatic recycling process that is expected to yield pure PET monomers sustainably even for impure waste streams. PET monomers obtained will be repolymerised and recycled. Thus, 2 t of waste will be used to demonstrate 3 highly technical PET-containing pilot series: 100 tyres, 1,500 m of lay-flat hoses and 400m2 of multicomponent fabric that will be coated and used to manufacture 4 lines of technical garments. Process design kits, LCA and production cost estimates will be provided to PET manufacturers and waste management companies for rapid deployment and assure social acceptance. First projections show that WHITECYCLE’s recycled PET will be competitive with virgin PET.
The project will conduct a full circle loop from real complex waste feedstock to representative product of the 3 use-cases at TRL 5. Then, a strong upscale study will allow the process steps to reach TRL 6 to 8. By 2030, WHITECYCLE will enable the annual recycling of more than 2 Mt of PET, which corresponds to the amount of additional recycled PET needed to meet the EU’s 2030 targets. This will reduce emissions by around 2.06 Mt CO2eq and avoid the landfilling of more than 1.8 Mt of PET.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- engineering and technology environmental engineering waste management waste treatment processes recycling
- engineering and technology materials engineering textiles
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.2.6 - Food, Bioeconomy Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment
MAIN PROGRAMME
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HORIZON.2.6.7 - Circular Systems
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-IA - HORIZON Innovation Actions
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) HORIZON-CL6-2021-CIRCBIO-01
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
63040 Clermont Ferrand
France
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.