A significant part of the work involved validating the lignin intermediates produced during the first period, with a focus on their suitability for developing bioresins and their application in various coatings:
•Polyols and polyacids were developed for polyurethane (PU) resin-coatings applications, including the non-isocyanate polyurethane (NIPU) route. A biobased PU formulation was successfully validated using scaled-up lignin polyols (LPOs). This bioresin served as the primary component in a flame-retardant waterborne formulation system, which featured a lignin content of 3.5% and a total biocontent of 35%. Additionally, a solvent-borne PU system was explored with the objective of increasing the biocontent, achieving lignin contents ranging from 9-30% and biocontents between 14-30%. These solvent-borne bioformulations demonstrated improved fire performance.
• Polyacids for alkyd resin-coatings application: fractionated lignin was successfully formulated into corrosion-resistant metal coatings, achieving a lignin and total biocontent of up to 15%. This result significantly surpassed the reference biocontent of 5%.
• Glycidated lignin, derived from depolymerized lignin, was optimized to produce epoxy resins and successfully validated in coil coating applications, achieving a lignin content and total biocontent of up to 23%.
• Antimicrobial and antiviral formulations have been developed based on bioadditives and bio resins (bioalkyd and melamine-sugar resins).
A comprehensive strategy for disseminating and exploiting of LIGNICOAT results was implemented, engaging over 180,000 stakeholders across scientific, industrial and broader audiences. Industry engagement was particularly strong, reaching more than 100,000 professionals, while nearly 48,000 researchers and academics were engaged through dissemination activities. The project’s digital presence grew significantly, with over 1,000 social media followers, 350 newsletter subscribers and seven videos showcasing our solutions, visits and events recordings. Dissemination efforts included 25 conference presentations, six organized workshops, and collaboration with other EU projects through five joint activities, enhancing the project’s visibility and impact.
Exploitation activities focused on 17 Key Exploitable Results (KERs), prioritizing seven based on innovation, impact, and market potential. Detailed business plans were developed for the industrial partners, including comprehensive analyses of external and internal environments, financial assessments, and intellectual property strategies. Revenue models were outlined for four KERs associated with the main final products. In addition, the potential exploitation routes for research institutions were updated, and a comprehensive evaluation of the broader socio-economic and environmental impacts was conducted.
