Descripción del proyecto
De residuo a combustible sostenible
La rápida transición a una economía basada en la biotecnología ha planteado a investigadores e industrias el reto de desarrollar procesos sostenibles. Por ejemplo, las plantas de biocombustibles de segunda generación generan una cantidad significativa de lodos ricos en lignina como subproducto tras la sacarificación de los carbohidratos. El equipo del proyecto FALCON, financiado con fondos europeos, abordará el reto del flujo de residuos de lodos ricos en lignina, que crece exponencialmente a medida que se construyen más plantas. En concreto, en el proyecto estos residuos se convertirán en combustibles de transporte, aditivos para combustibles y componentes químicos, minimizando los residuos y ofreciendo alternativas a los procesos basados en recursos fósiles. Mediante la conversión enzimática y química suave, el proceso del proyecto FALCON proporcionará un método ecológico para la producción de combustibles y productos químicos.
Objetivo
The transition to a biobased economy puts strong challenges on researchers and industry to develop sustainable processes. 2G biofuel plants use waste streams as substrates, but themselves generate a new waste stream of lignin-rich sludge that is left after saccharification of the carbohydrates. This waste stream is expected to exponentially increase with an increasing number of 2G bioethanol plants being built, according to a report of the International Energy Agency.
FALCON aims to convert this lignin-rich industrial waste of 2G biofuel plants to higher value products, in particular shipping fuels, fuel additives and chemical building blocks. This would be the next consecutive step in turning waste to products, thus minimizing waste and simultaneously providing new alternatives for fossil resource based processes. The FALCON process is based on enzymatic and mild chemical conversion of the lignin waste stream, providing a more environmentally friendly approach to the production of fuels and chemical building blocks.
FALCON takes full advantage of the lessons learned over the last 150 years in the petrochemical industry with respect to design of the processes. This implies an initial treatment at the 2G bioethanol plant, converting the waste to a lignin oil that can be more easily transported and also directly used as a low sulphur shipping fuel. It will be further converted into fuel additives and chemical building blocks in centralized facilities.
To achieve this, FALCON has formed a consortium of industry (3), SME (4) and academics (2) covering the whole value chain from a 2G biofuel plant delivering the lignin waste to enzyme producers, chemists and process engineers to depolymerize the lignin to oil. End-users are a fuel and chemicals producer and a ship engine developer. This unique combination of expertise and infrastructure will ensure the development of three new value chains with a strong emphasis on the economical sustainability.
Ámbito científico
- engineering and technologyenvironmental engineeringenergy and fuelsrenewable energy
- social scienceseconomics and businesseconomicsbioeconomy
- natural scienceschemical sciencesorganic chemistryaromatic compounds
- engineering and technologyindustrial biotechnologybiomaterialsbiofuels
- natural sciencesbiological sciencesbiochemistrybiomoleculesproteinsenzymes
Programa(s)
Convocatoria de propuestas
Consulte otros proyectos de esta convocatoriaConvocatoria de subcontratación
H2020-NMBP-BIO-2016
Régimen de financiación
RIA - Research and Innovation actionCoordinador
1011 JV AMSTERDAM
Países Bajos