Periodic Reporting for period 2 - AgRefine (A Disruptive Innovative Cooperative Entrepreneurial (DICE) education, training and skills development programme rolling out the next generation of Agri Biorefinery and Valorisation Bioeconomy leaders)
Periodo di rendicontazione: 2021-10-01 al 2024-03-31
Europe’s agri-sector is facing both a sustainability and socio-economic crisis due to the combined challenges of increasing environmental pressures through fossil fuel consumption and waste generation, increasing dependence on imported plant-based protein sources (feed), and lack of well-paid rural employment. Biorefinery and waste to energy technologies that are being promoted as mechanisms by which agricultural challenges can be simultaneously addressed, have until now been presented as stand-alone agri-valorisation systems and not integrated processes that holistically take into consideration the technical and socio-economic aspects of all operations from input feedstocks to end- and side-products. Consequently, the EU is seeking greater resource efficiency and a switch to a bio-based economy to deliver firstly, a sustainable production of renewable resources and secondly, to produce a mechanism by which the production of food, feed, bio-based products, biofuels and bioenergy is maximised.
AgRefine proposes to disrupt the mechanism by which biomass is currently being used by cooperatively integrating innovative stand-alone technologies so that the highest value, socio economically beneficial products per input substrates, can be achieved.
AgRefine European Training Network is providing 15 Early Stage Researchers (ESRs) core and advanced research skills as well as transferable skills that arm the ESRs with the necessary skills and knowledge to position Europe as the global leader in developing an agri-bioeconomy industry based on advanced biorefinery technologies. AgRefine aims to provide the EU with high-skilled human capital, able to cooperate across sectors, implement sustainable interdisciplinary solutions and make this outcome policy relevant.
The main goal of the AgRefine Network is to train PhD students to become the bioeconomy leaders of tomorrow with the necessary skills and knowledge to understand and address this mix of technology, system, and supply-chain challenges to position Europe as the global leader in developing an agri-bioeconomy industry based on advanced biorefinery technologies. The AgRefine integrated training programme will facilitate the amelioration of Europe’s agri-sector competitiveness and environmental sustainability challenges by creating new and optimising current agri-resource and agri-waste valorisation pathways. The goals of the network will be achieved by a unique combination of “hands-on” research training, non-academic placements, summer schools and workshops on research-related and transferable skills facilitated by the academic and non-academic composition of the consortium.
AgRefine has three research sub-objectives that will address the complete range of process engineering, life cycle assessment, supply chain management, and stakeholder acceptance challenges necessary to ensure that the optimal valorisation pathway is realised from a system level design and business case perspective which the 15 ESRs are working on:
Research Objective 1: Create the TPB technologies that will implement the valorisation cascade, whereby high to low quality leachates will be re-directed to ensure that optimal high to low valorisation cascade products per input feedstock qualities are observed at all times;
Research Objective 2: Deliver a system-level analysis that considers impacts across the full life cycle of the AgRefine bioeconomy to avoid ‘burden shifting;’
Research Objective 3: Develop a full value chain sustainability plan to create economically robust supply chains and sound business models.
The AgRefine Network consists of eight beneficiary partners and seven partner organisations:
Beneficiary Organisations:
University College Dublin - Ireland
Technical University of Denmark - Denmark
Technische Universität Wien - Austria
Ghent University - Belgium
Wageningen University & Research - Netherlands
Centre for Research and Technology Hellas - Greece
TBW Research - Austria
Bantry Marine Research Station - Ireland
Partner Organisation:
Tipperary County Council - Ireland
Avecom nv - Belgium
Clean Energy Solutions - Austria
BioG GmbH - Austria
European Biogas Association - Belgium
Innolab CVBA - Belgium
Enviro-eye Engineering Ltd. - Ireland.
AgRefine proposes to disrupt the mechanism by which biomass is currently being used by cooperatively integrating innovative stand-alone technologies so that the highest value, socio economically beneficial products per input substrates, can be achieved.
AgRefine European Training Network is providing 15 Early Stage Researchers (ESRs) core and advanced research skills as well as transferable skills that arm the ESRs with the necessary skills and knowledge to position Europe as the global leader in developing an agri-bioeconomy industry based on advanced biorefinery technologies. AgRefine aims to provide the EU with high-skilled human capital, able to cooperate across sectors, implement sustainable interdisciplinary solutions and make this outcome policy relevant.
The main goal of the AgRefine Network is to train PhD students to become the bioeconomy leaders of tomorrow with the necessary skills and knowledge to understand and address this mix of technology, system, and supply-chain challenges to position Europe as the global leader in developing an agri-bioeconomy industry based on advanced biorefinery technologies. The AgRefine integrated training programme will facilitate the amelioration of Europe’s agri-sector competitiveness and environmental sustainability challenges by creating new and optimising current agri-resource and agri-waste valorisation pathways. The goals of the network will be achieved by a unique combination of “hands-on” research training, non-academic placements, summer schools and workshops on research-related and transferable skills facilitated by the academic and non-academic composition of the consortium.
AgRefine has three research sub-objectives that will address the complete range of process engineering, life cycle assessment, supply chain management, and stakeholder acceptance challenges necessary to ensure that the optimal valorisation pathway is realised from a system level design and business case perspective which the 15 ESRs are working on:
Research Objective 1: Create the TPB technologies that will implement the valorisation cascade, whereby high to low quality leachates will be re-directed to ensure that optimal high to low valorisation cascade products per input feedstock qualities are observed at all times;
Research Objective 2: Deliver a system-level analysis that considers impacts across the full life cycle of the AgRefine bioeconomy to avoid ‘burden shifting;’
Research Objective 3: Develop a full value chain sustainability plan to create economically robust supply chains and sound business models.
The AgRefine Network consists of eight beneficiary partners and seven partner organisations:
Beneficiary Organisations:
University College Dublin - Ireland
Technical University of Denmark - Denmark
Technische Universität Wien - Austria
Ghent University - Belgium
Wageningen University & Research - Netherlands
Centre for Research and Technology Hellas - Greece
TBW Research - Austria
Bantry Marine Research Station - Ireland
Partner Organisation:
Tipperary County Council - Ireland
Avecom nv - Belgium
Clean Energy Solutions - Austria
BioG GmbH - Austria
European Biogas Association - Belgium
Innolab CVBA - Belgium
Enviro-eye Engineering Ltd. - Ireland.
AgRefine has been very busy during the 54 months of the project despite the effects of COVID-19 and the worldwide pandemic. Progress was made in each of the following seven work packages (three technical and three non-technical):
1. AgRefine Technology
2. AgRefine Systems-Level Design
3. AgRefine Value Chains
4. Management
5. Training
6. Communication
For the three technical work packages, the AgRefine ESRs have been extremely busy working on their individual research projects and making advances to the point of being able to publish. During the two reporting periods, there have been 15 publications with several more in the works due to be published in the coming months. The ESRs have been in a position to submit their work for presentation at conferences.
For the three non-technical/management work packages, the AgRefine Network has successfully achieved the following:
• Addressing the logistical issues of setting up a Training Network
• Recruiting Project Managers to provide support to Network members including ESRs
• Recruiting 15 excellent ESRs whose abilities will ensure delivery of the Network objectives
• Establishing the project’s various Committees
• Delivering EU Reports and agreed deliverables including Ethics Requirements
• Hosting Midterm Check Meeting with the EU Project Officer
• Completing Career Development Plans for each of the ESRs and updating them on a regular basis.
• Advancing ESRs towards completion of their Transfer Assessments
• Commencing the Network’s Secondment programme (albeit in a hybrid model and some delays due to travel restrictions)
• Delivering the training programme (again, in a hybrid model with both in person and online/virtual training due to travel restrictions in place due to the pandemic)
• Engaging in outreach & dissemination activities
• Launching a Network Website (httpss://www.agrefine.eu/) as well as social media channels.
The project partners met all deliverables and milestones. The collaboration between the AgRefine Network partners and their ESRs has proven productive and successful to date. The team’s positive dynamic and enthusiasm resulted in cooperative and positive teamwork and partnership across a variety of research environments. There is great optimism for what the future of the project will yield and for the impact that the research will have on society.
1. AgRefine Technology
2. AgRefine Systems-Level Design
3. AgRefine Value Chains
4. Management
5. Training
6. Communication
For the three technical work packages, the AgRefine ESRs have been extremely busy working on their individual research projects and making advances to the point of being able to publish. During the two reporting periods, there have been 15 publications with several more in the works due to be published in the coming months. The ESRs have been in a position to submit their work for presentation at conferences.
For the three non-technical/management work packages, the AgRefine Network has successfully achieved the following:
• Addressing the logistical issues of setting up a Training Network
• Recruiting Project Managers to provide support to Network members including ESRs
• Recruiting 15 excellent ESRs whose abilities will ensure delivery of the Network objectives
• Establishing the project’s various Committees
• Delivering EU Reports and agreed deliverables including Ethics Requirements
• Hosting Midterm Check Meeting with the EU Project Officer
• Completing Career Development Plans for each of the ESRs and updating them on a regular basis.
• Advancing ESRs towards completion of their Transfer Assessments
• Commencing the Network’s Secondment programme (albeit in a hybrid model and some delays due to travel restrictions)
• Delivering the training programme (again, in a hybrid model with both in person and online/virtual training due to travel restrictions in place due to the pandemic)
• Engaging in outreach & dissemination activities
• Launching a Network Website (httpss://www.agrefine.eu/) as well as social media channels.
The project partners met all deliverables and milestones. The collaboration between the AgRefine Network partners and their ESRs has proven productive and successful to date. The team’s positive dynamic and enthusiasm resulted in cooperative and positive teamwork and partnership across a variety of research environments. There is great optimism for what the future of the project will yield and for the impact that the research will have on society.
AgRefine ESRs have made significant progress across the board. Students have successfully collaborated on joint papers, with two successfully published in the first 24 months and with several more either submitted or in progress.
AgRefine's ultimate objective is to have 15 highly skilled and specialised ESRs to emerge from its programme with a significant societal impact. the aim is for the ESRs to leave the programme with the necessary skills and knowledge to provide the EU with high-skilled human capital, able to cooperate across sectors, implement sustainable interdisciplinary solutions and make this outcome policy relevant. The international cohort of ESRs will advance the discipline in a comprehensive fashion, as their projects concern both the input substrate and the products produced.
AgRefine's ultimate objective is to have 15 highly skilled and specialised ESRs to emerge from its programme with a significant societal impact. the aim is for the ESRs to leave the programme with the necessary skills and knowledge to provide the EU with high-skilled human capital, able to cooperate across sectors, implement sustainable interdisciplinary solutions and make this outcome policy relevant. The international cohort of ESRs will advance the discipline in a comprehensive fashion, as their projects concern both the input substrate and the products produced.