Periodic Reporting for period 2 - ELIOT (End of Life (EoL) for biomaterials)
Reporting period: 2022-01-01 to 2023-02-28
The use of composites in the aircraft industry has led to waste management difficulties since the polymer matrices are usually thermosetting resins, which have a cross-linked molecular structure that pose a challenge to conventional recycling technologies. The greatest challenge to the aircraft industry is to find techno-economically feasible ways to recycle Fibre Reinforced Polymer (FRP) composite. The development and application of biocomposites for the aircraft industry can bring significant environmental benefits, since these materials not only reduce the depletion of non-renewable fossil resources but also the emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG).
However, sustainable management solutions for biocomposite waste have the same shortcomings than the conventional FRP composite waste together with the absence of technologies tested for their recovery. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop, test and evaluate different EoL treatment technologies for biocomposites useful for the aircraft industry.
ELIOT aims to provide new innovative and green technologies for biocomposites recovery. And a comparison of the advantages and disadvantages of these methods in terms of cost and environmental sustainability will be conducted.
Eliot project has finally demonstrated the capability of solvolysis and pyrolysis methods for the recycling and recovery of biocomposites. The Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) results concluded that solvolysis is the most environmentally promising recycling technology. The Techno-economic analysis (TEA) concluded that both solvolysis and pyrolysis are economically viable.
However, sustainable management solutions for biocomposite waste have the same shortcomings than the conventional FRP composite waste together with the absence of technologies tested for their recovery. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop, test and evaluate different EoL treatment technologies for biocomposites useful for the aircraft industry.
ELIOT aims to provide new innovative and green technologies for biocomposites recovery. And a comparison of the advantages and disadvantages of these methods in terms of cost and environmental sustainability will be conducted.
Eliot project has finally demonstrated the capability of solvolysis and pyrolysis methods for the recycling and recovery of biocomposites. The Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) results concluded that solvolysis is the most environmentally promising recycling technology. The Techno-economic analysis (TEA) concluded that both solvolysis and pyrolysis are economically viable.
Twelve End of Life (EoL) options were initially evaluated for composites and biocomposites. The four promising EoL methods for bio-composites were then selected: dissolution, solvolysis, mechanical recycling and pyrolysis. A design of experiments for each EoL method selected was carried out for experimental analysis at laboratory level. Then, the screening life cycle assessment (LCA) and simplified techno-economic assessment (TEA) were performed on the biocomposite that showcased the most potential. The results from laboratory tests, were optimized at pilot plant level (Technology Readiness Level 5, TRL 5). The output products were characterized. From the streamlined LCA and TEA analysis, pyrolysis and solvolysis results showed the most potential to recover the fibres from biocomposites. Pyrolysis at laboratory scale performed better than at pilot plant scale. Solvolysis process performed better depending on the size of grinded material. The LCA results concluded that solvolysis is the most environmentally promising recycling technology. The TEA concluded that both solvolysis and pyrolysis are economically viable.
The results of Eliot have been disseminated through the website, newsletter (four editions), two versions of the leaflet and the poster. It has also achieved all the key performance indicators of social media. It has been published through press releases appearing 31 times in media. Researchers have participated in sixteen conferences. For clustering, Eliot project joined the Horizon Results Booster (HRB). Finally, two workshops of the Eliot project have been held. As a result of all the research performed, a paper has been written. It has been sent to a special issue of the journal Polymers. Currently, the work is under evaluation.
In exploitation, aspects like revenues, other sources of coverage to increase TRL and bring the new recycling processes of biocomposites to the market, as well as the impacts of these technologies for the society cannot be given in the current state of the project. Accordingly, updated LCA and TEA analysis data will be generated in future improvements of solvolysis and pyrolysis technologies applied over biocomposites. Once TRL increases, two different exploitation strategies may be considered for the results of the Project. One more conservative, that includes licenses of solvolysis or pyrolysis methodology applied over biocomposites to competitors, recyclers or raw materials manufacturers. And a more challenging approach, consisting in the creation of a start-up, with solvolysis and/or pyrolysis equipment depending on the benefits expected. Considering that this challenging strategy may be very risky from an economical perspective, an intermediate option has also been considered for the exploitation of the results: the implementation of small solvolysis and/or pyrolysis plants at the sites of origin of waste.
The results of Eliot have been disseminated through the website, newsletter (four editions), two versions of the leaflet and the poster. It has also achieved all the key performance indicators of social media. It has been published through press releases appearing 31 times in media. Researchers have participated in sixteen conferences. For clustering, Eliot project joined the Horizon Results Booster (HRB). Finally, two workshops of the Eliot project have been held. As a result of all the research performed, a paper has been written. It has been sent to a special issue of the journal Polymers. Currently, the work is under evaluation.
In exploitation, aspects like revenues, other sources of coverage to increase TRL and bring the new recycling processes of biocomposites to the market, as well as the impacts of these technologies for the society cannot be given in the current state of the project. Accordingly, updated LCA and TEA analysis data will be generated in future improvements of solvolysis and pyrolysis technologies applied over biocomposites. Once TRL increases, two different exploitation strategies may be considered for the results of the Project. One more conservative, that includes licenses of solvolysis or pyrolysis methodology applied over biocomposites to competitors, recyclers or raw materials manufacturers. And a more challenging approach, consisting in the creation of a start-up, with solvolysis and/or pyrolysis equipment depending on the benefits expected. Considering that this challenging strategy may be very risky from an economical perspective, an intermediate option has also been considered for the exploitation of the results: the implementation of small solvolysis and/or pyrolysis plants at the sites of origin of waste.
ELIOT has provided innovative solutions for the End of Life (EoL) of the new generation of biocomposites. Biocomposite materials can provide several benefits such as reduction of the dependence of fossil fuels, reduction of greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions, cost savings in the acquisition of raw materials and during aircraft operation, support of the rural economy in Europe and increased competitiveness of the biomaterials value chains. As a whole, bio-based materials promise to make a significant input into sustainable development of society due to their renewable nature and opportunities for creating added value in industry. Thanks to ELIOT, the consortium has contributed to speed up the implementation of green composites, not only in the aerospace industry, but also in other sectors like automotive or construction industries, where composites are commonly used. The project has proposed and evaluated ways of recovery and recycling to reduce the environmental footprint of these novel green materials in order to set the basis for a wider uptake of biocomposite materials by providing industrially scalable methods for their EoL treatment.
In the current business scenario, biocomposites are incinerated or landfilled. However, circularity approaches of Eliot such as pyrolysis and solvolysis have demonstrated the benefits for the recovery and recycling of biocomposites. Compared to incineration and landfilling, these EOL processes have enabled the recycling of biocomposites by nearly 100%. The results of the full LCA performed in Eliot showed that solvolysis performs the best as pyrolysis emits 17% more carbon dioxide than solvolysis. Regarding the heat input, pyrolysis consumes approximately twice as much heat as solvolysis. Although the handicap in solvolysis is the use of solvents, they can be recovered with high efficiency and re-used in the process. The results of the TEA for both recycling technologies were estimated for a processing plant with a capacity of 10 kilotonnes of biocomposite per annum. The comparison of the results showed a higher cost for the pyrolysis process. The costs of solvolysis are associated to the equipment and they are higher than pyrolysis for capital investment. Therefore, the alternative EoL technologies reported in ELIOT has contributed to implement biocomposites in aircraft applications, as the time risk and cost to introduce the new innovative technologies have been reduced by 80%. The current progress of the project is estimated at 100% with respect to the state of the art.
In the current business scenario, biocomposites are incinerated or landfilled. However, circularity approaches of Eliot such as pyrolysis and solvolysis have demonstrated the benefits for the recovery and recycling of biocomposites. Compared to incineration and landfilling, these EOL processes have enabled the recycling of biocomposites by nearly 100%. The results of the full LCA performed in Eliot showed that solvolysis performs the best as pyrolysis emits 17% more carbon dioxide than solvolysis. Regarding the heat input, pyrolysis consumes approximately twice as much heat as solvolysis. Although the handicap in solvolysis is the use of solvents, they can be recovered with high efficiency and re-used in the process. The results of the TEA for both recycling technologies were estimated for a processing plant with a capacity of 10 kilotonnes of biocomposite per annum. The comparison of the results showed a higher cost for the pyrolysis process. The costs of solvolysis are associated to the equipment and they are higher than pyrolysis for capital investment. Therefore, the alternative EoL technologies reported in ELIOT has contributed to implement biocomposites in aircraft applications, as the time risk and cost to introduce the new innovative technologies have been reduced by 80%. The current progress of the project is estimated at 100% with respect to the state of the art.