Descrizione del progetto
Generare un valore superiore per i sottoprodotti di rifiuti industriali
La trasformazione della biomassa in materiali preziosi ed energia (valorizzazione della biomassa) rappresenta un fattore cardine nella strategia dell’UE per effettuare il passaggio a un’economia circolare e climaticamente neutra entro il 2050. Con l’obiettivo di sprigionare il loro potenziale facendo affidamento sulla biomassa, le industrie si trovano sempre più messe alla prova per l’introduzione di sistemi di frazionamento efficienti e lo sviluppo di prodotti commerciali. In questo contesto, il progetto SUBLUBE, finanziato dall’UE, prevede di sfruttare un processo di frazionamento-idrolisi per recuperare suberina pura dai sottoprodotti del sughero. Questo processo utilizzerà acqua supercritica per trasformare la suberina in elementi costitutivi altamente funzionali per i lubrificanti. I risultati del progetto favoriranno la generazione di conoscenze preziose sulla trasformazione catalitica dei sottoprodotti di rifiuti agro-industriali in prodotti dal valore aggiunto all’interno del flusso continuo di microreattori su larga scala.
Obiettivo
Biomass valorization through biorefineries is integral towards the transition to a circular and climate neutral economy by 2050, as envisioned in the European Union Circular Economy Action Plan and in support of the European and Spanish Bioeconomy Strategy and the RIS3 Castilla y Leon Regional Strategy. To realize this, two important challenges need to be addressed: an efficient biomass fractionation system and the development of products close to market.
In response to these challenges, the SUBLUBE project aims to recover pristine suberin from cork industry byproducts through a cascaded fractionation-hydrolysis process with supercritical water as reaction media and to convert pristine suberin into highly functionalized biolubricant building block through subcritical water hydrolysis. The research will focus on evaluating the process conditions that would achieve high pristine suberin yields and highly functionalized building blocks in a laboratory scale and pilot scale continuous microreactors. Based from the results obtained, a techno-economic model will be prepared through process modeling and simulation. SUBLUBE is founded upon the integration of applied chemistry, chemical engineering, process fundamentals and materials science as a strategy for forestry products valorization. The findings of this research will benefit the society as a model for scalable biorefineries in continuous microreactors (innovation) that utilizes agro-industrial waste byproducts as resources for the sustainable generation of value added products (pristine suberin, biolubricants). It will lead to additional income streams for the cork processing industry (job creation) while reducing our dependence on vegetable oils and synthetic esters and greenhouse gas emissions. As a whole, this fellowship will support a female foreign researcher in demonstrating ability to work on a project that advances natural product valorization through green and sustainable technologies.
Campo scientifico
- agricultural sciencesagriculture, forestry, and fisheriesagriculturehorticulturevegetable growing
- social scienceseconomics and businesseconomicsbioeconomy
- engineering and technologychemical engineering
- social scienceseconomics and businesseconomicssustainable economy
- agricultural sciencesagricultural biotechnologybiomass
Parole chiave
Programma(i)
Argomento(i)
Meccanismo di finanziamento
MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)Coordinatore
47002 VALLADOLID
Spagna