Periodic Reporting for period 2 - NEOSUCCESS (Upscaling and Market Introduction of Simultaneous Biogas Upgrading and Bio-Succinic Acid Production) Reporting period: 2021-06-01 to 2022-05-31 Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project Succinic Acid is the most important multifunctional platform chemical for the industry with immense applications (bioplastics, polyurethanes, paints, etc.) but 95% of its production is petroleum-based. On a separate matter, biogas’ most valuable compound is BioMethane, used as renewable energy; but obtained by costly upgrading technologies, not fully widespread.NEOSUCCESS is a Fast Track to innovation project with the goal to make commercially available a unique technology based on a containerised plug and play technology conceived to be integrated in biogas plants’ operational workflow, finally making the investment on biogas upgrading profitable as a result of its complementary BioSuccinic Acid exploitation. Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far NEOSUCCESS has recently overcome its second year of the project (2nd Reporting Period). The project’s timing is divided in four Reporting Periods (M1-M12; M12-M24; M24-M36; M36-M42).During the 1st Reporting Period we worked on the scale-up and construction of the industrial unit. The website was launched and a D&C plan was established. We also started the market analysis activities and the IP and Data Management Plans, as well as defined the ethical requirements for our project.During this second year (2nd Reporting Period) the team has finished lab scale and pilot scale trials, we have finished the industrial unit design (including the DSP improvement), built it and validated it under controlled conditions and there is more to follow.In the following months, the team will perform a series of industrial scale trials operating and optimising the unit and technology. Last, the project will share the results and will demonstrate and promote the technology with potential clients and other interested groups. Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far) Currently, SA and BioM production are separate industrial processes. We have developed NEOSUCCESS, the first technology worldwide that recycles and uses residual waste streams to simultaneously produce these two high-value products: BioM (>95%) from biogas to be used as a biofuel; and BioSA (>80%), a second-generation non-fossil alternative to SA. This is the first revolutionary biogas upgrading technology that binds CO2 into a valuable biochemical; highly reducing production costs and environmental footprint.Both Biogas Upgrading and BioSA markets have a double-digit growth, which strikes as a great opportunity for Europe to take a leap forward. Thanks to this project, we will achieve a successful market launch by 2023 and install 40 NEOSUCCESS units in 11 countries by 2027, contributing to the European transition towards a sustainable Bio-based Economy.
