sUstainable PLastIcs for the Food and drink packaging indusTry

Project Information

UPLIFT

Grant agreement ID: 953073

DOI

10.3030/953073

Project closed

EC signature date 18 February 2021

Start date 1 March 2021

End date 28 February 2025

Funded under

• INDUSTRIAL LEADERSHIP - Leadership in enabling and industrial technologies – Biotechnology

Total cost

€ 7 640 653,75

EU contribution

€ 7 517 180,75

Coordinated by

AALBORG UNIVERSITET
Denmark

CORDIS provides links to public deliverables and publications of HORIZON projects.

Links to deliverables and publications from FP7 projects, as well as links to some specific result types such as dataset and software, are dynamically retrieved from OpenAIRE .

Deliverables

Documents, reports (16)

Market assessment report

A report providing current and future market projections on the food and drinking packaging industry, considering all key actors involved within the value chain, and taking into account the current markets of action, business models and potential opportunities following the UPLIFT approach. This report will be closely linked to Task 5.2, reflecting on the link of the current business trends with the specific business models built for each one of the Key Exploitable Results.

Position paper with recommendations for policy makers

Document reflecting the recommendations for policy makers which will be drawn after analyzing in depth the main bottlenecks found at EU regulatory level for circularity in the packaging sector.

Proposals for standardization of UPLIFT processes and materials

Report reflecting a group of measures proposed for improving the standardization for the new products and processes developed along the project which will help to eliminate the uncertainty for producers, consumers, and recyclers.

Dissemination and Communication Plan: final
Analysis of plastic value chain

As an introduction to the study, the project will analyze the current plastic value chain to form an overview of the current situation. The study will be based on the entire value chain from food producers - citizens / municipalities - collection companies - waste management companies - recycling companies – and producers of new recyclable plastic.

White papers and sectoral roadmap

In addition to draw the business plan and perspective, Sustainable Innovations will also be responsible for kickstarting actions such as the developing of white papers (business-oriented guides to educate and inform key players of the industry and actors within UPLIFT’s value chain) and carrying out sectoral roadmaps, aiming to explore ways on how to enable key players of the industry to come together and develop a common understanding of the business impact of UPLIFT’s innovations within the whole value chain. This sectoral roadmaps will be developed in-reach (based on internal discussions with the consortium) in order to come up with an out-reach strategy (how to approach the different key players once a roadmap is designed).

Reclaimed monomers from WP2 and WP3 used for preparation of new polymers

A series of polymers, mainly polyesters, based on the feedstock coming from WP2 and WP3. All candidates will be produced at a 20-50 g scale for preliminary processing assessment in T4.4, while at least 2-3 promising candidates will be upscaled to 100-200 g scale for additional testing in formulation and processing.

Eco-designed polymers based on PE hydrolysates

A series of new polymers based on PE, containing weak links, that permits disassembly into larger fractions, which can be reassembled into their parent structures. The tested systems will be described in detail, assessing the content of cleavable groups required to achieve the desired effect and their link to material properties.

Dissemination and Communication Plan: update 5
Preliminary analysis and first recommendations to pursue

Report on consumer and public acceptance: Results and recommendations.

Dissemination and Communication Plan: update 3
Dissemination and Communication Plan: update 4
Dissemination and Communication Plan

At the beginning of the project, Sustainable Innovations will present a primary Communication and Dissemination plan that will contain the main strategy for the project lifetime, as well as the expected activities to be carried out throughout the project. This C&D plan will be updated along the process as time passes by, milestones are achieved, and news are to be produced within the consortium work.

Dissemination and Communication Plan: update 2
Dissemination and Communication Plan: update 1
Dissemination and Communication Plan: update 6

Publications

Peer reviewed articles (27)

Bio-upcycling of multilayer materials and blends: closing the plastics loop

Author(s): Alessandro Pellis, Georg M Guebitz, Doris Ribitsch
Published in: Chemical Biotechnology, 2023, ISSN 0958-1669
Publisher: Elsevier BV
DOI: 10.1016/j.copbio.2023.102938

Efficient Depolymerization of Poly(ethylene 2,5-furanoate) UsingPolyester Hydrolases

Author(s): Virender Kumar, Alessandro Pellis, Reinhard Wimmer, Vladimir Popok, Jesper de Claville Christiansen and Cristiano Varrone
Published in: ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering, 2024, ISSN 2168-0485
Publisher: American Chemical Society
DOI: 10.1021/acssuschemeng.4c00915

Critical Review on the Progress of Plastic Bioupcycling Technology as a Potential Solution for Sustainable Plastic Waste Management

Author(s): Passanun Lomwongsopon; Cristiano Varrone
Published in: POLYMERS, Issue 3, 2022, ISSN 2073-4360
Publisher: MDPI
DOI: 10.3390/polym14224996

Bioleaching/enzyme-based recycling of aluminium and polyethylene from beverage cartons packaging waste

Author(s): Klemens Kremser, Patrick Gerl, Adolfo Benedito Borrás, Daniela Ramírez Espinosa, Belén Monje Martínez, Georg M. Guebit, Alessandro Pellis
Published in: Resources, Conservation and Recycling, Issue Volume 185, 2022, Page(s) 106444, ISSN 0921-3449
Publisher: Elsevier BV
DOI: 10.1016/j.resconrec.2022.106444

Open Loop Recycling – Guanidine Iron(II) Polymerization Catalyst for the Depolymerization of Polylactide

Author(s): Lisa Burkart, Alexander Eith, Alexander Hoffmann, and Sonja Herres-Pawlis
Published in: Chemistry – An Asian Journal, 2022, ISSN 1861-4728
Publisher: Wiley - V C H Verlag GmbbH & Co.
DOI: 10.1002/asia.202201195

Effective Ligand Design: Zinc Complexes with Guanidine Hydroquinoline Ligands for Fast Lactide Polymerization and Chemical Recycling

Author(s): Alina Hermann, Tabea Becker, Martin A. Schäfer, Alexander Hoffmann, Sonja Herres-Pawlis
Published in: ChemSusChem, 2022, ISSN 1864-5631
Publisher: Wiley - V C H Verlag GmbbH & Co.
DOI: 10.1002/cssc.202201075

Closing the loop for poly(butylene-adipate-coterephthalate) recycling: depolymerization, monomers separation, and upcycling.

Author(s): Mohamed Ismail, Adel Abouhmad, Niklas Warlin, Sang-Hyun Pyo, Oliver Englund Örn, Basel Al-Rudainy, Cecilia Tullberg, Baozhong Zhang and Rajni Hatti-Kaul.
Published in: GREEN CHEMISTRY, 2024, ISSN 2046-2069
Publisher: Royal Society of Chemistry
DOI: 10.1039/d3gc04728h

Combined thermochemical-biotechnological approach for the valorization of polyolefins into polyhydroxyalkanoates: Development of an integrated bioconversion process by microbial consortia

Author(s): Passanun Lomwongsopon, Tanja Narancic, Reinhard Wimmer, Cristiano Varrone
Published in: Chemosphere, Issue 367, 2024, Page(s) 143671, ISSN 0045-6535
Publisher: Pergamon Press Ltd.
DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2024.143671

Improving 5-(hydroxymethyl)furfural (HMF) tolerance of Pseudomonas taiwanensis VLB120 by automated adaptive laboratory evolution (ALE)

Author(s): Thorsten Lechtenberg, Benedikt Wynands, Moritz-Fabian Müller, Tino Polen, Stephan Noack, Nick Wierckx
Published in: Metabolic Engineering Communications, 2024, ISSN 2214-0301
Publisher: Elsevier BV
DOI: 10.1016/j.mec.2024.e00235

Assessing the Economic Viability of the Plastic Biorefinery Concept and Its Contribution to a More Circular Plastic Sector

Author(s): Megan Roux and Cristiano Varrone
Published in: POLYMERS, 2021, ISSN 2073-4360
Publisher: MDPI
DOI: 10.3390/polym13223883

Efficient Bioprocess for Mixed PET Waste Depolymerization Using Crude Cutinase

Author(s): Virender Kumar, Reinhard Wimmer and Cristiano Varrone
Published in: polymers, 2025, ISSN 2073-4360
Publisher: MDPI
DOI: 10.3390/polym17060763

A Multitool for Circular Economy – Fast Ring-Opening Polymerization and Chemical Recycling of (Bio)polyesters Using a Single Aliphatic Guanidine Carboxy Zinc Catalyst

Author(s): Martin Fuchs, Pascal M. Schäfer, Wolf Wagner, Ian Krumm, Marcel Walbeck, Regina Dietrich, Alexander Hoffmann, Sonja Herres-Pawlis
Published in: ChemSusChem, 2023, ISSN 1864-5631
Publisher: Wiley - V C H Verlag GmbbH & Co.
DOI: 10.1002/cssc.202300192

On the Environmentally Friendly Synthesis of 2‐Hydroxyethyl Furan‐5‐Carboxylic Acid (MHEF) and bis(2‐Hydroxyethyl) Furan‐2,5‐Dicarboxylate (BHEF)

Author(s): Francesco Raboni, Andrea Oliveri, Valeria Marisa Rocca, Lisa Moni, Virender Kumar, Cristiano Varrone, Alessandro Pellis
Published in: ChemistryOpen, 2025, ISSN 2191-1363
Publisher: Wiley - V C H Verlag GmbbH & Co.
DOI: 10.1002/open.202400507

Guanidine Carboxy Zinc Complexes for the Chemical Recycling of Renewable Polyesters

Author(s): Martin Fuchs, Marcel Walbeck, Eveline Jagla, Alexander Hoffmann, Sonja Herres-Pawlis
Published in: ChemPlusChem, 2022, ISSN 2192-6506
Publisher: Wiley-VCH Verlag
DOI: 10.1002/cplu.202200029

Microbial synthesis of the plant natural product precursor p-coumaric acid with Corynebacterium glutamicum

Author(s): Mario Mutz; Dominic Kösters; Benedikt Wynands; Nick Wierckx; Jan Marienhagen
Published in: Microbial Cell Factories, Vol 22, Iss 1, Pp 1-17 (2023), Issue 4, 2023, ISSN 1475-2859
Publisher: BioMed Central
DOI: 10.1186/s12934-023-02222-y

Engineering 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) oxidation in Pseudomonas boosts tolerance and accelerates 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA) production

Author(s): Lechtenberg, Thorsten; Wynands, Benedikt; Wierckx, Nick
Published in: ELSEVIER, Issue 1, 2023, ISSN 1096-7176
Publisher: Academic Press
DOI: 10.1016/j.ymben.2023.12.010

Enhancing biodegradation of polyolefins and real mixed plastic waste by combination of pretreatment and mixed microbial consortia

Author(s): Passanun Lomwongsopon, Belén Monje Martínez, Alberto Barranca Jiménez, Alexander Leo Bardenstein, Yukihiro Kusano, Jesper de Claville Christiansen, Cristiano Varrone
Published in: Chemosphere, Issue 373, 2025, Page(s) 144151, ISSN 0045-6535
Publisher: Pergamon Press Ltd.
DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2025.144151

Understanding structure–activity relationships: iron(ii) complexes of “Legacy Guanidines” as catalysts for the synthesis of polylactide

Author(s): Christian Conrads, Lisa Burkart, Sven Soerensen, Sandra Noichl, Yasemin Kara,a Joshua Heck, Alexander Hoffmann and Sonja Herres-Pawlis
Published in: Catalysis Science & Technology, 2023, ISSN 2044-4761
Publisher: Royal Society of Chemistry
DOI: 10.1039/d3cy01117h

Combined effect of glycerol/levulinic acid-based bioadditive on enzymatic hydrolysis and plasticization of amorphous and semi-crystalline poly(lactic acid)

Author(s): Chiara Siracusa, Luca Lenzi, Filippo Fabbri, Leon Ploszczanski, Paola Fabbri, Davide Morselli, Felice Quartinello, Georg M. Guebitz
Published in: Journal of Vinyl and Additive TechnologyEarly View, 2025, ISSN 1083-5601
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons Inc.
DOI: 10.1002/vnl.22213open_in_new

The metabolic potential of plastics as biotechnological carbon sources – Review and targets for the future.

Author(s): Till Tiso, Benedikt Winter, Ren Wei, Johann Hee, Jan de Witt, Nick Wierckx, Peter Quicker, Uwe T. Bornscheuer, Andr´e Bardow, Juan Nogales, Lars M. Blank.
Published in: Metabolic Engineering, 2021, ISSN 1096-7176
Publisher: Academic Press
DOI: 10.1016/j.ymben.2021.12.006

Cutinase-Catalyzed Polyester-Polyurethane Degradation: Elucidation of the Hydrolysis Mechanism

Author(s): Federico Di Bisceglie , Felice Quartinello, Robert Vielnascher, Georg M. Guebitz and Alessandro Pellis
Published in: POLYMERS, 2022, ISSN 2073-4360
Publisher: MDPI
DOI: 10.3390/polym14030411

Engineering a Pseudomonas taiwanensis 4-coumarate platform for production of para-hydroxy aromatics with high yield and specificity

Author(s): Benedikt Wynands, Franziska Kofler, Anka Sieberichs, Nadine da Silva, Nick Wierckx
Published in: ELSELVIER, 2023, ISSN 1096-7176
Publisher: Academic Press
DOI: 10.1016/j.ymben.2023.05.004

Proteomic characterisation of polyethylene terephthalate and monomer degradation by Ideonella sakaiensis

Author(s): Jan Struckmann Poulsen, Jeppe Lund Nielsen
Published in: ELSEVIER, 2023, ISSN 1874-3919
Publisher: Elsevier BV
DOI: 10.1016/j.jprot.2023.104888

Open‐ and Closed‐Loop Recycling: Highly Active Zinc Bisguanidine Polymerization Catalyst for the Depolymerization of Polyesters

Author(s): Tabea Becker, A. Hermann, Nazik Saritas, Alexander Hoffmann, Sonja Herres‐Pawlis
Published in: ChemSusChem, 2024, ISSN 1864-5631
Publisher: Wiley - V C H Verlag GmbbH & Co.
DOI: 10.1002/cssc.202400933

Rational Protein Engineering to Increase the Activity and Stability of IsPETase Using the PROSS Algorithm

Author(s): Andrew Rennison, Jakob R. Winther, and Cristiano Varrone
Published in: POLYMERS, 2021, ISSN 2073-4360
Publisher: MDPI
DOI: 10.3390/polym13223884

Contribution of Fermentation Technology to Building Blocks for Renewable Plastics

Author(s): Passanun Lomwongsopon and Cristiano Varrone
Published in: FERMENTATION, 2022, ISSN 2311-5637
Publisher: MDPI
DOI: 10.3390/fermentation8020047

Upcycling of polyamides through chemical hydrolysis and engineered Pseudomonas putida

Author(s): Jan de Witt, Tom Luthe, Johanna Wiechert, Kenneth Jensen, Tino Polen, Astrid Wirtz, Stephan Thies, Julia Frunzke, Benedikt Wynands, Nick Wierckx
Published in: Nature Microbiology, 2025, ISSN 2058-5276
Publisher: Springer Nature
DOI: 10.1038/s41564-025-01929-5