Project description
Cork to join the circular economy
Cork oaks grow in the Mediterranean region. Portugal and Spain are major cork growers. The champions of everything cork, the two countries produce nearly all of the world’s cork. While cork is completely natural and biodegradable, the several washing, bleaching and disinfection procedures involved generate large volumes of wastewaters that contain non-biodegradable organic matter, hydrogen peroxide and various dissolved salts. These pose a risk to the environment and human health. In this context, the E-CORK project will explore the treatment of cork washing wastewaters. It will develop an optimised electrochemical treatment line for the depuration and reutilisation of cork washing wastewaters taking advantage of the hydrogen peroxide in the main effluent. The project’s overall aim is to revolutionise the cork industry towards a circular economy.
Objective
With 162,000 tons/year, Portugal and Spain have the largest world quota of cork production, being cork stoppers for wine and champagne the “star product”. About 90% of the cork stoppers used worldwide are produced in these two countries. The European Cork Federation established mandatory practices to ensure the quality of the natural stoppers which include several washing, bleaching and disinfection steps. These procedures generate large volumes of wastewaters up to 195,000 m3/year that contain non-biodegradable organic matter, hydrogen peroxide used as disinfectant and different dissolved salts; and constitute a serious risk to environment and human health. The E-CORK project builds on the premise that cork washing wastewaters can be effectively treated by electrochemical advanced oxidation processes. The main goal is to develop an optimized electrochemical treatment line for the depuration and reutilization of cork washing wastewaters taking advantage of the hydrogen peroxide in the main effluent (from by-product to reactant), attending not only to the treatment performance, but also to its technical, economic and environmental feasibility. With this approach and bearing in mind the possibility of reuse the regenerated wastewaters, the E-CORK project aims to revolutionize the cork industry towards a circular economy. The inherent responsibility of Portugal and Spain R&D to promote cleaner and more cost-efficient technologies that safeguard cork production and aquatic environments; the close link with the industrial needs; and the experience of the candidate and supervisor at University of Coimbra, make the perfect conditions to successfully develop this project.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- engineering and technology environmental engineering water treatment processes wastewater treatment processes
- natural sciences chemical sciences electrochemistry electrolysis
- social sciences economics and business economics sustainable economy
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.1.3. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
MAIN PROGRAMME
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H2020-EU.1.3.2. - Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2020
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
3004-531 Coimbra
Portugal
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.