Research

The project will establish circular biobased packaging value chain by fully exploiting the successful results earned from an ongoing H2020 project to scale-up the production of next generation biodegradable plastics, which will also be recyclable. We will focus on the best processes identified and capitalize on the lessons learned, by overcoming specific bottlenecks we identified by the LCA and TEA, to guarantee a sustainable and viable process. Production, recyclability, biodegradability, as well as mechanical and manufacturing properties of the new bioplastics will be tested at pilot scale. The main aim of the project is to: 1) scale up a plastic biorefinery process that integrates post-consumer plastic waste with bio-based building blocks, for more carbon neutral and biodegradable packaging, and 2) to overcome the technical and/or economic bottlenecks identified at prototype scale, to allow for a viable scale up to TRL7.

are earth elements (REEs) are typically required in small quantities, but they are essential for producing a wide range of technologically advanced products for electronic, optical, and magnetic applications. At present, the market is primarily supplied with virgin rare earths. Currently, there are no noteworthy recycling methods that could meet the constantly increasing demand for these elements. Therefore, REEaLIGN aims at developing a novel recycling process combining bioleaching, biosorption, and bioaccumulation, which enables a sustainable, ecofriendly recovery of REEs from electronic wastes. This 3-step Bioleaching-Biosorption-Bioaccumulation-process consist of the initial bioleaching utilizing metal extracting microorganisms to produce the metal extract including REEs which will be added to a lignin-based hydrogel in a batch process in which metals such as iron, copper, aluminum etc. Will be adsorbed, resulting in a metal extract suitable for bioaccumulation in which REEs will be accumulated in E-Coli for their recovery. Bioleaching, bioaccumulation and biosorption are state-of-the-art methods that not only have the potential to solve environmental challenges such as depletion of natural resources. They are also efficient and economically feasible, and sustainable. The overall combination of lignin-hydrogels as pretreatment to bioaccumulation for Rare Earth Recovery in this project is designed to be a process that neither needs toxic or harmful starting materials nor produce any toxic, harmful or problematic waste at the end of the recycling process.

The applicants are BOKU University, the Austrian Compost and Biogas Association and the research institute AEE Intec. The consortium intends to participate in the IEA Bioenergy Task 37 "Energy from Biogas" activity period 2025 - 2027. As part of a network of international experts, key issues for the implementation and dissemination of biogas production from by-products and waste are to be agreed and correspondingly prepared information disseminated to the affected Austrian users, companies, planners, authorities, associations, specialist institutions, etc. in the form of information brochures, success stories, technical studies, internet websites, workshops and conferences. In the coming triennium, the focus will be on the following topics: Co-benefits of biogas besides the provision of energy, the use of digestate and the corresponding international framework conditions, the monitoring of microbial cultures in biogas plants, the economic efficiency of biogas plants and greenhouse gas abatement costs. In Task 37, the topics are examined and discussed from different regional and national perspectives. A special situation in this triennium is that Dr. Bernhard Drosg from BOKU University was elected as international task leader for the coming period and will therefore take over the management of the entire task in addition to the Austrian consortium management.