WASTE2FUELS aims to develop next generation biofuel technologies capable of converting agrofood waste (AFW) streams into high quality biobutanol. Butanol is one of the most promising biofuels due to its superior fuel properties compared to current main biofuels, bioethanol and biodiesel. In addition to its ability to reduce carbon emissions, its higher energy content (almost 30% more than ethanol), its ability to blend with both gasoline and diesel, its lower risk of separation and corrosion, its resistance to water absorption, allowing it to be transported in pipes and carriers used by gasoline, it offers a very exciting advantage for adoption as engines require almost no modifications to use it. The main WASTE2FUELS innovations include: • Development of novel pretreatment methods for converting AFW to an appropriate feedstock for biobutanol production thus dramatically enlarging current available biomass for biofuels production • Genetically modified microorganisms for enhancing conversion efficiencies of the biobutanol fermentation process • Coupled recovery and biofilm reactor systems for enhancing conversion efficiencies of Acetone-Butanol-Ethanol fermentation • Development of new routes for biobutanol production via ethanol catalytic conversion • Biobutanol engine tests and ecotoxicological assessment of the produced biobutanol • Valorisation of the process by-products • Development of an integrated model to optimise the waste-to-biofuel conversion and facilitate the industrial scale-up • Process fingerprint analysis by environmental and techno-economic assessment • Biomass supply chain study and design of a waste management strategy for rural development By valorising 50% of the unavoidable and undervalorised AFW as feedstock for biobutanol production, WASTE2FUELS could divert up to 45 M tonnes of food waste from EU landfills, preventing 18 M tonnes of GHG and saving almost 0.5 billion litres of fossil fuels.

Increasing the share of renewables in the European energy mix has a key function for the security of energy supply and the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels. This proposal is entitled “Framework of Innovation for Engineering of New Durable Solar Surfaces”, (acronym FRIENDS2) and aims at achieving a European network for the transfer of knowledge to establish a shared culture of research and innovation which allows turning creative ideas in the field of surface engineering into innovative solutions for concentrating solar power (CSP) applications. FRIENDS2 will be led by one large European industry (Abengoa) who is a world leader in the development of CSP plants. The other FRIENDS2 participants are two well-recognized academic organizations (the University of Cranfield and the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden - Rossendorf e.V.), and one SME (Metal Estalki). The purpose of FRIENDS2 is to strengthen the inter-sectoral capabilities in research and development of coating designs in order to improve the performance of CSP key components (reflectors, receivers and containers for heat storage) for high temperature applications. The methodology of this joint research proposal contains aspects of very high novelty. It includes computer modelling, multi-technique coating deposition, use of advanced characterization techniques, and the possibility of scaling-up new coating developments. Special attention is paid to the intersectoral transfer of knowledge and to the establishment of a long-lasting international network with global impact. It is worth noting that a substantial fraction of secondments (51%) will be carried out from the industrial to the academic sector. With the proposed approach, there will be an effective transfer of knowledge among the partners which will pave the road from fundamental research to applied innovation of surface engineering solutions for further CSP development.

The main objective of the SOLPART project is to develop, at pilot scale, a high temperature (950°C) 24h/day solar process suitable for particle treatment in energy intensive industries (e.g. cement or lime industries). The project aims at supplying totally or partially the thermal energy requirement for CaCO3 calcination by high temperature solar heat thus reducing the life cycle environmental impacts of the process and increasing the attractiveness of renewable heating technologies in process industries. This will be achieved by the demonstration of a pilot scale solar reactor suitable for calcium carbonate decomposition (Calcination reaction: CaCO3 = CaO + CO2) and to simulate at prototype scale a 24h/day industrial process (TRL 4-5) thereby requiring a high-temperature transport and storage system. The system will operate at 950°C and will include a 30 kWth solar reactor producing 30 kg/h CaO and a 16h hot CaO storage. Life cycle environmental impacts of the solar-based solution in comparison with standard processes will be developed as well as economic evaluation. The project develops and merges three advanced technologies: high temperature solar reactor, transport of high-temperature solid materials and high temperature thermal storage. The synergy between these technologies lies in using the solar-treated particles as storage medium. The development of a such innovative technology for continuous particle processed by concentrated solar energy at about 950°C is unique in the world. Thanks to the solar unit integration in the industrial process (potentially combined with CO2 capture), this should result in the considerable reduction of the carbon footprint of the CO2 emitter industries and open a new market for renewable energies.

We aim to engineer the lifestyle of Pseudomonas putida to generate a tailored, re-factored chassis with highly attractive new-to-nature properties, thereby opening the door to the production of thus far non-accessible compounds. This industrially driven project capitalises on the outstanding metabolic endowment and stress tolerance capabilities of this versatile bacterium for the production of specialty and bulk chemicals. Specifically, we will build streamlined P. putida strains with improved ATP availability utilizing this power on demand, decoupled from growth. The well-characterized, streamlined and re-factored strain platform will offer easy-to-use plug-in opportunities for novel, DNA-encoded functions under the control of orthogonal regulatory systems. To this end, we will deploy a concerted approach of genome refactoring, model-driven circuit design, implementation of ATP control loops, structured modelling and metabolic engineering. By drawing on a starkly improved, growth-uncoupled ATP-biosynthetic machinery, empowered P. putida strains will be able to produce a) n-butanol and isobutanol and their challenging gaseous derivatives 1-butene (BE) and (iso-)butadiene (BDE) using a novel, new-to-nature route starting from glucose, as well as b) new active ingredients for crop protection, such as tabtoxin, a high-value, ß-lactam-based secondary metabolite with a huge potential as a new herbicide. The game-changing innovations brought in – in particular the uncoupling of ATP-synthesis and production from growth - will provide strong versatility, enhanced efficiency and efficacy to the production processes, thereby overcoming current bottlenecks, matching market needs and fostering high-level research growth and development.