CropExplore for Farmers 

In het CropExplore for Farmers project wordt het potentieel van meer dan 200 akkerbouwgewassen binnen de Vlaamse bio-economie in kaart gebracht met deder, yacon en hennep als demonstratiecases. 

Waarom dit project? 

Stel: je wil als teler inzetten op gewasdiversificatie door een nieuw gewas aan je rotatie toe te voegen. Maar hoe beslis je welk gewas dit wordt? En wat is het meest geschikte ras om mee aan de slag te gaan? Ook vanuit de verwerkende industrie is er door de huidige crisissen een duidelijke noodzaak om te werken met duurzamere grondstoffen, te kiezen voor een ‘zero-waste’-productie en om de afhankelijkheid van het buitenland te beperken. Maar welke grondstoffen hebben dan het grootste potentieel? 

Tot op vandaag is het niet gemakkelijk om deze vragen te beantwoorden. De kennis over nieuwe teelten die een potentieel hebben binnen de Vlaamse bio-economie is namelijk sterk gefragmenteerd en nergens in één oogopslag waar te nemen. Dit maakt het heel moeilijk voor telers om twee potentiële gewassen met elkaar te vergelijken en de juiste keuze te maken, maar ook voor de voedingsindustrie en andere sectoren om de juiste opportuniteiten te vinden. 

Onderzoeksaanpak? 

CropExplore for Farmers (CEF) is een landbouw (LA)-traject en bovendien een sectoroverschrijdend (intercluster) project met als doel landbouwers te inspireren en te stimuleren om nieuwe gewassen te telen die een potentieel hebben binnen de Vlaamse bio-economie.  

Concreet willen we dit doel bereiken door: 

  • Een kennismatrix op te stellen met daarin teelttechnische eigenschappen, opbrengsten, arealen, inhoudsstoffen en afzetmogelijkheden van minstens 200 bekende en minder bekende akkerbouwgewassen met potentieel binnen de Vlaamse bio-economie. 
  • De kennismatrix te vertalen naar een handig te gebruiken online tool die enerzijds telers zal toelaten om gewassen onderling te vergelijken op basis van bepaalde economische of ecologische criteria en die anderzijds een inspiratiebron zal zijn voor productinnovaties in de verwerkende industrie. 
  • Drie demonstratiecases uit te werken rond deder, yacon en hennep waarin meer specifiek: 
  • De teelttechniek (onkruidbeheersing, rassenkeuze en mengteelt) van deder op praktijkschaal zal uitgetest worden en de toepassingen van dederolie en -perskoek onderzocht zullen worden. 
  • De teelt van yacon op grote schaal zal geoptimaliseerd worden op gebied van plantgoed en mechanisatie. En de bewaring en verwerking tot halffabricaten op labo-en pilootschaal uitgetest zullen worden. 
  • De afzetmogelijkheden en rendabiliteit van hennep geoptimaliseerd zal worden door te focussen op de valorisatie van de henneptoppen en -scheven. 
  • Het contact en de kennisuitwisseling tussen telers en verwerkers te faciliteren. 

Doelgroep en resultaten 

Landbouwers vormen de primaire doelgroep van het CropExplore for Farmers project. Meer specifiek gaat het hier over akkerbouwbedrijven actief in de gangbare of biologische teelt. 

Dit project is ook relevant voor de verwerkende industrie en dit uit verschillende sectoren binnen de bio-economie. Door de teelt van nieuwe grondstoffen te stimuleren kan de verwerkende industrie meer inzetten op productinnovaties met lokaal geteelde grondstoffen. Vandaar dat bedrijven binnen de Vlaamse voedings- en drankenindustrie en de chemie- en kunststoffensector ook tot de doelgroep van dit project behoren. 





Project Details
Project type: Intercluster – LA
Approved on: 15/12/2022
Duration: 01/01/2023 – 31/12/2025
Total budget: €936.198
Subsidy: €842.578
Project Partners
Flanders’ FOOD beheert en coördineert het project. De uitvoering is in handen van Boerenbond, Catalisti, HoGent, ILVO, Inagro, KU Leuven, Praktijkpunt Landbouw Vlaams-Brabant, Provinciaal Proefcentrum voor de Groenteteelt (PCG) en VIVES.

Vlaams Bio-economie Label
Het stimuleren van speerpuntclusters is één van de acties in het Vlaams beleidsplan bio-economie, dat gefinancierd wordt uit het relanceplan ‘Vlaamse Veerkracht’. Speerpuntclusters zijn immers goed geplaatst om economische en maatschappelijke doelstellingen te realiseren in samenwerking tussen kenniscentra, bedrijven en overheid. Met deze middelen geeft de Vlaamse regering een extra impuls door (inter)clusterprojecten tussen de onderzoekswereld en verschillende private sectoren te ondersteunen. Deze clusterprojecten moeten betrekking hebben op het hergebruik of omzetten van biomassa en biologisch afval tot bruikbare materialen en producten, en vallen binnen één of meer van de thema’s gedefinieerd in het beleidsplan bio-economie.

Deelnemen?
Het project CropExplore for Farmers is gestart op 01/01/2023 en loopt nog tot 31/02/2025 (projectduur 3 jaar). Tot die tijd is deelname mogelijk (mits betaling).

Contact
Vragen over dit project? Neem contact op met catalyst Bert Boekaerts (bboekaerts@catalisti.be) of Aron Deneyer (adeneyer@catalisti.be).

PROMIS

sustainable PROduction of bio-based Multi-reactive ISocyanates 

PROMIS will help the chemicals and materials industries in the production of more sustainable polyurethanes (PUs). Using inventive organic chemistry and catalysis, novel bio-based PU building blocks, called isocyanates, will be designed. As a result, current challenges in polyurethane industry will be addressed through closely interlinked valorisation goals. 

New bio-based isocyanates 

Currently, commercially available isocyanates originate from petroleum resources and are thus non-renewable. To replace these petrochemical isocyanates, PROMIS will investigate the design of new or “lookalike” bio-based isocyanates originating from biomass sources. Their molecular structure and chemical reactivity will be compared to the commercial benchmarks, identifying their potential as drop-ins or superior substitutes. PROMIS aims at the production of these new bio-based structures with distinct reactivities and/or extra beneficial properties (e.g. oxidative & UV stability and/or reduced (eco)toxicity).  

Safe and sustainable polyurethane production 

Polyurethane materials are made from the chemical reaction between isocyanate and polyol building blocks. PROMIS will focus on improved PU sustainability in several ways. First, the bio-based content of the isocyanate building blocks will be increased by starting their production from biomass resources such as lignin and carbohydrates. Crucially, the PROMIS project will select those lignocellulose biomass streams that will not compete with the food or feed industry. Furthermore, the project will identify those synthesis methods that generate the least amount of waste and involve reagents with minimal risks to the environment and human health. In particular, current commercial petrochemical isocyanate production requires phosgene, which is a highly toxic chemical reagent. In PROMIS, alternative and more sustainable isocyanate synthesis methods will be developed, removing the need for phosgene entirely.  

Intercluster project 

In the search for new bio-based building blocks for renewable PU materials, PROMIS creates an interface between the chemistry and materials domains. Therefore, PROMIS is set up as intercluster strategic basic research supported by the Flemish chemistry and materials innovation spearhead clusters, Catalisti and SIM respectively. 

Flemish Bioeconomy Label 

In the framework of the Flemish government’s policy plan for the bioeconomy, PROMIS was awarded the Bioeconomy Label by VLAIO. Financed through the recovery plan ‘Vlaamse Veerkracht’, the policy plan for the bioeconomy seeks, amongst others, to stimulate spearhead clusters like Catalisti and support their collaborative innovation projects. PROMIS is awarded the Bioeconomy label, as it matches one or more of the focus themes identified by the policy plan, including the conversion of biomass into useable materials and products. 





Project Details
Project type: Intercluster – cSBO
Approved on: 15/12/2022
Duration: 01/01/2023 – 31/12/2025
Total budget: €1.480.879
Subsidy: €1.480.879
Project Partners

Contact
Questions about this project? Please contact catalyst Bert Boekaerts (bboekaerts@catalisti.be).

DELICARE

DEpolymerisation of hydrolysis LIgnin for Conversion to Acrylic REsins 

The DELICARE project maximally exploits the potential of hydrolysis lignin (HL) as a sustainable source of reactive bio-aromatic compounds. Using a catalytic depolymerization we target  applications in acrylic resins. DELICARE will link upstream HL producers and downstream acrylic resins and polymer stakeholders, resulting in an optimized value chain, new economic opportunities and new synergetic partnerships. 

Lignin: a biomass source of aromatics 

Lignin and especially depolymerized lignin are considered to be a valuable bio-based alternative for the replacement of aromatics in many applications. In particular, HL, an underexploited side product from second generation biorefineries, has high potential in terms of cost and availability. However, its detailed analytical characterization and solubilization to enable efficient depolymerization remains challenging, usually due to high carbohydrate content. Therefore, DELICARE will expand the current lignin characterization methods to HLs and make HLs available for new applications through suitable solubilization and lignin pre-treatment strategies.  

Continuous depolymerization and innovative 3D-shaped catalyst

To enhance the production efficiency of lignin-based bio-aromatic building blocks, the shift from a batch to a continuous depolymerization process based on heterogeneous catalysis provides a unique opportunity. To go from batch to continuous operation, shaped catalysts and accessible catalyst structures are needed. Therefore, DELICARE will develop novel catalytic materials that are perfectly tuned for continuous depolymerization of HL via innovative 3D printing techniques. Multi-scale modelling will guide the catalyst development by predicting their performance at optimal operating conditions. 

Acrylics as bulk materials and high-value additives 

Applications of acrylic resins range from paints and coatings to adhesives, inks, packaging materials and personal care products. Unfortunately, only a limited number of bio-based commercially available acrylic products exist. In DELICARE, HL oil-derived acrylics will be developed as bulk polymer matrix for curable thermosetting resins and for high value tailor-made thermoplastic polyacrylates with strong anti-oxidative properties. 

Intercluster project 

As the bio-based compounds will be used in various material applications (coatings, resins, …), and the innovative catalysts will be synthesized via 3D printing, this innovation project is situated at the interface between the chemistry and materials domains. Therefore, DELICARE is set up as intercluster strategic basic research supported by the Flemish chemistry and materials innovation spearhead clusters, Catalisti and SIM respectively. 

Flemish Bioeconomy Label 

In the framework of the Flemish government’s policy plan for the bioeconomy, DELICARE was awarded the Bioeconomy Label by VLAIO, as it matches one or more of the focus themes identified by the policy plan, including the conversion of biomass into useable materials and products. Financed through the recovery plan ‘Vlaamse Veerkracht’, the policy plan for the bioeconomy seeks, amongst others, to stimulate spearhead clusters like Catalisti and support their collaborative innovation projects.  





Project Details
Project type: Intercluster – cSBO
Approved on: 15/12/2022
Duration: 01/01/2023 – 31/12/2025
Total budget: €1.499.242
Subsidy: €1.499.242
Project Partners

Contact
Questions about this project? Please contact catalyst Bert Boekaerts (bboekaerts@catalisti.be).

ODORETION

Towards sustainable solutions for better malodor elimination 

ODORETION researches and develops technology paths to remediate and prevent malodors in bedrooms, bathrooms and toilets. A research platform with modular methodologies will form a solid basis for identifying the most effective biological and chemical technologies. On top of that, ODORETION aims to be more sustainable than the typically used toxic and less environmentally friendly strategies.  

The importance of indoor air quality 

The world health organization (WHO) lists indoor air quality as one of the most dangerous health threats. Indoor air contains more and even higher concentrations of pollutants than outdoor air. Moreover, people in industrialized countries spend up to 90% of their time indoors. Bad indoor air contains toxic and malodorous compounds, impacting health and quality of life. These compounds originate from living organisms and the release of chemicals related to the production process and/or usage of materials in-house. Several technologies are already available to neutralize these malodors, but unfortunately major drawbacks are still associated with these solutions (e.g. energy-intensive washing steps during production, low durability, extra unsustainable production steps, additional health risks or high cost). With the ODORETION project, we want to improve indoor air quality and the comfort of living in a novel, sustainable and nature-based manner. 

Sustainable and effective technologies 

The main challenge is to eliminate the smell of a complex mixture of volatile organic compounds quickly and carefully. Effective technologies to eliminate and prevent unwanted odors, and thus improve indoor air quality in a sustainable way, are urgently needed. Innovative solutions to tackle malodors can significantly impact good air quality, improving performance, health, and well-being. A central and ground-breaking innovation in the proposed ODORETION project is to identify and process suitable beneficial bacterial strains that can biodegrade and eliminate malodorous compounds and, as such, promote air quality. Plants will be enriched with these beneficial bacteria towards malodor metabolization, and other complementary technologies and methods will also be co-developed. 

Application domains 

The project will deliver proofs of concept that translate into technological building blocks for application across industry sectors. ODORETION schedules demonstrators for finishes of mattress covers and protectors that are less smelling, toilet rim blocks, botanical biofiltration units, and sprays for removing malodors in toilets and bathrooms. 





Project Details
Project type: ICON
Approved on: 15/12/2022
Duration: 01/01/2023 – 31/12/2025
Total budget: €3.664.345
Subsidy: €2.528.208
Project Partners
The ODORETION consortium consists of four well-established industrial partners (BekaertDeslee, Procter&Gamble, Milliken, and Breezo), one research institute (VITO) and two academic partners (UAntwerpen and UGent). The partners have complementary know-how and skills to create a new value chain with sustainable solutions for malodor elimination.

Contact
Questions about this project? Please contact catalyst Bert Boekaerts (bboekaerts@catalisti.be).

BIOPOL4MOTIVE

Increasing the amount of biomass in foams: biobased polyols for flexible polyurethane foams in automotive applications

BIOPOL4MOTIVE will support car manufacturers and their suppliers in making polyurethane (PU) foams used in car acoustic interiors more sustainable. The project will create two grades of PU systems specifically developed for manufacturing flexible PU foams with a substantial biobased content, without functional loss, and at attractive cost.

Sustainable PU foams
Due to their high performance at low weight and their competitive cost, PU foams are the material of choice for car acoustic interiors. Today, fossil-based methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) and polyols are used to produce these PU foams. As car manufacturers and their suppliers strive towards increased sustainability and a reduced CO2 footprint, they are looking for ways to incorporate more sustainable materials into their PU foams.

One such sustainable material is biobased polyol. Currently, however, the chemical structure, inconsistent quality and cost of bio-polyol are curtailing its full potential. PU foams containing more than 10% bio-polyols, for example, exhibit an immediate loss of functionality. To overcome this challenge and increase the amount of bio-polyols in PU foams, innovative solutions are needed.

New bio-polyols
BIOPOL4MOTIVE offers these solutions by developing new bio-polyols and modified MDI, targeting use in automotive acoustic applications. In practice, the project aims to create two grades of PU systems developed for manufacturing flexible PU foams (i.e. high-resilience and visco-elastic) with a substantial biobased content. This will be achieved by developing the bio-polyol polymer and the MDI pre-polymer including the bio-polyol, delivering the required biobased content without functional loss and at attractive cost.

Impact
The project will lead to a significant increase of sustainable content in PU-based car acoustic interiors, while preserving the use and production of light-weight, cost-competitive PU foams in the automotive value chain.

Project Details
Project type: O&O
Approved on: 16/06/2021
Duration: 01/04/2021-31/12/2023
Total budget: €2.553.157
Subsidy: €1.276.579
Project Partners
To execute the project, a partnership covering the entire PU foam value chain was established: from a polyol producer (Oleon), over a PU raw material and formulated systems producer (Huntsman), to a supplier of sustainable lightweight components for acoustic and thermal management (Autoneum).
Contact
Questions about this project? Please contact catalyst Bert Boekaerts (bboekaerts@catalisti.be).


Flemish Bioeconomy Label
In the framework of the Flemish government’s policy plan for the bioeconomy, BIOPOL4MOTIVE was awarded the Bioeconomy Label by VLAIO.

Financed through the recovery plan ‘Vlaamse Veerkracht’, the policy plan for the bioeconomy seeks, amongst others, to stimulate spearhead clusters like Catalisti and support their collaborative innovation projects.

BIOPOL4MOTIVE is the first cluster project to be awarded the label, as it matches one or more of the focus themes identified by the policy plan, including the conversion of biomass and/or biological waste into useable materials and products.

ValBran

The interregional ValBran project focussed on enhancing the value of wheat bran, an agricultural co-product derived from flour mills and biorefineries that is mainly used for animal feed. The project finished in December 2020. Scroll down to learn more, or read the end report.


Ambition

Starting from the carbohydrates of wheat bran, ValBran aimed to develop biotechnological and green chemistry pathways for the sustainable production of high added-value surfactant molecules, as a substitute for oil-based molecules. The plant-based molecules were required to respect four conditions: have a lower cost than the oil-based equivalent, have at least equivalent properties to those of the oil-based equivalent, do not compete with food, and have minimal environmental impact. Targeted applications were detergency, cosmetics, phytosanitary agents and food additives.

A second ambition consisted of strengthening the cross-border cooperation between the bio-economy sectors of northern France, Wallonia and Flanders. This aim was reflected in the broad project consortium, which included partners from all three regions.

Research

Specifically, the project focussed on two categories of surfactants: alkylpolyglycosides (APG) and sugar esters. Its approach consisted of developing several laboratory-scale processes and the selecting the most promising process for pilot-scale transfer. This was followed by an economic and environmental analysis of the developed process(es).

Results

The project lasted 4 years and finished in December 2020. It has shown that wheat bran has great potential for the sustainable production of surfactants. It proved possible to produce biological surfactants with interesting properties via enzymatic technologies. Yet, the production cost of the biological surfactants remains an issue, as it is higher than the cost for producing oil-based surfactants. Tests at pilot scale will have to be carried out to demonstrate the economic viability of the processes.

Learn more about the project results by reading the the end report.

Project Details

Project type: INTERREG
Duration: 31/12/2016 – 31/12/2020
Total budget: €1.745.826
Subsidy: €872.913
Website: www.valbran.eu

Project Partners

EnzymASE 2

Enzymes for Added Sustainability and Efficiency


Building on the previous Catalisti project EnzymASE, EnzymASE 2 seeks to create environmentally friendly processes to produce chemical products with the help of enzymes. This should lead to new and improved products, as well as reduced CO2 emissions.



Project Details
Project type: ICON
Approved on: 12/12/2019
Duration: 30/06/2019 – 29/06/2022
Total budget: €1.769.357
Subsidy: €1.285.041
Project Partners

Contact
Questions about this project? Please contact catalyst Luc Van Ginneken (lvanginneken@catalisti.be).

BIORESAL

Biobased resins from aldehydes and lignin

The current industrial production of a wide range of chemicals and synthetic polymers relies on fossil resources. Consumers and brand owners drive the search for biobased materials and products that are more sustainable. Companies search for performant materials containing biosourced carbon. Phenol, a fossil-derived chemical building block, is used downstream in various chemical formulations and applications, such as phenolic resins. Phenolic resins are successfully used in a variety of industrial applications, among others automotive, coating, varnish, adhesives, construction and insulation foams. For all these applications, there is a continued drive to find novel sustainable alternatives to these basic building blocks. In view of its chemical resemblance and availability, lignin and its derivatives could be a viable alternative to partially substitute phenol in phenol-formaldehyde resins.

Goal
The BIORESAL project aims to research to produce biobased LPF resins by replacing phenol with (modified) oligomeric lignin fractions, as potentially less hazardous and sustainable building blocks for their application in insulation materials and moulding compounds. Most importantly, this replacement is needed in a technologically proven and economically viable way. Additionally, BIORESAL will include the evaluation of a series of aldehydes as co-reactant in the synthesis of biobased LPF resins.

Project Details
Project type: ICON
Approved on: 13/12/2018
Duration: 01/05/2019 – 30/10/2022
Total budget: €2.596.723
Subsidy: €1.807.567
Project Partners

Publications
Biobased Resins Using Lignin and Glyoxal
I. Van Nieuwenhove, T. Renders, J. Lauwaert, T. De Roo, J. De Clercq, and A. Verberckmoes
ACS Sustainable Chem. Eng. 2020, 8, 51, 18789–18809 – DOI: 10.1021/acssuschemeng.0c07227

The utilization of lignin and glyoxal as potentially sustainable and less hazardous building blocks for phenolic resins is an emerging research field. Lignin thereby serves as a partial, macromolecular substitute for phenol, while glyoxal fulfills the role of an aldehyde cross-linker. In the first part of this perspective, the industrial context of lignin and glyoxal will be expounded with a focus on their origin and production processes. In the framework of phenolic resins, the use of lignin and glyoxal can be categorized into two research domains: (i) glyoxalation to improve the reactivity of lignin prior to resin synthesis and (ii) direct resin synthesis using lignin and glyoxal with glyoxal immediately serving as the cross-linker. This perspective provides a comprehensive overview of the progress made in both domains, pinpointing the opportunities, blind spots, and challenges that lay ahead.

The full publication can be accessed via:
https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acssuschemeng.0c07227.

Contact
Questions about this project? Please contact catalyst Bert Boekaerts (bboekaerts@catalisti.be).

PolyFlam

Polyol-Based Flame Retardants and Lubricants

Flame retardants are a diverse group of chemicals which are added to a number of different materials (e.g. plastics, textiles, building materials) to enhance the materials’ resistance to fire. Within this diverse group, halogenated flame retardants are often regarded as being the most effective flame retardant, as only relatively small amounts are needed to obtain high flame protection. Nevertheless, this class of flame retardants can have detrimental effects on the aquatic environment if they leach out of different (plastic) materials, as they are very persistent, and they tend to bioaccumulate. A second possible negative effect could be their toxicity for humans. For these reasons, a number of them have been put on the candidate list (SVHC), like for instance hexabromocyclododecane (HBCDD) and decabromodiphenyl ether (DecaBDE). There clearly is a need for more sustainable and environmentally friendly flame retardants.

Goal
The PolyFlam project aims to develop and produce branched polyols derived from a bio-based alcohol. These polyols can then be further transformed into (reactive) flame retardants via phosphorylation chemistry. The obtained flame retardants can subsequently be used in different applications, such as textile, polymers and fire-resistant industrial fluids. The bio-based polyols can also be converted into (fully) bio-based lubricants. The project will result in a new value chain starting from a common bio-based alcohol and ending up in high-end applications that can be embedded in the chemical industry in Flanders.

Project Details
Project type: ICON
Approved on: 13/12/2018
Duration: 01/04/2019 – 29/09/2022
Total budget: €2.274.737
Subsidy: €1.633.696
Project Partners

Contact
Questions about this project? Please contact catalyst Luc Van Ginneken (lvanginneken@catalisti.be).

InTiCosm

Innovative Trends in Cosmetics

InTiCosm is an interregional project between Flanders, France and Wallonia that aims to investigate the development of biosourced materials and their use in the field of cosmetic formulation. These compounds, called “green cargo ships”, are made from molecules obtained primarily from biorefineries in the Franco-Belgian region, respecting the principles of green chemistry as much as possible (in particular by reducing the use of solvents and the number of synthesis steps). The molecules obtained are used in cosmetic formulations. Specific studies are carried out to select the most efficient and least expensive cargoes, which can then be tested with manufacturers in the cross-border region.

The project also seeks to strengthen the cross-border cooperation between the bio-economy sectors of northern France, Wallonia and Flanders. This aim is reflected by the broad project consortium, which includes partners from all three regions.

More info about the project can be found on the VITO website (in Dutch).

Project Details
Project type: INTERREG
Duration: 01/01/2019 – 31/12/2022
Total budget: €2.207.229,65
Subsidy: €1.103.614,80
Project Partners