A New Circular Economy Concept for Textiles and Chemicals

The RESYNTEX conference in Brussels on 24 April 2019 marked the final phase of this exciting project. RESYNTEX was funded by the European Commission’s HORIZON 2020 Programme via a SPIRE Public Private Partnership call and started in June 2015 to create a new circular economy concept for the textile and chemical industries. Cefic is one of 20 partners involved in the project, which represented 10 different EU member states.

Major technological advances were achieved, one being the construction of a pilot installation in Slovenia. This site will demonstrate the whole symbiosis concept of RESYNTEX in an industrial environment with full integration of the sorting, pre-treatment, chemical and enzymatic processes, as well as liquid and solid waste treatment and water recycling.

With this installation, the RESYNTEX project moved into the real-world testing of its technology for chemical and biotechnological recycling of textile waste. To achieve large-scale industrial application, significant further technology development work is necessary and must be accompanied by smart regulatory and economic incentives.

 

The project may be coming to an end, but the project partners see plenty of opportunities to work towards a circular and low carbon economy with a key role for innovative chemical and biotechnological recycling technologies. Although fundamentally understood, such technologies are currently under-deployed for plastics circularity.  Further innovation, scale-up to demonstration, adoption of policies, and establishment of recycling-chains are needed to establish clear pathways for full-scale implementation to valorise post-use waste currently shipped, burnt or disposed of in landfill.

More information at www.resyntex.eu.

BBI JU 2019 Call now open

The BioBased Industries Joint Undertaking (BBI JU) has published its 2019 Call for proposals under Horizon 2020. This sixth call will provide a further EUR 135 million of funding to boost the development of the EU’s biobased industries sector. The call is built around four strategic orientations: Feedstock, Process, Products, and Market uptake and continues the BBI JU’s objective of accelerating the development of new sustainable value chains from biomass feedstock supply via efficient processing, to the acceptance and application of bio-based products in end-markets.

The 2019 call identifier is H2020-BBI-JTI-2019 and contains 21 topic areas previously outlined in the BBI JU Annual Work Plan 2019. This document gives the full texts of the call that include 10 Research and Innovation Actions (RIAs), 7 Innovation Actions (IAs) - specifically 4 Demonstration (DEMO) calls and 4 Flagship (FLAG) calls - and 4 Coordination and Support Actions (CSAs) under the Horizon 2020 Framework Programme.

The deadline for submission of proposals is 4 September 2019, 17:00 CET, with proposal evaluations taking place during October and November and results being sent to applicants hopefully during December 2019.

Proposals to the Call 2019 can be submitted through the Funding and Tender Opportunities Portal - SEDIA (former known as the Participant Portal), the official EU funding communication channel, that gives an extensive overview of all Call information, such as Call documentation, how to get support regarding intellectual property, IT, and partner searches etc.

Via the BBI JU’s Partnering Platform, potential participants and consortia members can create  free, online profiles that enable a better interaction with other potential BBI JU Call applicants.

Applicants interested in receiving professional support or advice at the national level can get in contact with the appropriate member of the BBI network of National Contact Points.

BBI Info Day

On 12 April the BBI JU Info Day 2019 is taking place in the Charlemagne Building, Brussels. Plenary presentations on Europe's biobased sector and the development of the global bioeconomy will be followed by an outline of the BBI JU 2019 Work Programme from Philippe Mengal, Executive Director of the BBI JU. Information will be provided about the BBI JU initiative and all other aspects of the 2019 Call process including details of the proposal submission and evaluation processes.

After lunch, the BBI JU Networking event, will help participants to build their networks and find potential partners for the BBI JU Call for proposals.

And throughout the day, participants will have the opportunity to speak to representatives from BBI JU's founding partners and Member States as well as exchange views with entities in synergy with the BBI JU, including SusChem. The BBI JU's Programme Office staff will also be available to answer questions about the Call process and procedure.

Horizon Europe on track: EU institutions reach political agreement

On Wednesday 20 March 2019, the European Council and Parliament reached a provisional agreement on Horizon Europe. This political agreement, under the current Romanian Presidency of the Council of the EU, puts the EU institutions on track for a timely launch of Europe’s most ambitious Research and Innovation programme to date.

SusChem welcomes this political deal and fully supports the central role given to the innovative and enabling role of industry and sustainable chemistry in Horizon Europe.

Sustainable chemistry provides the building blocks for many of the Key Enabling Technologies and is a key solution provider for societal and UN sustainability goal challenges.

SusChem is committed to ensuring that Sustainable Chemistry technology priorities are fully considered in the ‘Global Challenges & European Industrial Competitiveness’ pillar of the new programme as well as the Public-Private-Partnership programmes and R&I Missions.

Dialogue and consultation with SusChem Stakeholders is already underway for the revision of technology priorities covered under the SusChem Strategic Innovation and Research Agenda (SIRA), which will serve as its input into Horizon Europe.

For a more detailed analysis of the deal please read this Science Business article.

The SusChem News Interview: Joanna Dupont-Inglis

SusChem was created with a mission to revitalise and inspire European chemistry and industrial biotechnology research, development and innovation in a sustainable way to respond to pressing societal challenges. Industrial biotechnology has always been a significant key enabling technology for SusChem and the Bioeconomy a priority policy area. And this continues as the platform works towards a new strategic innovation and research agenda for Horizon Europe.

EuropaBio was one of the founding partners of the platform. SusChem News recently caught up with Joanna Dupont-Inglis, Secretary-General of EuropaBio to get her views on SusChem’s achievements and what the future may hold for the platform.

Joanna has been a tremendous supporter of SusChem and its initiatives for many years and has recently stepped down from the SusChem board. Agnes Borg, EuropaBio's Director of Industrial Biotechnology, is now the organisation's representative on the SusChem management board.

Joanna has worked in Brussels for almost 20 years for a variety of industry groups, including CEFIC sector groups. A UK/Irish national with a background in Environmental Science and European Studies, she became directly involved with SusChem when she was appointed as Communications Manager with EuropaBio in 2009. Her role increased when she became Director of Industrial Biotech in April 2011. In 2016 Joanna was appointed as chair of the EU Bioeconomy Stakeholders Panel and since September 2018 Joanna has been EuropaBio’s Secretary General.

SN: How has SusChem been for you?

JDI: Being part of SusChem over the last ten years has been a great privilege, having given me the opportunity to work with experts, sometimes from quite different perspectives, who share a collective passion for the potential of chemistry and biotech.

The platform has grown and integrated a wider European community of industry, technology platforms and academia that is working to provide sustainable solutions to European challenges. SusChem successfully expanded the breadth and range of people involved in its work through its stakeholder engagement events encouraging cross-disciplinary work, helping to form consortia and reaching out along value chains to other organisations and initiatives. The network of SusChem National Technology Platforms, incorporating 17 countries across Europe, has been really significant  here too.

A big success for SusChem has also been its role to capture and articulate the benefits that sustainable chemistry and biotech to many of the major challenges facing our society and to global targets such as the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. It has done this by boosting awareness and visibility of research and innovation initiatives in sustainable biotech and chemistry.

SN: What do you see as the main ‘concrete’ achievements of the ETP?

JDI: The establishment of the SPIRE Public Private Partnership (SPIRE) and the BioBased Industries Joint Undertaking (BBI JU) are major achievements which SusChem helped work towards establishing. Many members of the SusChem board and the wider SusChem community were active and effective in advocating for the solutions and advantages that could be delivered via these two PPPs.

It’s really rewarding to see the hundreds of projects, focused on renewability, resource efficiency and climate change mitigation, that are now being delivered through these two initiatives and the valuable role of SusChem in helping to contribute to these two strategic research and innovation frameworks. The research and innovation outcomes from SPIRE and BBI are also demonstrating huge value-added potential for sustainable chemistry and industrial biotechnology by boosting jobs and growth in Europe while also ensuring environmental benefits.

The PPPs are helping Europe to remain at the cutting edge of technologies in these and other areas. They are bringing people together in new and novel partnerships and establishing links that continue beyond the projects themselves.

SN: How has SusChem influenced research and innovation activities in the EU working towards a functioning bioeconomy?

JDI: The impact and influence of SusChem’s research and innovation agendas are reflected throughout the European Commission’s Framework programmes FP7 and Horizon 2020.

SusChem’s research and innovation agendas have also been a major help here in laying the foundations of the bioeconomy by highlighting relevant technology priorities . SusChem has had a direct input through its own ‘SusChem inspired’ projects in FP7 and Horizon 2020 and also in its influence in supporting the agenda for the BBI’s work programme.

It’s work on sustainable chemistry applications, in topics such as renewable feedstock, holds great potential for benefiting rural and coastal communities through the development of their local and regional bioeconomy in terms of jobs and growth.

SusChem has also been impactful in advocating the link between resource efficiency and the bioeconomy, providing the basis for synergies with the circular economy.

SN: How do you see the platform’s role developing in Horizon Europe?

JDI: The new SusChem’s SIRA, to be published in light of Horizon Europe, will be really important here.  On a personal level, I’m excited to see how in the future SusChem will change the perception of CO2 and CH4 from being ‘’problem GHGs’’ to valuable feedstocks. Although the exact nature and functioning of Horizon Europe’s missions are still to be clarified, their raison d’etre is to use research and innovation to deliver tangible benefits that citizens are looking for to provide a healthier, more sustainable future for them and generations to come. Consumers are becoming more and more engaged in sustainability issues and, therefore, in what they buy and use. SusChem could have a role here through engaging with the public to showcase what can be achieved; demonstrating the options and impact that sustainable chemistry and industrial biotechnology can deliver.

The platform also has a role in encouraging academia to provide the courses and resources to ensure we are giving people the right skills and knowledge to enable a more sustainable society.

SusChem is very well placed, thanks to its collective expertise, to contribute to these missions. Indeed, it is hard to imagine how many of the proposed missions could succeed without input from biotech and sustainable chemistry. SusChem can deliver on these urgent needs and will continue to play a key role in the movement to ensure society uses our natural resources as sustainability as possible going forward for the benefit of everyone.

HARMONI fosters European innovation

As stakeholders from the European process industry continue their search for measures to facilitate the transfer of innovation to the market, the Horizon 2020 funded SPIRE project HARMONI (Harmonised assessment of regulatory bottlenecks and standardisation needs for the process industry) has acted as a catalyst, bringing together over 150 experts to foster innovation activities.

On 16 and 17 January, the 2019 HARMONI Summit took place with the objective to encourage dialogue on an effective framework to facilitate and foster innovation. More than 150 experts from all sectors of the process industry, the European Commission and European standardisation bodies engaged in the exchange of ideas.

Summit solutions

The summit addressed solutions for non-technological challenges that hinder innovation and the transfer of solutions, such as regulation, standardisation needs and the lack of innovative business models. Based on the themes within the HARMONI project, the summit selected priority discussion areas that included innovation transfer and the harmonisation of EU regulation and EU standardisation.

Six sessions took place during the two-day workshop, dealing with context specific priority areas, such as the circular economy, CO2 valorisation and waste management. Each session included experts, and opportunity for Q&A’s, as well as working groups and discussion panels. This allowed for a hands-on evaluation of possible solutions for industry needs while, in parallel, giving a voice for representatives from the European Commission in an open and transparent dialogue.

HARMONI, in the words of the DG Research and Innovation, “can play a very interesting role in the future of the Horizon Europe Programme”, especially due to its good practise of integrating regulation and standardisation.

What’s next?

The HARMONI project continues until October 2019. The results of the project mainly address industry, regulatory and standardisation bodies. Identified priorities and results from the working groups will serve to provide recommendations to the responsible authorities.

The HARMONI team welcomes your input and looks forward to engaging with you in order to move towards a sustainable and competitive European process industry. Why not subscribe to the HARMONI newsletter to keep up to date with upcoming events and results?

More information on Harmoni

HARMONI aims to bring together all the relevant stakeholders in the process industry to jointly identify, analyse and propose solutions to the regulatory bottlenecks and standardisation needs that hamper their innovation processes and the market uptake of their results.

To do this, the project is developing and applying a methodology that ensures effective collaboration between the eight sectors involved in the SPIRE contractual Public Private Partnership to elaborate the solutions to the common challenges they face due to non-technological barriers including regulatory issues and lack of appropriate European Standards relevant to improving resource efficiency. In addition, HARMONI is analysing, comparing and proposing recommendations to trigger the transferability of technical solutions among and beyond the SPIRE sectors.

The project activities should enable an optimised EU regulatory and standardisation framework that facilitates and supports innovation in the process industry; improved participation of the SPIRE community in EU regulatory and procedures; earlier and more active involvement of the SPIRE community in the EU standardisation process; and an overall better environment that maximises transferability rates for technologies across SPIRE sectors.

For more information, please take a look at the HARMONI website.

A Roadmap for the Chemical Industry in Europe towards a Bioeconomy

The final event of the Horizon 2020 project RoadToBio will take place on Monday 18 February 2019 in Brussels. This stakeholder workshop event will present and discuss the project’s ‘Roadmap for the Chemical Industry in Europe towards a Bioeconomy’.

Over the last 18 months, the RoadToBio consortium has developed suggestions on how to produce 25% of organic chemical products in Europe as biobased goods by 2030. The results of the project have been achieved in close cooperation with many stakeholders from industry, associations, NGOs, and academia.

At this final workshop, the project will share the insights that have been gained and discuss the results of the analysis, the proposed actions and the messages that can help to facilitate the participatory development of Europe's bioeconomy going forward.

Objectives

There are three main objectives to the workshop.

• Firstly, to present the analysis on the selected nine product groups with a high potential to switch from a fossil-based to a biobased production pathway and to discuss their market opportunities. These nine products groups are: Agrochemicals, Adhesives, Cosmetics, Lubricants, Man-Made fibres, Paints and Coatings, Plastics, Solvents, and Surfactants. Participants to the workshop will be able to choose two breakout sessions covering specific aspects of each product group.
• Secondly, to discuss general barriers that may hinder the development of Europe’s bioeconomy and the recommended actions from the project to overcome these.
• And, thirdly, to explain how biobased products could be communicated better and what tools and messages can be used to better engage stakeholders and the public

The event will be held on the afternoon of 18 February 2019 at the Bluepoint Conference Centre in Brussels. You can download a draft agenda for the event here. Registration will be open until 13 February 2019 by emailing Lea Koening at Dechema indicating which two product groups you are particularly interested in.

More on RoadToBio

How can the chemical industry in Europe meet the challenges in global markets while becoming more sustainable at the same time? RoadToBio is a Horizon2020 project funded via the Biobased Industries JU that aims to pave the way for the European chemical industry towards a higher biobased portfolio and competitive success based on the benefits offered by the bioeconomy. The Project will deliver a roadmap for the chemical industry that will specify benefits as well as barriers towards a biobased economy to meet societal needs in 2030.

Start using the Funding & Tender Portal for Horizon2020

In case you missed it, the European Commission has recently launched a new corporate Funding & Tender Opportunities Portal. The new Funding & Tenders Portal will become the entry point (the Single Electronic Data Interchange Area) for participants and experts in funding programmes and tenders managed by the European Commission and other EU bodies including Horizon 2020 and Horizon Europe.

The new corporate Funding & Tender Opportunities Portal replaces the previous Participant Portal for Horizon 2020 and will become the single entry point for finding and managing EU grants and procurement contracts. It will cover all centrally managed programmes by the start of the next EU multi-annual programme period in 2021.

The new portal includes all functions currently available on the Participant Portal, as well as a new layout and graphic design, and an improved keyword search function with new features and search behaviour. The new portal reflects its multi-programme coverage and integrates the calls for tenders.

What is on the portal?
Using the new portal, you can:

• Search and apply for funding opportunities in calls for proposals
• Search a call for tender and submit a tender 
• Manage your grants
• Register as an expert, manage contracts and payments online.

Start using it now!

SusChem wishes you a successful 2019!

Dear colleagues and members of the SusChem community,

The past year showed us once again the enormous challenges and changes that our world and our industry have to cope with, whilst striving to achieve sustainable development. An extended summer across Europe reminded me and many of us that CO2 emissions are still on the rise; and the issue of plastics waste became more urgent on the political agenda.

Identifying solutions to global challenges like these is achieved via science and technology – and through collaboration. This is exactly the purpose of SusChem, and I think in 2018 we made further progress in sharing a ‘European voice’ on research and innovation priorities in Sustainable Chemistry and Industrial Biotech.

One highlight was our response to Horizon Europe, the ambitious research and innovation programme that the European Commission is forging to succeed Horizon 2020.  At our annual stakeholders event in June, the potential of the contribution of SusChem and Key Enabling Technologies (KETs) under Horizon Europe was highlighted. And we initiated our consultation to build a new SusChem Strategic Innovation and Research Agenda (SIRA). I am sure the new SIRA will be a solid base for advising the European Commission on future technology priorities for Horizon Europe. Delivery of a final draft is planned in the course of 2019 – a major task for next year.

Looking back on 2018, I also well remember our brokerage event in October which was supported by keynote speakers from the Commission and also the disruptive innovation community. The event brought together some 200 European innovators to form strong consortia under open Horizon 2020 calls – a really impressive number! Also the number of national technology platforms (NTPs) rose in 2018 with the accession of Bulgaria, Finland and Sweden, so that our community now comprises 17 NTPs across Europe. 

2018 also saw SusChem making significant contributions to the innovation discussion in Europe. Our extended ‘Key Enabling Technologies in Horizon Europe’ paper was published in February, while two new white papers gave insight and recommendations on recycling of polymer composites and battery energy storage. And most recently, ‘SusChem Plastics Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda in a Circular Economy’ was published with contributions from across the full plastics value chain, as a contribution to the implementation of the EU Plastics strategy.

So 2018 was really impactful. Our key focus for 2019 will be to build on SusChem’s role as a multi-stakeholder advisory forum engaging with both academia and industry. Together we can provide a vision and direction on innovation and technology priorities in Sustainable Chemistry and industrial biotechnology to ensure the success of Horizon Europe. We therefore invite you to join us in formulating together the new SusChem SIRA!

On behalf of the SusChem Board and the SusChem secretariat, I would like to thank you all very much for your continuing commitment to our platform and activities. I wish you a relaxing Christmas break and a healthy, happy and “sustainable” New Year. We look forward to working with you on new SusChem inspired initiatives over the next 12 months!

Best wishes,




Dr Markus Steilemann
Chairman of the SusChem Board

REE4EU Pilot Plant success

The SusChem-supported Horizon 2020 project REE4EU has successfully demonstrated at a pilot scale a closed-loop permanent magnet recycling process for the first time in Europe. The REE4EU pilot has successfully treated several tons of in-process wastes and end-of-life magnetic products containing rare earth elements, resulting in the recovery of almost hundred kilos of rare earth alloys. The alloy will be reused in the manufacturing of permanent magnet products, thereby closing the materials loop!

The successful recycling of permanent magnet waste is a major result for the REE4EU SPIRE project whose full title is: Integrated High Temperature Electrolysis (HTE) and Ion Liquid Extraction (ILE) for a Strong and Independent European Rare Earth Elements Supply Chain.

Rare earth elements (REEs) are the seventeen chemical elements including the lanthanides, Scandium and Yttrium that are key-enablers of sustainable technologies. They are used in hybrid electric vehicles, wind turbines, and highly efficient electric motors. Currently European industries are highly reliant on imports of these valuable and rare materials. Recycling the elements from REE-containing waste streams could constitute an important secondary source of the materials for Europe.

A recent study estimated the global trade in REE-containing products in 2010 is around EUR 1.5 trillion, or 13% of global trade. However, only 1% of REE waste is being recovered as no adequate process is currently available. REE4EU’s success could open-up a brand-new route to recover process wastes from permanent magnet production.

Pilot demo

During the third year of this four-year project that started in October 2015, work has focused on constructing and running the REE4EU's pilot units: the high temperature electrolysis (HTE) and ionic liquid extraction (ILE) units. The technology has now been demonstrated at pre-industrial scale using permanent magnet wastes.

Enough waste material (in-process waste and end-of-life magnets) has been treated to obtain enough rare earth alloy (REA) to run a 600 kg batch of strip cast rare earth master alloy (REMA) and output material from the HTE pilot cell has been used to manufacture permanent magnets in a laboratory line.

The quality of both the REMA input and the permanent magnet output obtained in terms of magnetic properties and chemical composition show that the magnets prepared have the same properties as magnets from mass production using virgin materials. This validates the REE4EU technology to obtain REA for permanent magnet production using magnet waste materials.

The two-step process (ILE then HTE) has been optimised for direct REA production, suitable for REMA to be used in permanent magnet manufacturing. In this way, a complete closed-loop permanent magnet recycling has been demonstrated at a pre-industrial scale using less steps than conventional methods currently carried out in China.

The process and its advantages are explained in this REE4EU video.

Next steps

In the next few months, the REA obtained in the HTE unit will be used to manufacture REMA for permanent magnets in a real magnet production line and benchmarked against magnets produced using virgin materials.

Data collection and modelling activities on permanent magnet waste recycling routes have been carried out and these results will be used to eco-design the recycling chain and to compare it to the conventional supply route of REA currently used for permanent magnet production.

For more information on the REE4EU processes visit their website.

BOOST INNOVATION - Establish the right framework for your industry

The 2019 HARMONI Summit is a multi-stakeholder-platform including relevant participants from regulation, standardisation and industry. On 16 and 17 January 2019 at the Assuralia Meeting Centre on Square de Meeûs in Brussels, the summit will deal with non-technological challenges in your innovation agenda such as regulation, standardisation and innovation transfer. Registration is open until 7 January 2019.

The summit will open from 14h00 on 16 January with an introduction to HARMONI and its mission to assess non-technical barriers to innovation, followed by a word from the European Commission. The new 2050 Vision recently launched by the SPIRE PPP will then be described by Daniel Gauthier, President of A.SPIRE and the role of standardisation in facilitating an innovation framework outlined by CEN-CENELEC.

After coffee, a session will focus on how to utilise the funding schemes under the forthcoming Horizon Europe programme including how to benefit from the new “Missions” concept, assessing the programme from a national perspective, and how it aligns with the EU’s Low Carbon Strategy. The last formal session on the first day is entitled ‘Enabling innovation during the fuzzy front end as well as beyond’ and will feature contributions from the European Investment Bank, BNP Paribas, and industry representatives.

The formal sessions will end by around 17h40 but an evening event kicks off at 19h00 with a buffet, drinks, discussion and speeches at The Office; Rue d'Arlon 80; 1040 Brussels.

Break-outs

The second day features a couple of break-out sessions. The morning session tackles the issue of ‘Overcoming innovation barriers’. Three parallel workshops will work on Learning from success - tools and standardisation to grow and transfer innovations, Non-technological issues regarding CO2 valorisation (Part 1), and innovation barriers to Circular Economy (the example of plastics). The later session will see discussion of SusChem’s soon-to-be-published Plastics Strategic Innovation and Research Agenda (SIRA).

After lunch, a second break-out session will address themes under the general title ‘Enabling Circular Economy and industrial innovation’. Three parallel workshops will consider Standards and innovation transfer in the area of Circular Economy, Non-technological issues regarding CO2 valorisation (Part 2), and Waste management: Innovations in industrial symbiosis. The later session will include feedback from SPIRE projects working in this area.

A draft agenda can be downloaded here.

Registration for the event is open until 7 January 2019 via this registration page and participation is free of charge. Please feel free to forward details of this event to other interested parties and colleagues.

For more information on the event, please contact Christian Grunewald or Sönke Nissen.

SPIRE projects debate the utilisation of CO2 and CO on 12 November

As part of the EU’s Raw Materials Week, the SPIRE Horizon 2020 project Carbon4PUR is organising a stakeholder event to bring together SPIRE projects, industrial, political and NGO stakeholders working in the area of CO2 and CO utilisation. The goal is to create synergies between the projects, create a closer cooperation between the projects and stakeholders, and get a holistic view on the field of CO2 and CO as raw materials. The event takes place on 12 November at the European Commission’s Covent Garden building in Brussels. The meeting is free to participate, but prior compulsory registration must be made by 6 November in order to access the building.

The following SPIRE and EU funded projects will present their take on the subject and the advances they are making in the area:

• Carbon4PUR - Turning industrial waste gases into valuable polyurethanes - European research collaboration between the steel and chemical industries
• FReSMe & MefCO2 - Methanol production from flue and residual steel gases
• ICO2CHEM - From industrial CO2 streams to added value Fischer-Tropsch chemicals
• RECO2DE & ENGICOIN - Recycling CO2 in the cement industry for the production of added-value additives
• EPOS - Enhanced energy and resource Efficiency and Performance in process industry operations via onsite and cross-sectorial symbiosis
• Steelanol - Transforming carbon-rich industrial waste gases into advanced bio-ethanol

A panel discussion will allow for interaction between all projects and participating stakeholders.

Geographical questions

A special focus of the event will be on geographical aspects of CO2 and CO as chemical feedstocks. Answers will be sought for the following questions:

• Where do we have CO2 and CO sources, where renewable energy and chemical transformation facilities are available? 
• Do we need pipelines for the gases and is there space for the new utilisation plants? 

The event will also discuss value chains and potential cooperation between the different actors represented. 

All participating projects are looking for feedback from the various stakeholders about their projects, depending on the progress of the individual project including: 

• Did the project consider all important aspects?
• Do you have suggestions for the implementation?
• Do you see problems? 

Participating stakeholder will get a thorough understanding of the research going on in Europe to use carbon rich gases as resources. You can also make your voice heard and influence these projects with your feedback. Lastly, this is a great opportunity for networking and to get into contact with researchers and companies working in the field of CO2 and CO utilisation. 

Participation is free, but you need to register by November 6th to get access to the building. A preliminary agenda for the meeting can be accessed here and you can register via this link.

SusChem Brokerage 2018: Horizon 2020 update and Project Pitching

The SusChem Brokerage Event 2018 took place at the distinguished Hotel Le Plaza in Brussels on 23 October and was attended by some 180 participants. The audience was updated on Commission proposals for the 2019 and 2020 Horizon 2020 work programme and forthcoming calls in areas relevant to sustainable chemistry. In addition, a wide range of project ideas and consortia were presented in some 39 presentations across three project pitching sessions and inspiring talks on disruptive innovation were given. Information booths presenting the programmes of the SPIRE cPPP, the Biobased Industries Joint Undertaking (BBI JU), and SusChem National Technology Platforms (NTPs) were open throughout the day and, of course, speed dating and informal networking was facilitated.

Delegates to #SusChemBrokerage2018 were welcomed by Vivi Filippousi, SusChem Secretary and Innovation Manager at Cefic, who introduced a video message Markus Steilemann, CEO of Covestro and Chair of the SusChem board Chairman (pictured below). He welcomed the wide range of SusChem stakeholders at the event and urged them to continue the collaborative style that SusChem has initiated and to be “curious, colourful and make the world a brighter place through sustainable chemistry.”

Commission programme
Overviews of the forthcoming Horizon 2020 work programme and 2019 and 2020 calls were presented by Commission officials, although it was stressed that the topics presented were currently tentative and official texts would be published later in the year.

Potential topics in the materials (NMBP) area were presented by Søren Bowadt, Deputy Head of Unit; Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology at the Commission’s DG Research (pictured below). This was followed by Carmine Marzano, Programme officer for Advanced Manufacturing Systems and Biotechnologies who focused on process technologies – in particular the forthcoming SPIRE calls – and Panos Balabanis, Deputy Head of Unit for Eco-Innovation who concentrated on calls that offered direct support for the EU’s recent circular economy package and that connected economic and environmental gains.

In a second session call presentations from two further Commission speakers were presented. First, Arian Zwegers, Programme Officer for Technologies and Systems for Digitising Industry at DG-Connect described some of the calls in the digital with an emphasis on security, the concept of digital manufacturing platforms and big data applications.

Topics on Energy were described by Silvia Vivarelli, Senior Project Adviser on Horizon 2020 Energy Efficiency at the Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (EASME) Goals in particular those putting energy efficiency first and providing the technical basis for the Clean Energy for all Europeans Package.  Reducing final energy intensity in industry was a key goal.

Power pitching, disruptive innovation
After the morning coffee break, seven of SusChem’s NTPS (Spain, Finland, Czech Republic, the UK, Belgium, Slovenia and Greece) were introduced by Anne Chloe Devic from Cefic and presented a range of project ideas on behalf of national stakeholders including SMEs, larger companies, RTOs and universities.

An intense second Project Pitching session after lunch saw 22 speakers from large and small companies, RTOs and universities presenting their project ideas. This was followed by two presentations on disruptive innovation in Europe.

Nicholas Zylberglajt, President and Co-Founder of the European Young Innovators Forum (EYIF) looked at trends and challenges in the European start-up ecosystem. To succeed start-ups needed access to talent and skills, funds and the ability to make effective and useful connections. He said that Europe had made huge progress over the last decade – the last five years especially – in terms of its start-up ecosystem with leading hubs in London, Berlin, Amsterdam and Barcelona.

Eric Pol, Senior Advisor at venture capital organisation Ventures4Growth described the sort of initiatives that he looks to invest in: companies doing good, relevant, and credible science with high quality, close-knit teams who were able to react to crisis. Overall, he thought that Europe was doing very well thanks to EU programmes and the existence of the single market.

A final, third pitch session saw presentations on behalf of nine sustainable chemistry start-up companies.

The day was completed with a networking cocktails and throughout the day a dedicated meeting room allowed individuals to meet and exchange ideas, speed date and build consortia. Information booths representing SusChem NTPs and the two SusChem inspired Horizon 2020 programme initiatives – the SPIRE cPPP (above) and the BBI JU (below) – were also open providing information on their forthcoming work programmes.

All in all, #SusChemBrokerage2018 was a packed and exhausting day with, in total, more than 50 project concepts presented and numerous individual contacts facilitated. We look forward to these exchanges leading to the birth of many new and successful projects in the next few months!

VERAM delivers

The SusChem supported Horizon2020 project VERAM (Vision and Roadmap for European Raw Materials) brought together diverse stakeholders – including five European Technology Platforms (ETPs): Sustainable Mineral Resources, Forest, Construction, Sustainable Chemistry and Advanced Materials – to produce a medium-term (2030) Vision and a longer-term (2050) Strategic Research and Innovation Roadmap for raw materials. VERAM is now completed and its public project deliverables are available to download.

Demographic changes, such as population growth in developing countries and an ageing population in developed countries, coupled with increasing standards of living and urbanisation trends will foster a greater demand for products and applications linked to human well-being, health, hygiene and sustainability. As a consequence, the worldwide demand for raw materials is expected to increase while global resources and land become scarce. A shift towards a more resource-efficient, circular economy and sustainable development is essential. 

Europe is confronted with many challenges along the entire raw materials value chain. Yet, innovation in raw materials value chains remains untapped despite the sector’s great potential.  A more coordinated approach towards raw materials management will help reduce external supply dependency and lead to an efficient use of resources.

To achieve these goals, a long-term vision and roadmap to 2050 could help tap the full potential of raw materials supply and use in Europe and boost the innovation capacity of the sector, turning it into a strong, sustainable pillar of the EU economy and an attractive industry, whilst addressing societal and environmental challenges and increasing benefits for society. This is where VERAM came in.

Key to success

“The key to the success of VERAM was the strong partnership that was forged through the project, linking diverse ETPs, value chains, industry sectors and academia,” commented Patrick Wall, VERAM’s project coordinator from the European Technology Platform on Sustainable Mineral Resources (ETP SMR).

“To address the challenges in the raw materials supply chain, VERAM initiated communication and dialogue between the different raw materials sectors, stakeholders (including civil society organisations) and all parts of the value chain to pool experience and knowledge and build the VERAM Vision and Roadmap for Raw Materials,” Mr. Wall continued.

Henk Pool, Innovation Manager at CEFIC, a partner in the VERAM project consortium said: “Predicting the future is a significant challenge, especially in a world that is experiencing rapid change, including accelerators of change such as digitalisation, however we can be certain that there will still be a significant need for raw materials in 2050! And VERAM has helped us understand what will be required and the critical need for innovation to ensure this need can be met.”

Deliverables to download

A range of deliverables across the project’s five work packages are now publicly accessible. They include:

Work package 1: Management and coordination

• Results of the feasibility study to establish a R&I Raw Materials Stakeholder Portal

Work package 2: Dissemination and communication

• Project website design and initial promotion materials (logo, templates)
• Clustering with ongoing initiatives (EIT RM; clusters; EU projects on RM, …)
• Final Conference

Work package 3: Defining and exploring the playing field

• Report on the raw materials research and innovation network: the relevant players and their roles
• Report on the RM research & innovation funding and projects: relevant R & I topics in the EU and abroad, strengths and weaknesses of current EU and MS funding landscape
• Report on future societal challenges and the corresponding needs of global markets and EU industries
• Report on the challenge ahead: the gap between future EU industrial needs and current research and innovation funding
• Web based information handling portal

Work package 4: Creating a vision 2030 and 2050 for raw materials

• Report on economic outlook and raw material needs for 2050
• Report on Raw material research and innovation vision for 2050
• Report on innovation and capacity building needs across the EU economy till 2050

Work package 5: Creating the raw materials roadmap 2050

• RM Research Roadmap drafts
• RM Research Roadmap and recommendations

Want to boost innovation? Set the right framework for your industry

Are you facing non-technological challenges with your innovation agenda? Then the 2019 HARMONI Summit on regulation, standardisation and innovation transfer is for you! The summit will provide you with good ideas and solutions on how to address those challenges. The Summit takes place on 16 and 17 January 2019 at the CEN-CENELEC Management Centre; Rue de la Science 23; 1040 Brussels and registration has just opened. 

The HARMONI project is all about overcoming non-technological barriers to innovation as well as to innovation transfer: regulatory bottlenecks, standardisation needs and other related barriers.

The 2019 HARMONI Summit will involve two days packed with inspiring discussions, target-orientated solution development and cross-sectorial networking. It is your opportunity to get involved, discuss your ideas and generate solutions as well as to establish the right framework for your industry.

Key topics

The Summit will give you an insight into Harmoni’s key topics such as circular economy and waste as well as into the EU project world, innovation mission concepts and an exclusive first sight of the HARMONI project results.

The first day offers the opportunity to get in touch with interesting speakers and other industry representatives. It allows participants to engage with policy-makers and standardisation bodies during our evening event. A buffet and drinks are included to complement your stay. The second day is dedicated to discussions and solution generation.

A comprehensive programme for the Summit will be circulated by mid of November, including a detailed agenda, but registration is already open and will close on 7 January 2019. Participation is free of charge and you can register here.

If you have any questions about the event, or need more information, please contact Ann-Kathrin Blanke.

HARMONI will also be presenting on standardisation bottlenecks in the process industry at the Industrial Technologies 2018 (#IndTech2018) event from 29 to 31 October 2018 in Vienna.

More information on Harmoni

The SPIRE Horizon 2020 project HARMONI aims at bringing together all the relevant stakeholders in the process industry to jointly identify, analyse and propose solutions to the regulatory bottlenecks and standardisation needs that hamper their innovation processes and the market uptake of their results.

To do this, the project is developing and applying a methodology that ensures effective collaboration between the eight sectors involved in the SPIRE contractual Public Private Partnership to elaborate the solutions to the common challenges they face due to non-technological barriers including regulatory issues and lack of appropriate European Standards relevant to improving resource efficiency.

In addition, HARMONI is analysing, comparing and proposing recommendations to trigger the transferability of technical solutions among and beyond the SPIRE sectors.

The project activities should enable an optimised EU regulatory and standardisation framework that facilitates and supports innovation in the process industry; improved participation of the SPIRE community in EU regulatory and procedures; earlier and more active involvement of the SPIRE community in the EU standardisation process; and an overall better environment that maximises transferability rates for technologies across SPIRE sectors.

For more information, please take a look at the HARMONI website.

November European Innovation Summit celebrates 10 years

The 10th European Innovation Summit (#10EIS) organised by Knowledge4Innovation (K4I) is taking place from 26 – 29 November 2018 in and around the European Parliament in Brussels. The theme this year is ‘Europe – A Global Leader in Science, Technology and Innovation’ and the event programme will address hot topics currently on the policy agenda, developments in sectors crucial for Europe’s competitiveness as well as taking a deep dive into emerging technologies.

Plenary Sessions on Horizon Europe as well as future Cohesion Policy in support of innovation will provide input to the ongoing negotiations among the three European Institutions. A special session will be dedicated to the European elections and how MEPs can play the 'innovation card' during their campaign and help to create a true single market for innovation in the EU.

Hot topics

Horizontal topics to be addressed at #10EIS include Horizon Europe (the next Framework Programme for Research and Innovation), the EU-Cohesion programmes that support innovation policy implementation in all regions, and the forthcoming MFF, the Multiannual Financial Framework post 2020.

Emerging and Breakthrough Technology topics include Artificial Intelligence (AI), Big Data, Blockchain, Quantum Technologies, Next Generation Computing, Internet of Things and 5G mobile, Synthetic Cells and Genome Editing, and Augmented or Virtual Reality.

Many topics will bridge across industries and sectors such as Digital Transformation and Industry 4.0, Climate Change, Clean Energy, Food for all, Healthcare for a better life, Materials and Chemicals for sustainability, Urban Mobility and Carbon free transport, Financial Technology and Financial services, Education: adapting curricula to reality, Smart Cities, Circular Economy, Security and Cyber security, Space technology and much more.

For more information on #10EIS visit the K4I website. Both Cefic and SPIRE are partners of  #10EIS and will be participating in the event.

EUTop50

In parallel with #10EIS the EUTop50 Founders and Tech Festival (#EUTOP50) will be staged on 26-27 November at the Palais des Academies and the European Parliament in Brussels. #EUTOP50 celebrates and supports young talent from all over Europe by bringing together the continent’s leading innovation actors, technology developers, incubators and accelerators, investors, corporate venture organisations, family offices and all those who contribute to the development of a globally competitive entrepreneurial ecosystem in Europe.

Learning from last year’s #EUTOP50 event, and to achieve maximum impact, the 2018 edition has invited not only start-ups and scale-ups but also R&D innovators from Horizon 2020 and national research programmes and university technology developers from across Europe as well Graduate Companies from Universities of Applied Science.

During the event 25 winners will be selected to give pitches during the #EUTOP50 event, participate in the Mentorship Programme of Europe`s Future Innovation Leaders, compete for awards from #EUTOP50 Partners, meet Corporates and Investors, network with future Business Partners and participate at the #10EIS Opening Ceremony and Networking Reception.

For more information on the #EUTOP50 event and competition visit their website. 

KETs Impact: SME instrument brings innovative food supplement to market

The recent SusChem White paper ‘Impact: Key Enabling Technologies (KETs) in Horizon Europe’ included a number of success stories highlighting publicly funded innovation involving KETs and the SusChem News blog is featuring a selection of these fruitful 'SusChem inspired' initiatives.

KETs are technologies selected for their ability to address global challenges, support the development of new products, and stimulate economic growth.

Sustainable chemistry is essential to the technological advance of KETs including advanced materials, advanced manufacturing technologies, industrial biotechnology, micro and nanoelectronics, nanotechnology and photonics. SusChem's key enabling technologies provide the critical building blocks for the solutions needed to achieve a sustainable low carbon circular economy. You can find out more here.

Our penultimate KETs success story number focuses on a project, LIFEOMEGA, funded under the Horizon 2020 SME Instrument to develop an innovative food supplement consisting of a high concentrated emulsion of the Omega-3 fatty acid EPA (Eicosapentaenoic Acid). Omega-3 is utilised as a treatment in psoriasis, arthritis, asthma, multiple sclerosis, chronic inflammatory, cancer, high blood Triglycerides (TGs), retinal diseases and cardiovascular failure.

LIFEOMEGA Project

Developing an innovative highly concentrated Omega 3 food supplement

EU SME Instrument supports breakthrough innovation project with market-creating potential

Solutex is an innovative SME continuously investing in research and innovation to offer high quality products for nutritional and pharmaceutical industries. Solutex is in the forefront of research in Omega-3 to improve the quality of life and nutrition of cancer patients. LIFEOMEGA-cancer, considered as one chemotherapy essential nutrient co-adjuvant, is one of the latest products. The scale up of technology to Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 8, has been made possible with EU SME funding. 

How was the breakthrough innovation achieved?

For an SME, partnerships with both RTOs and large companies is key to long-term success. Solutex has a partnership for a commercial agreement with one the most important pharmaceutical groups in Spain. Collaboration with hospitals and clinics has been essential for the success of the project and to carry out the clinical trials needed. After the preliminary research, carried out with company’s own resources, Solutex successfully applied for a Phase-I SME Instrument, and for a Phase-II SME instrument. The funding received has been fundamental to develop the final product and the scale-up.

Impact

• The social impact for cancer patients’ treatments is very important. With the new product, the quality of life of cancer patients is improved. Chemotherapy effects become tolerable and hospitalisation time is reduced. 
• The new product is an essential nutrient adjuvant in chemotherapy. The medical benefits of the product are appreciated. Preliminary findings show that Omega-3 supplement increases chemotherapy effectiveness. 

With the funding received, the time to the market was reduced by about three years, a parameter of paramount importance for an SME. Additionally, it brings the opportunity to open to new markets and new partnerships in the pharma and nutraceutical sectors. 

More information

LIFEOMEGA: Innovative highly concentrated Omega-3 Food Supplement (Horizon 2020 / SME Instrument 1 GA number 683658)

LIFEOMEGA: Innovative highly concentrated Omega-3 Specialized Nutrition Product (Horizon 2020 / SME Instrument 2 GA number 755889)

Read the SusChem White Paper ‘Impact: Key Enabling Technologies (KETs) in Horizon Europe’

Registration for SusChem Brokerage 2018 is now open!

The SusChem Brokerage Event 2018 which will take place on Tuesday 23 October 2018 at Hotel Le Plaza, Bld Adolphe Max 118-126 in central Brussels, Belgium. Registration is now open and participation in the event is free of charge!

SusChem’s vision is for a competitive and innovative Europe where Sustainable Chemistry, Biotechnology and enabling Digital technologies respond to Societal challenges by providing Sustainable solutions. 

The SusChem Brokerage event is a unique opportunity for large industry, academic institutions, research organizations (RTOs), SMEs and startups to form consortia and submit project proposals targeting the 2019 and 2020 calls of Horizon 2020. Project ideas can cover topics such as Nanotechnology, Advanced Materials, Biotechnology and Advanced Manufacturing and Processing (NMBP).

Details of the 2018-2020 Work Programme for Horizon 2020 can be found here.

What can you expect?

The event aims to open up a dialogue on how bright Sustainable Chemistry ideas can enhance Europe’s competitiveness, and drive the development of beneficial partnerships between early-stage innovators, Industry and Academia.

During the brokerage event, participants can:

• Be informed directly by European Commission representatives presenting open Horizon 2020 calls on SusChem-related topics (e.g., Materials, Process Technology, Eco Innovation),
• Interact with the SusChem National Platforms (NTPs), representing a number of project ideas,
• Connect with BBI JU and SPIRE and receive information on their project portfolio and open calls,
• Pitch project ideas live to the SusChem Stakeholder community,
• Reach out to other stakeholders via ‘speed-dating’ and networking sessions to form consortia.

The draft agenda for the event is available to download here and you can register for the event here.

The event kicks off on 23 October at 08h30 with presentations starting from 09h30. In the morning the Commission will present on call topics for Materials, Processes. And Eco Innovation calls followed by a project pitching session. After a coffee break the Commission will present its calls on ICT topics and Energy followed by a second project pitching session.

After lunch a presentation on ‘Disruptive Innovation in Europe’ will be made followed by a third project pitching session, an introduction to the speed-dating session and the session itself. The event will wrap up with a networking cocktail

Pitch those ideas!

To submit project ideas for the pitching sessions on the Horizon 2020-2019 calls, SusChem invites you to go to our GRANT-IT portal and select "Propose a Project" from the top  menu.

More details on how to submit your project proposal can be found here.