Sus-Bio-plastics

The objective of Sus-Bio-plastics is to develop new biotechnological waste-to-value chains for the most promising (based on market share value) bioplastics by implementing innovative microbially mediated practices.

Project

Bioplastics, referred as the plastics that are either bio-based or biodegradable (or both), have attracted substantial attention over the past ten years as a promising substitution of fossil-based plastics. These natural polymers are synthesized from biomass as a renewable resource derived from plants, animals, or microorganisms, and they are used for various applications such as agricultural mulch films, packaging films, containers for liquid foods, etc. Within all bioplastics, polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs), polylactic acid (PLA) and starch-based macromolecules represent about 70% of the entire bio-based biodegradable biopolymers manufactured and used in 2020. Biodegradable plastics are truly biodegradable only under industrial conditions, thus leakage of these products to marine and terrestrial environment should be avoided. Due to bioplastics’ intrinsic characteristics (i.e. biodegradability), new end-of-life (EoL) options can be applied for specific biopolymers.

Sus-Bio-plastics will exploit innovative applied environmental biotechnology in order to deliver tailored strategies for integrating sustainability in every stage of bioplastics waste management. The project is structured under 3 innovation pillars, concerning 2 processes and 1 tool aiming to integrate sustainability in bioplastics (1 non-biodegradable and 3 biodegradable) waste management and will be implemented at the Environmental Bioprocessing Laboratory (EBL) at CUT (Cyprus University of Technology).

The specific objectives of Sus-Bio-plastics are:

• Develop a set of microalgal strains and/or microbial consortia able to mineralize the weathered layer of aged bioplastics
• Develop a set of microalgal-bacterial consortia able to degrade bioplastics
• Develop a treatment train for the “clean-up” of aged bioplastics (near virgin polymer recovery)
• Develop a treatment train for the bio-recycling of bioplastics (high value products)

The project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon (Call: HORIZON-WIDERA-2022-TALENTS-02, Type of action: HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships – European Fellowships).

Overall Budget : € 164 328,00
Project starting date: 1 November 2022
Project end date: 31 October 2024  

RESEARCH TEAM

WORK PACKAGES:

WP1: Project management and dissemination

Duration: 24 months (Start: Month 1 – End: Month 24)

This WP involves the activities relevant to project dissemination targeting a wide scientific and non-scientific audience. The scientific results of the project will be presented in national and/or international conferences and/or will be published in top scientific journals. All the activities, including the scientific, as well as administrative and financial will be closely monitored to guarantee the smooth implementation of the project.

WP2: Formulation of self-assembled microbiome(s)

Duration: 3 months (Start: Month 1 – End: Month 3)

The microbial interplay between the microbial populations and microalgal strains will be explored in terms of developing successful mutualistic interactions.

WP3: “Bioclean-up” process

Duration: 24 months (Start: Month 1 – End: Month 24)

The microbiome(s) will be cultivated using aged bioplastics with the aim to enhance the biodegradation rate of the weathered bioplastic layer.

WP4: “Bio-recycling” process

Duration: 24 months (Start: Month 4 – End: Month 24)

The microbiome(s) will be cultivated using biodegradable bioplastics with the aim to enhance the biodegradation rate of the bioplastic.

DELIVARABLES:

Coming

NEWS:

Coming

CONTACT US: