WoW! Capitalisation

The capitalisation initiative focusses on two of the products that are recovered from sewage in the WOW! project: PHA, a biodegradable plastic, and activated carbon which is one of the products of pyrolysis of cellulose.

PHA

With regard to PHA, the capitalisation initiative will first look at the possibilities to realize a centralized PHA production facility that is fed by different medium and small sewage treatment plants (STP’s). This will open new possibilities for PHA production in rural North-West Europe regions that mainly have small to medium sized WWTP’s. Secondly, WOW! will research the possibilities of PHA production from  residual streams from food processing industries. This can produce higher quality PHA, opening new markets opportunities. After testing residual streams from different food processing industries on lab scale, two promising residual streams will be tested in the existing PHA pilot. The application of the produced PHA will be tested in 3D printing. Additionally, a circularity measurement and an assessment of PHA recovery and reuse from sewage will be performed

Activated Carbon

The WoW! project has also shown that biochar from cellulose has a huge application potential at STPs. In this capitalisation initiative, biochar (produced from cellulose) will be activated into activated carbon  for elimination of micropollutants at small and medium STP’s. The activated carbon will be used in constructed wetlands as an additional step after the conventional treatment. This application at small and medium STP’s opens possibilities for new markets for activated carbon and application in new rural regions. First, different techniques for activation of biochar are tested, characterized and compared with conventional products. The most promising product will be used and reviewed in a pilot-scale on a real STP. Additionally,  a circularity measurement and product value assessment (technical, economic, environmental) is performed.

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