Cost-effective production routes towards bio-based alternatives to fossil-based chemical building blocks

Closed

Programme Category

EU Competitive Programmes

Programme Name

Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking

Programme Description

The Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking (CBE JU) is a €2 billion partnership between the European Union and the Bio-based Industries Consortium (BIC) that funds projects advancing competitive circular bio-based industries in Europe.

CBE JU is operating under the rules of Horizon Europe, the EU’s research and innovation programme, for the 2021-2031 period. The partnership is building on the success of its predecessor, the Bio-based Industries Joint Undertaking (BBI JU), while addressing the current challenges facing the industry.

 

Programme Details

Identifier Code

HORIZON-JU-CBE-2022-IA-03

Call

Cost-effective production routes towards bio-based alternatives to fossil-based chemical building blocks

Summary

Europe needs to diversify the sources of sustainable feedstock for its chemical industry, for not only improving on environmental sustainability performance of industrial processes and products, but to also enhance their strategic autonomy and resilience.
Accelerating the development of the bio-based chemicals portfolio will be key for growth of the bioeconomy and towards accelerating further on the fossil-based feedstock substitution.
The reduction of GHGs emissions is a priority for the chemical industry, as an energy-intensive industry sector.
Bio-based platform chemicals, derived from sustainably sourced feedstock and with a lower carbon footprint, can contribute to realising this priority.

Detailed Call Description

The topic does not address bio-based chemicals that already have a large-scale, industrial production capacity in Europe.

Proposals under this topic should:

  • Demonstrate novel or improved production routes for bio-based platform chemicals, within the scope of CBE and reaching the targeted TRL, encompassing different enabling technologies. Assess and prove technoeconomic feasibility for the proposed bio-based platform chemicals, in comparison to fossil-based and/or bio-based benchmarks, where these exist.
  • Apply and/or adapt existing/mature or novel digital technologies, provided that they are instrumental to achieving the project’s outcomes and scope, especially to ensure high standards of resource efficiency and environmental protection. Applications of digital technologies that should be considered in the scope are among the following areas
  • Demonstrate scalability of the process towards industrial production and market size/applications for the chemical building blocks (dedicated and/or drop-in chemical structures) produced, including identifying appropriate business models for their market uptake.
  • Assess the environmental sustainability performance for the production (and along the full bio-based system) of the bio-based platform chemicals via Life Cycle Assessment or other appropriate methodologies (see more under Additional requirements).
  • Provision for the project integrating ‘safe-and-sustainable-by-design’ generic criteria and framework considerations, in line with the EU Chemicals strategy for sustainability.
  • Demonstrate the applicability and added-value of the bio-based chemical building blocks compared to the fossil-based ones, while considering the target end uses in bio-based products.
  • Develop and propose a strategic roadmap for closing the competitiveness gap between well-established fossil-based routes and the proposed novel or improved bio-based routes.
  • Propose recommendations on opportunities/challenges to be addressed to targeted stakeholders, including, where possible, national/regional stakeholders, investors and brand owners.
  • Disseminate the outputs and learning outcomes from the project in order to increase the public awareness, and awareness of relevant industry actors, of potential benefits of bio-based solutions.

Call Total Budget

€120000000

Thematic Categories

  • Environment and Climate Change
  • Research, Technological Development and Innovation

Eligibility for Participation

  • Central Government
  • Large Enterprises
  • Local Authorities
  • Non Profit Organisations
  • Private Bodies
  • Researchers/Research Centers/Institutions
  • Semi-governmental organisations
  • Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs)
  • State-owned Enterprises

Call Opening Date

22/06/2022

Call Closing Date

22/09/2022

EU Contact Point

Contact Details:

https://www.cbe.europa.eu/contact

Email Address: info@cbe.europa.eu

(Publish Date: 25/07/2022-for internal use only)