Skip to main content
Go to the home page of the European Commission (opens in new window)
English en
CORDIS - EU research results
CORDIS

Circular Advanced Renewable Biofuels from Wet Biogenic Residues via Hydrothermal Liquefaction

Objective

CARAVEL will deliver the first integrated, TRL8 hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) value chain that converts diverse wet biogenic residues into ready-to-deploy marine fuels with low greenhouse-gas intensity, while ensuring circular, compliant management of process water and hydrochar. The project integrates full-scale conversion, upgrading, end-user validation, sustainability verification, permitting and regulatory readiness in one demonstration designed for replication.
A TRL 8, modular HTL plant will be operated under real feedstock variability for ≥30 days, generating evidence on operability, separation, fouling and corrosion, and producing >100 t of biocrude. A harmonised cross-TRL dataset and predictive model will link feedstock composition to yields and fuel quality and define allowable mixtures of biocrudes produced from multiple HTL units for centralised upgrading in a hub-and-spoke concept.
A central innovation in CARAVEL is fuel upgrading and market deployment: First, it will formulate ISO 8217-compliant blending recipes using biocrudes from multiple residues, validate miscibility and stability, and prove performance through accredited fuel testing, long-duration injector trials, and a vessel trial at TRL8.
Second, CARAVEL will demonstrate two complementary TRL7 routes to 100% renewable marine fuels from individual and mixed biocrudes: (i) esterification scale-up using an industrial loop reactor concept to deliver deep acidity reduction and fuel-grade stability, and (ii) refinery-environment hydrotreating. In parallel, CARAVEL generates TRL 7 operational and catalyst stability evidence for sustainable aviation fuel production from mixed biocrudes, targeting high jet yields and carbon efficiency.
Validated performance will be translated into audit-ready life-cycle assessment, techno-economic analysis and bankable business cases, enabling an investor-grade replication roadmap for ≥10 EU locations aligned with RED III, FuelEU Maritime and ReFuel

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.

This project has not yet been classified with EuroSciVoc.
Be the first one to suggest relevant scientific fields and help us improve our classification service

You need to log in or register to use this function

Keywords

Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)

Programme(s)

Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.

Topic(s)

Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.

Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

HORIZON-IA - HORIZON Innovation Actions

See all projects funded under this funding scheme

Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

(opens in new window) HORIZON-CL5-2026-02

See all projects funded under this call

Coordinator

AARHUS UNIVERSITET
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 2 758 918,75
Address
NORDRE RINGGADE 1
8000 Aarhus C
Denmark

See on map

Region
Danmark Midtjylland Østjylland
Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
Links
Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

€ 2 758 918,75

Participants (15)

Partners (1)