WaysTUP! has demonstrated the feasibility of a several range of urban biowastes (meat and fish by-products, spent coffee grounds, source separated biowaste from households, used cooking oils, cellulosic rejections, and sewage sludge) as raw material to produce high-added value products.
WaysTUP! has demonstrated at TRL 7 the following processes:
-Production of functional ingredients (gelatine and hydrolysed collagen) from fish and meat by products in a city context.
-Extraction from spent coffee grounds (SCGs) of coffee oil by CO2 supercritical extraction and polyphenols by solid-liquid extraction as well as a technology for the fermentation process of SCGs for production of carotenoids.
-Production of insect protein (protein-rich insect flour) from source-separated bio-waste and meat and fish by-products and direct application tests in broiler fattening. This new waste-based insect industry challenges the traditional view of organic ‘waste’, by considering it a ‘resource’, and hence achieving a reduction of waste as well as retaining and upgrading valuable nutrients.
-Fermentation of the used cooking oil (UCO) and extracted coffee oil to produce PHB. The project also demonstrated at TRL 7 the valorisation of lcDCA from UCO into biopolyesters and biomaterials for applications in packaging for paper and tissue products with improved properties (elongation at break, tear resistance, reduction in coefficient of friction).
-Bioethanol production from source-separated biowaste.
-Production of bioethanol and bio-solvent ethyl lactate from paper and cardboard waste.
-Biochar production through pyrolysis of sewage sludge, olive mill waste and compost. The products were compared to International Biochar Initiative standards and European guidelines in order to confirm the safety of their use. The end product was also tested in greenhouse and field agricultural applications providing evidence that it is acting as an efficient soil improver and plant bio-stimulant.
WaysTUP! developed 16 innovative business models and marketing strategies for explanation from the demonstrated processes described above.
WaysTUP! contributed to support the successful incorporation of integrated urban valorisation innovation approaches into existing and future local, national and EU-level policies. In particular, the project identified and described barriers, including policy and regulatory, associated with the use of biowaste for the production of biobased products. As a result, Legislators and Regulatory Bodies can utilize this study to help them shape policies and regulations supporting relevant circular economy practices. The report is also useful to other stakeholders as Waste Management Authorities, Waste Converters and Investors to understand the technological complexities and logistical demands as well as investment opportunities and potential growth in the biowaste use sector. In addition, the project developed a guide for urban managers and local decision-makers on the adoption of new organisational models that support the valorisation of municipal bio-waste.
The project generated 6 scientific publications in peer-reviewed journals and others are in the review process. The communication and dissemination activities reached a community of over 850,000 individual members. WaysTUP! succeeded in producing and circulating 15 press releases in total during the lifetime of the project and 227 publications of them were tracked in global media. WaysTUP! was presented at 82 non-project events and 45 seminars/workshops were organised. In addition, Learning Workshops were implemented to share lessons learnt from the pilot deployment.
