CARBIOW project addresses green transition and circular economy by proposing novel technologies that cover the whole process of conversion of organic waste to biofuels. On one hand, hard-to-utilize organic waste such as organic fraction of municipal solid waste and residues from biorefinery and biological processes are utilized to highlight a new bioenergy source. On the other hand, new technologies will be developed from TRL 2 to 5. The proposed technologies via CARBIOW enable Europe to take the lead and advancement in several fields of energy generation and energy sector decarbonization. Moreover, energy security, economical boost, local energy independenc,e and job creation are addressed. Torrefaction as an emerging technology converts the very heterogeneous and wet organic waste to a high-quality solid biofuel. Besides, torgas will be combusted with oxygen to generate energy for torrefaction, and to obtain nearly pure CO2. A novel technology i.e., oxygen-blown gasification in oxygen carrier aided systems will convert the torrefied organic waste to clean syngas with very high efficiency in terms of energy and yield. The syngas will be used in the Fischer-Tropsch process with a novel reactor and novel 3D printed catalysts aiming to produce aviation (kerosene) and marine (alcohols) biofuels. The CO2 from the oxy-conversion steps will be fixed in the resulting ashes from the same process via carbonization to make cement-based product. So, CARBIOW addresses another goal that is the decarbonization of cement industry, while making the biofuels to be carbon negative. The diversity and strength of the experts within the consortium of CARBIOW will guarantee the technological, technical, and societal advancement of what is proposed, most importantly, the exploitation and perspective of the whole process will be evaluated by the leaders and industrial sites to pledge the feasibility of the scale-up and further development of the proposed process.

ELECTRA demonstrates that electric heating can substitute fossil fuels in the cement, lime, and pulp industries. ELECTRA develops and validates in real life emission-free, electrically heated cement and lime production process in MW scale capable of reaching temperature up to 2000°C. By using low-emission electricity instead of combustion for decomposing calcium carbonate, and by capturing the carbon dioxide produced in the production process, it is possible to run a cement plant with close to zero carbon dioxide emissions providing even negative-emission cement and lime products for the society. Successful implementation of ELECTRA will eliminate fuel-related CO2-emissions from the industries targeted by 30-50% of total process emissions, depending on the industry and mode of operation. Scalability and replicability is showcased by the platform-based solutions offering modularity, and the possibility is there to run in various hybrid modes in a transition period, lowering initial CAPEX. They allow for both new electric installations and revamping of old ones. Platform-based modular automation practices can potentially accelerate electrification by up to 5 years. Different applications also require different properties for lime and therefore variations of electrically heated processes are developed to support and complement MW scale demonstration. Replacing combustion processes with electricity-based solutions and significantly increasing emission-free electricity production is an effective means of mitigating climate change. As one of the ingredients for concrete, cement is the world's most used building material and globally the largest CO2 emitter of all industrial sectors. The results of ELECTRA contribute directly to the ambitious goal of eliminating direct CO2 emissions from the lime, paper and cement industries. The developed fully electrified solutions for calcination and clinkering will offer the cheapest option for decarbonation for these industries.

HERCCULES aims at defining a first-of-a-kind, integrated and replicable approach for the implementation of the whole CCUS chain to two strategic sectors of the circular economy - Cement and Energy-from-Waste (EfW) – in an area – Italy and Greece – where the industrial promise of CCUS is largely unexplored. Leveraging on the potential of two clusters of emitters in Northern Italy (cement + EfW) and Greece (cement), HERCCULES will pave the way towards the implementation of the first full-scale CCUS chain in Southern Europe. Technological, infrastructural, safety, societal, regulatory and financial issues will be addressed by a multidisciplinary approach to build an “HERCCULES paradigm” comprising nine basic chapters. 1) TRL7-8 demonstration of 2 flexible and retrofittable CO2 capture technologies, to be tested in 2 large-scale cement plants + 1 EfW plant with residual waste/biomass feed to approach nearly zero or negative emissions (>9000 h of tests). 2) Design of the optimal CO2 transport network for utilization and storage under different infrastructural evolution scenarios. 3) TRL8 Geological storage of captured CO2 in the two most advanced CO2 sites in Southern Europe (Prinos and Ravenna). 4) Demonstration in industrial environment of novel CO2 mineralization solutions and re-use technologies for the production of a breakthrough hydraulic binder enabling the industrial production of a carbon-sink concrete (>1000 h of tests). 5) Experimentally-supported, Techno-Economic Analyses with risk assessment to ensure the safety of the full CCUS chain. 6) Advancement of societal readiness through a participative approach. 7) Identification of business models and financial mechanisms tailored to CCUS. 8) TRL8-9 pre-FEED studies on the most promising HERCCULES implementation options. 9) Ad-hoc case studies to verify the replicability of the HERCCULES paradigm. Know-how, data and models will converge into a dedicated exploitation plan to seed CCUS across Europe.

To achieve the 2050 climate goals, industries must transition to zero-emission and circular processes, crucial for the metallurgical industry facing challenges due to carbon dependence and difficult to abate emissions. Key to this transition is the integration of fluctuating renewable electricity sources, circular processes, and the production of versatile products like methanol. However, to overcome the challenges in e-methanol production, there is a need for technological breakthroughs for competitive renewable electricity and efficient CO2 utilisation. Energy-intensive sectors require low-cost, environmentally friendly CO2 capture systems. The integration of Power-to-Value systems presents a unique opportunity for a seamless transition to circular economies. EMPHATICAL targets residual CO/CO2 containing gases from highly electrified metallurgical industry, namely electrical and submerged arc furnace processes (EAF & SAF), through the energy efficient integration of innovative oxy-blown calcium-looping capture technology, purification, and conversion of CO2 to e-methanol with green H2 as a feedstock. Culminating in a first of a kind TRL7 demonstrator to establish economic viability and sustainability for achieving net zero in electrified metallurgical and methanol production. EMPHATICAL will demonstrate integrated concept at relevant scale for making decisions for the FOAK, taking overall conversion process from TRL5 to demonstration TRL7. The objective is to achieve a 25% reduction of the specific energy consumption and 25% decrease of the production costs. In this project, risks are mitigated from the start; each unit can be implemented as a stand-alone function within a modified state-of-the-art technology chain and thus provide immediate performance and energy efficiency improvements. The project evaluates EMPHATICAL concept integration in two industrial sites. The expected overall CO2 reduction for EMPHATICAL plants is projected to be 41 Mt/year by 2050.

CaLby2030 will be the enabling tool to achieve commercial deployment from 2030 of Calcium Looping using Circulating Fluidised Bed technology, CFB-CaL. Three TRL6 pilot plants across Europe (Sweden, Germany and Spain) will be developed for testing under industrially relevant operating conditions. To maximise impact, these pilots will investigate the decarbonisation of hard to abate CO2 emission sources: flue gases from modern and future steel-making processes that rely mainly on electricity, emissions from modern cement plants that cannot escape from the use of limestone, and from Waste-to-Energy and Bio-CHP power plants that fill the gap in scalable dispatchable power and allow for negative emissions. These pilots will collectively generate a database of over 4000 hours of operation. This data will be interpreted using advanced modelling tools to enable the scale-up of the key CO2 capture reactors to fully commercial scale. Process techno-economic simulation, cluster optimisation and Life Cycle Analysis will be performed to maximise renewable energy inputs and materials circularities. All this information will form the basis for undertaking FEED studies for the demonstration plants in at least four EU locations. Innovative CFB-CaL solutions will be developed and tested to reach >99% CO2 capture rates, reaching for some process schemes costs as low as 30 €/tCO2 avoided and energy intensities with Specific Primary Energy Consumption per CO2 Avoided below 0.8 MJ/kgCO2 when O2 from electrolysers is readily available as an industrial commodity. Societal scientists and environmental economists will assess the social acceptability and preferences for “zero” or “negative emissions” CaL demonstration projects with novel methodologies that will elucidate and help to overcome current societal barriers for the implementation of CCUS. The consortium includes the world-leading CFB process technology developer, key end user industries and leading academics including CaL pioneers.