European industries remain a significant source of pollution (51% of GHG emissions), with unsustainable production processes impacting adversely on climate change, natural resources availability, air/water/soil quality, ecosystems services and biodiversity. Thus, a transition to a sustainable and strong bioeconomy is one of the European main priorities as part of the EU Industrial Policy Strategy, the European Green Deal, the 2030 Climate Target Plan and the Bioeconomy strategy. CALIMERO will analyse bio-based sectors industrial case studies provided by partners (construction (ECIA), woodworking (CESEFOR), textiles (TECHTERA, EREKS), pulp & paper (ESSITY) and biochemicals (BIMKEMI)) to find feasible solutions to improve their environmental performance while considering also economic and social aspects. A deep analysis and improvement of the bio-based sectors sustainability performance by sustainability experts (CTA, WELOOP, LIST, IVL NEOVILI), followed by the simulation and modelling of relevant case studies through bio-engineering expertise (DTU) will be conducted to improve current Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment methodologies, based on the Product Environmental Footprint (PEF) guide. To that end, missing characterization factors to assess biodiversity loss, impacts to ecosystem services and toxicity effects of sector-specific substances will be developed. The allocation methods of biotic circular systems will also be improved and the time dimension for lifecycle carbon footprint assessment will be considered. Material criticality and socio-economic indicators will also be included to cover the three pillars of sustainability. The improved methodology will be applied via a Multi Objective Optimization framework that will optimize industrial simulations with sustainability criteria. Finally, guidelines and recommendations addressed to industry, policy makers and scientific community will be developed for industrial sustainable development and monitoring.

The EU requires also electronics industry to achieve the ambitious goals of the EU Green Deal, Circular Economy Action Plan and Industrial Strategy for reduction of energy and material consumption, and utilization of circular value chains. Sustronics project is targeting to improve capabilities of European electronics industry to meet these goals and develop new business opportunities from sustainable and greener electronics combined with increase in productivity and new functionalities. The current electronic industry poses significant environmental impacts, such as increasing amount of e-waste, great demand for critical raw materials, and high energy consumption during manufacturing. Electronics industry can specifically decrease its environmental burden by shifting from fossil-based materials to bio-based materials, decreasing use of metals, utilizing additive manufacturing processes, and developing miniaturized and integrated components, but also in broader scope by utilizing efficient circular economy business models that enable reuse, recycle and repair of critical materials and components. Sustronics main goal is to support renewal of European electronics industry towards circular economy, eco-design, bio-based materials, and material- and energy-efficient manufacturing processes. Thereby, Sustronics will re-design electronics products into circular, compostable and reusable products, and demonstrate that there are business opportunities in sustainable electronics. Quantification of environmental impact, definition of business models, involvement of external stakeholders, and means to guarantee compatibility with policies and standards will guide the project implementation. The pilots will focus on healthcare, diagnostics, and industrial sectors, including topics such as medical and personal health devices, single-use and wearable diagnostics, sustainable lighting solutions and embedded electronics for automotive.

Brown algae, particularly L. hyperborea, represent a largely untapped renewable resource in Europe, present in huge volumes along the coastlines of Norway (approximately 60% of global biomass), Sweden, Denmark, Ireland, Iceland, and France. L. hyperborea contains alginate, cellulose, functional polysaccharides like fucoidan and laminarin, phlorotannin’s (polyphenols), as well as protein, vitamins, and minerals, all ingredients in demand in Europe’s biobased value chains. However, current harvesting techniques, particularly widespread use of formaldehyde, is limiting the huge valorisation potential of this promising renewable feedstock. Once brown kelp is exposed to air, chemical and enzymatic reactions quickly begin to rot the harvest. Currently, harvesters mitigate this by treating brown kelp with formaldehyde during and after harvesting. However, formaldehyde causes undesirable browning of some compounds and is toxic, so must be removed through expensive, energy and water intensive washing prior to further processing. This makes valorisation of all but the most valuable alginate fraction (~15% of L. hyperborea biomass) uneconomic; consequently, about 85% of the residual brown kelp biomass is flushed back into the sea unused. PROTEUS addresses the challenge of maximising valorisation of Europe’s L. hyperborea biomass through the optimisation of ALGINOR’s (coordinator) and HYPOMAR’s formaldehyde-free harvesting and extraction technologies and approaches. This will enable large-scale valorisation of Europe’s considerable L. hyperborea resource and conversion of 100% of the biomass into ingredients that will be tested in validated for use by ESSITY (personal-care), OLMIX (feed), VAESS (food), and BORREGAARD (industrial applications) as drop-in replacements for synthetic materials in sustainable biobased product lines.