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Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs

EIT RawMaterials Commitment ZeroWaste Networks of Infrastructure

Objectives of the commitment

ZeroWaste-NoI RMC will:
 Gather waste stream owners from the supply side and material resource users from the demand side to meet intermediary technology SMEs and RDIs bridging gaps between both sides of the value chain;
 Provoke industrial innovation, by offering access to key infrastructures and services for the exploitation of complex, low-grade ores and waste streams;
 Stimulate smart specialisation by the partners by inventorying available infrastructure within the network and Europe to identify gaps to be filled by defining new pilot actions.

The integration of the individual NoIs in the comprehensive ZeroWaste network offers the perspective of a self-sufficient network, as companies will be able to find tailored solutions to sustain and grow their business. The latter supports the EIP target to raise industry’s contribution to the EU GDP to 20% by 2020.

Description of the activities

The ZeroWaste-NoI EIT RM Commitment embraces a flexible toolbox combining physical pre- and post-treatment and separation, solvo-, electro-, bio-, and pyro metallurgy technologies to recover valuable materials from complex, low grade resources, together with technologies to valorise the residual matrix materials.

Figure (cannot be downloaded in on-line form - available upon request): EIT RawMaterials ZeroWaste valorisation of complex, low grade primary and secondary resources.

EIT RawMaterials partners with renowned expertise in the field join forces to develop the different elements of the toolbox into consistent, agile and interacting Networks of Infrastructure, ready to be integrated in a solution oriented overarching ZeroWaste-NoI EIP RMC.
The SSIC NoI on Sustainability Support and Information Centre initiated by Ghent University brings sustainability assessment vigour to the technological solutions provided by the ZeroWaste-NoI network. Moreover industrial symbiosis matchmaking know-how and tools are brought-in by the ERMAT NoI, targeting new business models to link waste or by-products of one company to resource needs in other companies.

Besides environmental benefits, the ZeroWaste concept also offers economic advantages. Indeed, apart from the value gained from the recovered elements, waste management costs related to the mineral matrix are diverted to added value applications. As the latter often constitutes more than 99% of the volume of industrial residues, this is crucial to the ZeroWaste business case.

For each node of the ZeroWaste cluster, a single point-of-contact is established that will ensure visibility of the network and provide easy access to it, especially for SMEs. Target stakeholders are innovating SMEs and research partners in recycling and material processing, industrial residue owners, mining companies, metal refiners, manufacturing companies and producers of building material or other added-value products.
Such dedicated interaction will result in the effective conversion of selected waste streams in resources for material processors: e.g. metal refiners make use of the recovered elements while the residues can be converted into binder materials for construction purposes. Such recovery and conversion processes are being developed by the RDI partners and implemented in particular by innovative SMEs taking advantage of the created niche opportunities.

The ZeroWaste-NoI cluster objectives will be reached by:
 Establishing an inventory of EU infrastructures (labs, modelling and pilot) as part of the KIC EIT RawMaterials Info Centre*;
 Presenting the services at 5-10 workshops/node organized over Europe, at or near the facilities of the consortium partners, offering access to the best suited equipment available at the European level. We make use of the KIC Networking and Matchmaking KAVA tools* Matches, Idea Camps and Intrapreneurship Facilitator tools for this purpose;
 Identifying gaps in (piloting) infrastructure that are to be filled by investments, inter alia through the KIC KAVA Up-scaling activities*.

* Please refer to the EIT RM website for an explanation of its KIC Added-Value Activities KAVA tools.

Description of the expected impacts

In general, a resource efficient growth path would bring varied benefits as explained in the analysis associated with the EC Roadmap to a Resource Efficient Europe:
 Improved productivity, as businesses reduce costs and so improve their competitiveness;
 Growth and job creation by a faster pace of technological and organisational change;
 Environmental benefits and resilience by the improved management of resources;
 Macroeconomic stability by reducing security of supply issues, market volatility in important resources and so reducing pressures from asymmetries within the Eurozone.

Besides its strong environmental impact, is the ZeroWaste-NoI RMC economically driven by mitigating costs related to low grade ore and industrial waste and targeting overall optimum value creation by valuable material recovery and residue valorisation. This EIP Raw Materials Commitment will therefore be a key enabler for:
 Exploiting EU industrial waste streams by the recovery of technology metals and upcycling of residues;
 Attract and exploit global selected material streams for added-value conversion;
 The provision of quality secondary resources to the EU manufacturing and processing sectors;
 Global export of technology for industrial waste recycling as well as for the mining of primary low grade, complex ores (thereby precluding technology drain by adequate IPR protection);
 Consequent increased and sustainable job creation in the EU mining, material processing and recycling sectors.

Furthermore, the ZeroWaste-NoI RMC will reduce energy consumption by optimized processing of residual materials.

Coordinating organisation & role

Name of the coordinating organisation: VITO NV Vision on TechnologyCountry: BelgiumEntity profile: OtherRole within the commitment:

VITO is the co-ordinator of the PreFlex and ElectroFlex EIT RM NoIs, covering the treatment and physical separation of complex low grade ores and residues, and the recovery of valuable elements by electro-chemical techniques, resp.

VITO as co-ordinator of the EIP-RMC will ensure the close interaction between the different nodes of the cluster to effectively enable their integration in the overarching, solution oriented ZeroWaste-NoI cluster.

Other partners

Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der Angewandten Forschung e.V.

Name of the organisation: Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der Angewandten Forschung e.V. Country: Germany Entity profile: Governmental/public body
Role within the commitment: Fraunhofer will lead the CFRP and GFRP recycling research.
Fraunhofer will perform corrosion tests on the developed materials.
Fraunhofer will work with CIDAUT on the implementation, validation and refinement of LCCA tools for the project. Fraunhofer is the Quality Manager of the Consortium and will oversee deliverables and general reporting are produced with the best possible quality following agreed review standards.

Fundacion Cidaut

Name of the organisation: Fundacion Cidaut Country: Spain Entity profile:
Role within the commitment: CIDAUT will lead the research activities on materials recycling and compounding, implementing lab scale demonstrators of each process at its premises and, later, supporting end-users upscale the processes.
CIDAUT will perform mechanical tests, microstructural analyses, injection moulding capability studies on the developed materails, and will work with Fraunhofer on the implementation, validation and refinement of LCCA tools for the project.

RWTH Aachen University (Institute of plastic processing (IKV)

Name of the organisation: RWTH Aachen University (Institute of plastic processing (IKV) Country: Germany Entity profile: Governmental/public body
Role within the commitment: RWTH will implement the novel 3D Generative Preforming process (3D Fibre Spraying) that enables to create high-value long fibre-reinforced 3D preforms for thermoplastic and thermoset composites at low process costs (different kinds of yarn as a raw material, low tooling costs due to low cavity pressures). This cost effective technology allows to align the sprayed fibres in order to produce high-performance, engineered anisotropic products.

Universita' di Cagliari

Name of the organisation: Universita' di Cagliari Country: Italy Entity profile:
Role within the commitment: University of Cagliari is one of the leading European organization in the resin design and coupling with thermoplastic and thermose materials. University of Cagliari will support in the definition of the composite materials, both from CFRP/GFRP, ABS and Rare Earth composite material.

Relight

Name of the organisation: Relight Country: Italy Entity profile: Private sector - SME
Role within the commitment: RELIGHT will work with ITRB to provide the research partners with residues for the recycled ABS supply and the REE recovery processes, including their HydroWEEE process as part of the processes to be studied and analyzed.

Piaggio Aerospace

Name of the organisation: Piaggio Aerospace Country: Italy Entity profile: Private sector - large company
Role within the commitment: Piaggio Aerospace is one of the project End Users (Aeronautics Industry): as such it will provide requirements and further applications that could be developed with the Consortium Materials. Piaggio will assist in the compounds selection, provide Fraunhofer with specific corrosion requirements on business jet size aircraft, and will assess that the developed materials performance fits the selected applications desired improvements.

Blackshape Aircrafts

Name of the organisation: Blackshape Aircrafts Country: Italy Entity profile: Private sector - SME
Role within the commitment: Blackshape Aircrafts is one of the project End Users (Aeronautics Industry): as such it will provide requirements and further applications that could be developed with the Consortium Materials. Blackshape will support to fulfill the requirements of the aeronautics industry on ultra light jet, light jet and trainer for Syllabus, and will assess that the developed alloys performance fits the selected applications desired improvements.

KU Leuven

Name of the organisation: KU Leuven Country: Belgium Entity profile: Academia
Role within the commitment: KUL will collaborate on the balance problem studies and will lead the rare earth recovery research with the solvometallurgical and ionometallurgical processes.
KUL will also contribute to the final compounding selection.
KUL is the Dissemination Manager of the project, promoting that all partners are active on the project Dissemination.

FIDAMC

Name of the organisation: FIDAMC Country: Spain Entity profile: Governmental/public body
Role within the commitment: FIDAMC is going to lead the Work Package on Compression Moulding with CFRP-enhanced materials. As part of the AIRBUS Group, FIDAMC will also be able to provide the input material.
FIDAMC successfully developed a 3D Printer of own design to serve the Aerospace Industry and will be supporting Smart Lab 3D Industries in its 3D printer design.

COMPOSITE INNOVATION CENTER

Name of the organisation: COMPOSITE INNOVATION CENTER Country: Canada Entity profile: Governmental/public body
Role within the commitment: Composite Innovation Center is one of the world leading organization in the field of Composite materials, both from carbon fiber and vegetal-based fibers.
Composite Innovation center has successfully implemented, at lab-scale, recycling processes for CFRP and GFRP.

Existing EU Contribution: Yes

Period to implement the commitment: from 01-01-2016 to 31-12-2020