Objectives — SOWISE+

SOWISE+ aims to demonstrate, at industrial scale and TRL8, a new model for turning complex urban waste streams into valuable bio-based materials and products. The project will establish an integrated multipurpose biorefinery that combines the conversion of urban biowaste into PHBV with the recovery and upgrading of cellulose from post-consumer absorbent hygiene products. Beyond proving the technical performance of these processes, SOWISE+ will validate downstream materials and products, assess their safety and sustainability, examine their market potential and involve stakeholders in their development and uptake. The overall ambition is to demonstrate a viable model of urban-industrial symbiosis that can create higher value from municipal waste while reducing dependence on disposal routes such as landfill and incineration and providing a basis for replication in other European regions.

Specific
objectives

Establish the SOWISE+ flagship biorefinery.

Design, permit, construct and commission the integrated industrial facility, including the biowaste-to-PHBV line and the upgraded AHP-derived cellulose valorisation line, while addressing the regulatory and End-of-Waste requirements necessary for operation.

Demonstrate reliable industrial-scale production of PHBV and high-quality recovered cellulose.

Optimise and operate the flagship processes at TRL8, targeting approximately 230 tonnes of PHBV per year and up to 700 tonnes of purified cellulose per year, while demonstrating stable performance, product quality and process control.

Transform the recovered resources into advanced bio-based materials.

Develop and demonstrate conversion routes that turn recovered PHBV and upgraded cellulose into advanced bio-based materials suitable for downstream manufacturing, product development and sector-specific applications.

Validate market-oriented final products.

Demonstrate that the project's materials can be processed into functional products meeting sector-specific technical requirements, including coated paper applications, 3D-printed products, agricultural tree guards, patch-related applications and cellulose-based insulation products.

Expand the technological and commercial options of the SOWISE+ value chain.

Explore additional routes for exploiting the project outputs, including higher-purity PHBV obtained through solvent-based extraction and PHBV-cellulose composites for durable applications, thereby widening the range of potential markets and uses.

Demonstrate that the SOWISE+ solutions are safe and sustainable across their life cycle.

Assess environmental impacts, human and environmental safety, economic performance and social effects through the Safe and Sustainable by Design framework and Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment, while using the findings to improve processes and products.

Build stakeholder involvement and social acceptance.

Engage waste operators, industries, authorities, policymakers, researchers, citizens and consumers throughout the project, identify barriers to uptake, assess societal benefits and acceptance, and strengthen trust in materials and products derived from urban waste.

Prepare the SOWISE+ model for market uptake and replication across Europe.

Develop market, exploitation and business strategies and assess the feasibility of replicating the approach in different European territories. The replication work will consider local waste availability, infrastructure, regulation, logistics, economics and stakeholder readiness and will lead to guidance for wider implementation.

Ensure successful exploitation and commercialisation of SOWISE+ results.

Develop the market, exploitation and business strategies needed to move SOWISE+ solutions beyond demonstration and towards commercial uptake.