A strategic project involving a consortium comprised of the Technological Institute of Plastics (AIMPLAS), the CALAGUA Joint Unit UPV-UV (made up of the Institute of Water and Environmental Engineering of the Polytechnic University of Valencia and the Department of Chemical Engineering of the University of Valencia), and the companies Global Omnium Medioambiente and Fych Technologies.
The project—funded by the Valencian Institute of Competitiveness and Innovation (IVACE+i) under the European Union's 2023 strategic cooperation projects—aims to implement an alternative approach to managing biodegradable plastic packaging waste, one that differs from the current system and aligns with the principles of the circular economy.
"The project's main innovation lies in conceiving bioplastics as a resource that can be valorized and transformed into green energy," emphasize the researchers involved in the project.
To this end, the degradation of various plastics will be studied using biological treatment with sludge from an urban wastewater treatment plant under anaerobic conditions, both at laboratory and pilot scales. The potential effect of additives used in the synthesis of plastics (conventional and bioplastics) will also be evaluated, both on the anaerobic treatment process and on the subsequent quality of the digested sludge, given its primary application in agriculture.
Furthermore, work will be carried out on the development and optimization of instrumentation and control systems for the pilot plant, as well as on cost and life cycle analyses, "essential for evaluating the environmental and economic sustainability of the proposed treatment," the consortium emphasizes.
Microplastic Presence in Sludge:
Following the valorization process, the presence of microplastics in the sludge will also be analyzed. This will be done using the analytical methodology developed by AIMPLAS in the previous MICROPLAST and PREVENPLAST projects, which allows for the measurement of these emerging contaminants in both wastewater and sludge generated in wastewater treatment plants.
This will lead to the development of a methodology for the energy recovery of bioplastics in wastewater treatment plant digesters, enabling better management of this waste by facilitating its energy utilization.
Finally, it is worth highlighting the prior experience of some members of this consortium in the execution and collaboration of other R&D projects related to the objective of this project, such as AVI MICROPLAST and AVI PREVENPLAST.
Theproject,
which has a duration of 28 months, includes the participation of researchers from the CALAGUA group at IIAMA-UPV: Joaquín Serralta (principal investigator), José Ferrer, Ramón Barat, and Daniel Aguado. AIMPLAS participates in the project through its Microplastics Laboratory, led by researcher Juan Francisco Ferrer Crespo. Similarly, the startup Fych Technologies SL also participates in the consortium through its laboratories and pilot plant located in the Alicante Science Park (PCA), under the supervision of co-founders Dr. Andrea Cabanes and Dr. Oksana Horodytska. Fych Technologies SL specializes primarily in the delamination of multilayer packaging and the deodorization and decontamination of plastics. Thus, the consortium forms a multidisciplinary team encompassing the plastic recycling sector, wastewater treatment, and the development and application of new knowledge, including universities and technology centers.
