SurfToGreen

Bio-based sustainable SURFactants TO foster GREEN industry

Project details

Type of project
Innovation Action - Demonstration
Project focus
Bio-based chemicals
Feedstock origin
Sidestreams from industry
Feedstock type
Crop residues
Lignin & wood residues
Project period
1 October 2024 - 30 September 2029
Status
In progress
CBE JU Contribution
€ 7 346 987,5
Call identifier
HORIZON-JU-CBE-2023

Summary

The SurfToGreen project addresses the pressing environmental concerns, such as CO2 emissions and microplastics pollution, stemming from the widespread use of fossil-based surfactants and polymers in industrial applications. The development of effective bio-based surfactants remains limited due to performance and production throughput constraints.

SurfToGreen aims to provide a comprehensive solution by developing a new portfolio of fully bio-based surfactants for key industrial applications. By using renewable biomass-derived building blocks sourced from EU agricultural and forest side streams, the project seeks to create surfactants with over 95% bio-based content.

The project will validate the effectiveness, sustainability and safety of its bio-based formulations in industrial demonstrators for home and personal care, textile enhancement, and agriculture. This strategic approach, involving collaboration between major market players and small businesses, aims to gain significant market share and compete against existing products to ensure a paradigm shift towards more environmentally friendly practices. 

SurfToGreen aims to provide versatile, robust, and scalable bio-based surfactants solutions in high-performance key industrial applications. The main objectives are:

  • Identification and selection of EU-based resources from agricultural or forest industry sidestreams as renewable, safe, and sustainable building blocks meeting surfactant industry requirements.
  • Development of synthesis paths aligning with green chemistry principles to produce readily biodegradable, safe and sustainable surfactants with minimal CO2 impact.
  • Integration of novel bio-based surfactants into formulations for major applications, such as home and personal care, cosmetics, textile, and agriculture.
  • Establishment of novel metrics to ensure safe-and-sustainable-by-design principles throughout the project for maximal industrial impact with minimal environmental impact.
  • Demonstration of the technological, social, environmental, and economic viability of at least six product solutions across three value chains, with scalable business plans for the worldwide commercialisation of at least three final demonstrators.  

  • Reducing feedstock import dependency for bio-based surfactants in the EU.
  • Improving feedstock sustainability and reducing land use impact.
  • Enhancing the circularity and resource efficiency through diversification of biomass feedstock.
  • Contributing to the global transition to a net-zero carbon economy.
  • Using forest industry side streams and agricultural by-products for surfactant development, thereby reducing waste.
  • Increasing the availability of sustainable feedstock aligned with industry needs.
  • Improving the safety of surfactants on the market, by replacing them with safe-andsustainable-by-design bio-based surfactants, benefiting downstream sectors, such as household and personal care, process and manufacturing industries, amongst others.
  • Engaging policymakers to establish tailored criteria for surfactant markets, prioritising safety, sustainability, and competitiveness.
  • Enhancing social acceptance of circular bio-based solutions and products.
  • Promoting high-performing and socially desirable bio-based surfactant solutions aligned with industry sustainability targets.
  • Facilitating market uptake of scalable bio-based surfactants across various sectors.
  • Creating a platform for bio-based surfactant production, targeting over 60% of the global surfactant market.
  • Promoting environmentally sustainable feedstocks with a lower carbon footprint and improved energy efficacy. 

Consortium map

Project coordination

  • CONSORZIO INTERUNIVERSITARIO PERLO SVILUPPO DEI SISTEMI A GRANDE INTERFASE Firenze, Italy

Consortium

  • CHT GERMANY GMBH TUBINGEN, Germany
  • NOURYON SURFACE CHEMISTRY AB Stenungsund, Sweden
  • SOFIA UNIVERSITY ST KLIMENT OHRIDSKI Sofia, Bulgaria
  • UNIVERSIDAD DE HUELVA Huelva, Spain
  • UNIVERZITA TOMASE BATI VE ZLINE ZLIN, Czechia
  • SPIGA NORD SPA CARASCO, Italy
  • AALTO KORKEAKOULUSAATIO SR Espoo, Finland
  • MONTINUTRA OY Turku, Finland
  • ASSOCIAZIONE ITALIANA PER LA RICERCA INDUSTRIALE - AIRI Roma, Italy
  • ADSORBI AB GOTEBORG, Sweden
  • UNIVERSITA CA' FOSCARI VENEZIA Venezia, Italy
  • OLEON NV Ertvelde, Belgium
  • INSTITUT NATIONAL DE RECHERCHE POUR L'AGRICULTURE, L'ALIMENTATION ET L'ENVIRONNEMENT Paris, France
  • PROCTER & GAMBLE SERVICES COMPANY NV Strombeek Bever, Belgium
  • CHALMERS TEKNISKA HOGSKOLA AB GOTEBORG, Sweden
Partners
  • NIKKO CHEMICALS CO., LTD. Tokyo, Japan
  • SHISEIDO Co., Ltd. Kanagawa, Japan