Ongoing Projects

The steel sector is responsible for 9% of global anthropogenic CO2 emissions and consumes about 5.2 MWh of primary energy per tonne of steel produced, underscoring the urgency of cutting energy consumption and CO2 emissions. The EU-funded SYRIUS project will address both these challenges by integrating a 4.2 MWel solid oxide electrolysis cell (SOEC) to produce 100 kg/h of green hydrogen within an electric arc furnace (EAF) plant located in Terni (Italy). This hydrogen will supply a 280 t/h steel reheating furnace, reducing CO2 emissions by up to 5,600 tonnes per year during the project and potentially targeting full decarbonisation upon complete hydrogen use in the furnace. The project will also enhance industrial circularity by recovering use furnace off-gas heat, using oxygen from the SOEC by-products, and exploring water recycling solutions.

Food waste prevention and reduction stand at the forefront of the European Green Deal and of the Farm-to-Fork strategy, aimed at fostering a fair, healthy, and sustainable food system. The EU is committed to reduce food waste per capita by 30% at retail and consumer level by 2030, and to reduce food losses along the food production and supply chain. The EU-funded WASTEWISE project – started on November 1st 2024 – will contribute to meet such targets. WASTEWISE project commits to design realistic pathways for food waste prevention and reduction to deliver co-benefits for climate change mitigation and biodiversity. The project also evaluates the nutritional losses and overall socio-economic rebound effects of prevention and reduction.

BeBOP is a European project granted under Horizon Europe framework programme. It aims to industrially deploy a disruptive, digital process-intensified, ultra-high resource efficient and flexible biomass power-to-methanol plant, that can transform the chemical sector, while showcasing a first-of-its-kind complete TRL6 pilot plant, ready to be scaled-up and replicated by the European biomass-based industry.

At the heart of the three-year, EU funded INJECTHEAL project is a 4D injectable self-healing hydrogel, designed not only to reduce inflammation and infection and actively support tissue regeneration, but also to deliver the medication precisely where it is needed. When completed, the hydrogel, which is developed from safe, sustainable materials, will be a radical leap in chronic wound treatment—especially for deep chronic wounds, which are notoriously difficult to manage using existing therapies.

HERCCULES aims to accelerate the application of the CCUS in Southern Europe, demonstrating the techno-economic feasibility of two full-scale CCUS chains, each serving an industrial cluster with a capture potential of 10 MtCO2/y by 2030: (i) in Greece, driven by the cement sector; (ii) in Northern Italy, driven by the synergic integration of cement and Energy from Waste (EfW) industries. The project will leverage on the two most advanced geological CO2 storage sites in southern Europe (Prinos in Greece and Ravenna in Italy) involving the main industrial actors of the CCUS field, will realize three TRL7-8 capture pilots and three CO2 mineralization pilots

CaLby2030 is a European project granted under Horizon Europe framework programme. The main goal is to act as enabling tool to achieve, by 2030, commercial deployment of Calcium Looping technology (CaL) using Circulating Fluidised Bed reactors. Three pilot plants will be used in Germany, Sweden and Spain to demonstrate >99% CO2 capture rates in three hard to abate industrial sectors: cement, steel and waste to energy.

Ageing and trauma pose formidable challenges to the musculoskeletal system, burdening clinical systems with critical-size bone defects. With the support of Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions, the REBONE project aims to revolutionise bone replacement, using 3D-printed personalised implants crafted from bioactive ceramics. This multidisciplinary initiative promises tailored solutions for improved clinical outcomes, robust materials ensuring mechanical reliability, and advanced manufacturing technologies. To redefine bone health, the project’s innovative approach holds the key to transforming how we address critical-size bone defects, ensuring a personalised, effective and reliable treatment paradigm. REBONE integrates in silico models, advanced computational methods and validation techniques, promising tailored implants for superior osteointegration.

Biomass, with its high carbon content, is an eco-friendly and sustainable alternative to conventional hydrocarbons. Heating it in the absence or limited supply of oxygen (pyrolysis) converts biomass into valuable energy products: liquid bio-oil, solid biochar, and pyrogas. The EU-funded PYSOLO project plans to make this process fully renewable by supplying the required high-temperature process heat from concentrated solar power (CSP), supported by a thermal energy storage (TES) system for times when solar energy is insufficient. Two additional pathways will provide the heat when both CSP and TES are depleted: conversion of a fraction of the available pyrolysis product, and conversion of low-cost excess electricity from renewable energy sources including photovoltaic and wind via an electrical (induction) heating system.

BOOSTER aims to improve drought tolerance in both maize and teff, while simultaneously exploring the potential for transferring species-specific drought responsive features. By exploiting natural genetic variations to achieve drought-tolerant genotypes, and by developing biostimulants derived from living organisms, BOOSTER will harness the natural resources available to develop new varieties of drought-tolerant agricultural crops.