C-Source Renewables is converting wood waste extracts into renewable chemical inputs via the Arborlyse project, which is set to bolster supply chains and support net-zero ambitions.
With byproducts from the wood industry often downcycled, sent to landfill, or incinerated, C-Source Renewables hopes to spearhead a scalable approach to wood waste recovery.
Its novel extraction process recovers lignin, cellulose, and hemi-cellulose from wood waste, using them to produce glucose syrups. These are set to replace imported, fossil-derived feedstocks, thus avoiding the associated environmental impacts and supply chain disruptions.
Impact Laboratories Limited will also participate by leading research on lignin extraction using novel process intensification technologies.
The project – set to span over six months and receive £128,000 (€147,979.52) in funding from Innovate UK – is intended to process up to 5kg of waste per batch during its pilot phase.
If successful, it is expected to make room for packaging companies, manufacturers, and other sectors to ‘secure a more stable supply of renewable raw materials’.
In turn, it is hoped to lower greenhouse gas emissions, drive value back into the UK economy, and help the country meet its legally binding Net Zero commitments by 2050.
“Wood waste has enormous untapped value, yet it continues to be overlooked in favour of traditional raw materials,” said Rylan Cox, director and co-founder of C-Source Renewables. “The Arborlyse project is about proving that we can recover more from what we already have in an economical way– but critically do so in a way that builds resilience, lowers emissions, and supports sustainable growth across multiple sectors.
“As SMEs, we have the agility and focus to make projects like this a success. Collaboration is key – and by working with partners such as Impact Laboratories Limited, we’re demonstrating how the UK can innovate its way to stronger, cleaner supply chains.
“Projects like Arborlyse demonstrate the growing role of clean technology SMEs in meeting the UK’s sustainability targets. By unlocking new value from waste and creating domestic supply chains for renewable materials, together we are building the foundations of a circular economy - one that minimizes waste, maximizes resource efficiency, and delivers tangible progress towards Net Zero.”
C-Source Renewables also reports that it has invested in research and infrastructure to drive innovation in waste valorization. It is building a new facility in Bedford to facilitate pilot-scale processing capability and house partnerships with commercial organizations.
Once it is fully operational, the plant is expected to convert multiple waste streams into biobased sugars and platform chemicals at scale – thus reducing reliance on imported fossil feedstocks and bolstering the UK’s bioeconomy.
In similar news, SABIC, OPACKGROUP, and Lamb Weston reported last year that at least 60% of the thin, low-weight coextrusion film used to package the latter’s frozen potato products was made using bio-feedstock from used cooking oil – a move thought to lower the previous design’s carbon footprint by 30%.
OMV has also completed the expansion of its proprietary ReOil technology at its Schwechat refinery. It is set to convert up to 16,000 metric tons of hard-to-recycle mixed plastic waste into chemical feedstocks every year.
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