Fractionation of fungal biomass for valorizing side streams from the forest indusrty

Purpose and goal:

The project aims to enhance the value of fungal biomass derived from lignocellulosic waste fermentation of thin liquor, a side-product of the paper industry. To increase said value, breakdown of fungal biomass and its separation into proteins, beta-glucans, chitin (i.e. fractionation) will be carried out. These major products hold significant market potential in industries such as food, materials, and cosmetics.

The goal is to transition from TRL2 to TRL6, demonstrating prototype feasibility in a relevant setting and assessing the economical feasibility of said process. Expected results and effects:

The expected outcomes are to establish a method at laboratory scale, which will then be tested in a relevant pilot scale setup. Such results will be used to carry out a relevant techno-economic analysis for the newly developed process. Through this project, we seek to achieve MRL6, conduct market analysis, foster industry partnerships, and develop a sustainable business model, ensuring viability and market readiness.

Approach and implementation: The current setup will involve three separate work packages:

WP1, carried out by Cirkulär, will write a techno economic analysis and define the required information to build such model.

WP2, carried out by Cirkulär, will evaluate the process and relevant analytical methods at laboratory scale, based on targets generated by WP1.

WP3, carried out by Cirkulär and LTH, will focus on scaling up the newly developed process in WP2, leading to more accurate information for the techno economic analysis of WP1.