Project Title:
Reciprocal Recycling of Waste Oil for Biodiesel Production
Acronym:
Re2truvo
Project Code:
Τ2ΕΔΚ-04570
Project Coordinator:
GRINCO ABEE
The project is the first integrated innovative development of a network for the collection of frying oil from households through smart frying oil collection bins to produce sustainable biodiesel.
It includes the construction, installation, and pilot operation of smart frying oil collection bins from household users in a municipality of the Region of Thessaly, the collection and qualitative analysis of frying oil, the pilot production of biodiesel through the process of transesterification and finally the technological optimization of the smart collection bins.
The technology of the Intelligent Waste Oil Collection Bins that will be built for the proposed project is demonstrated through the Industrial Property Organization patent number 1009501 entitled "Intelligent Waste Oil Collection Bin (ICB)" held by GRINCO ABEE and some of the innovations it includes are liquid quality recognition, autonomy, user recognition and individual reward.
The objectives of the project relate to:
Creation of a sustainable economically Smart Oil Container based on the research and development of recent years
Advancing the research/development of the smart bin system to the next level of technological readiness from TRL6 to TRL8
Strengthening the competitiveness, extroversion, and leadership of the company in national and European markets in the collection of cooking oil from households, incorporating innovations and new knowledge in existing activities
The Valuation of the collection of oils with Life Cycle Analysis by the Research Body EKETA (subcontractor).
The methodology to achieve the above objectives includes the study of the siting of the Smart Bins for the collection of cooking oil combined with the update of their characteristics in the first work section. Subsequently, the second EU involves the construction of the Smart Waste Oil Collection Bins while the third EU involves their pilot operation at TRL7. The results of the pilot operation (quality, quantity) will lead to Optimization Studies of the Smart Waste Oil Collection Bins in EU4 to lead to TRL8 while with the help of the EKETA the Life Cycle Analysis of these systems in EU5 will be assessed. Finally, EU6 includes the validation/vesting of the ECST system in the new TRL8 while EU7 is about the company's participation in trade shows.
With the completion of the project, GRINCO SA is expected to expand its production and commercial activities to produce advanced biofuels by securing the most sustainable feedstock, increasing its export performance and consequently its competitiveness.
In particular, targeting untapped raw materials such as cooking oils by domestic users, in addition to the environmental and economic benefits, will contribute to the implementation of new European policies on the circular economy and the conservation of resources within the local economy.
In addition, the project aims to strengthen synergy between industry and research institutions with the ultimate goal of meeting the needs of the Greek and European market by enabling harmonization with the European RED Directive for the replacement of 10% of all transport fuels with biofuels.