Modern society still relies heavily on fossil-based feedstocks for materials production, driving additional carbon emissions. Harvesting atmospheric carbon, so as to close the carbon-cycle, is of the utmost importance. Given the abundance of biologically sequestered carbon as a byproduct of our society, e.g. agricultural and forestry residues, pathways to their use in future materials production are sought.
The advancement of biomass deconstruction techniques has resulted in the production of more uniform and well characterised biomass-derived chemical and material streams, which are being used to develop sustainable bio-based products. However, to this day biorefinery processes which are able to operate on a feedstock-agnostic basis are not the norm, and the difficulty of predicting how the isolated fractions and building blocks will affect material properties make the whole value chain extremely expensive, causing a bottleneck in the development of novel products from laboratory to industrial scale.
Our ReInvent COST Action will convene European and international competence, aligning scattered research efforts from across the globe to leverage various expertise for trans- and multidisciplinary science and realise our vision of resource inclusive renewable materials. We will bring together experts in chemistry, engineering, agriculture and forestry, biomass deconstruction, chemical analytics, separation, and materials science to focus on feedstocks-agnostic processes and the early-stage prediction of material properties, as well as techno-economic and environmental feasibility of the whole value chain. Ultimately, we will push society beyond the status quo, accelerating the transition towards truly sustainable and inclusive solutions.
You can read more about ReInvent in the MoU.
Research Coordination
The creation of a global and interdisciplinary platform that facilitates knowledge exchange and promotes communication and partnership between leading experts in resource-efficient sustainable materials in Europe, including academics and researchers from a range of research centres, higher education institutions, and companies.
The identification of the specific key points in the use of a wide variety of renewable feedstocks for the production of sustainable materials, measurable via new collaborations established between the ReInvent COST Action partners.
Unveiling new intersections of research that bridge the gaps between science/engineering, industry, and societal stakeholders to coordinate efforts and boost the development of sustainable material innovations, aiming to fix as much atmospheric carbon as possible.
The fostering of time-bound competitiveness in renewable materials across Europe via innovation (knowledge or technology for future market applications).
Capacity Building
To create synergies compounded by international coordination by combining WGs from different fields and disciplines, achieving progress beyond the state-of-the art, know-how, and common practices, while avoiding redundancies in research efforts.
To actively promote the incorporation of Inclusiveness Target Countries (ITCs) in the WGs and global network.
To develop training programs connecting undergraduate and graduate students, young researchers (YRIs), and professionals to push the frontiers in renewable materials research. We will leverage various research facilities and cross-disciplinary areas to establish innovation and entrepreneurship as key components in the field of resource-agnostic materials development.
To foster critical thinking, brainstorming, and problem-solving skills in students and young researchers, inspiring new ideas and innovations to address challenges in the renewable materials industry.
To ensure access to knowledge and actively involve citizens in the research and development of sustainable, renewable materials. By engaging school children, their teachers, and families through targeted communication and outreach sessions, we aim to raise awareness about the importance ofrenewable materials and their role in a sustainable future.