EU project EcoRefibreRecycling of wood fibre boards - Steinbeis Europa Zentrum supports partners with transfer to the market

The EU project EcoReFibre strengthens the circular economy of waste wood and helps to secure wood resources in Europe. Until now, there have been no economically viable recycling routes for post-consumer fibreboard (MDF/HDF) back into fibreboard or other high-quality wood-based materials, while waste volumes are increasing and primary wood is becoming scarcer.

EcoReFibre implements the solution as a technology chain. It starts with an AI-supported sorting line that recognises fibreboards in mixed post-consumer wood waste in real time and provides them as a separate sorting fraction. In the next step, an impact reactor (dry or wet) or a modified thermomechanical pulping (mTMP) process is used to efficiently extract defined fine particles (fine chips) and fibres from the sorted fibreboard fractions. The use of recycled chips and fibres is demonstrated in the manufacture of pilot products, including fibreboard with recycled fibres, surface layers for chipboard, flexible and hard insulation materials, and biological composites. Technically, this is addressed via a demonstration chain: the aim is to replace up to 25% of fresh fibres in fibreboard production. This goal has already been achieved within the framework of the project.

Steinbeis Europa Zentrum supports the project and its partners in transferring the results to the market. To this end, it established a consortium-wide exploitation methodology (IP/Exploitation webinars and workshops) to record project results in a structured manner and bundle them as Key Exploitable Results (KERs). Steinbeis Europa Zentrum also supports the partners in clarifying ownership claims, access rights and suitable protection options so that results can be reused in a legally compliant manner. Using business modelling, Steinbeis defined exploitation scenarios along the value chain, derived target markets and customer segments from these, and worked with the partners to create business cases and building blocks for business plans. In addition, continuous technology and market monitoring is carried out to keep abreast of developments in the competitive environment, stakeholders and possible marketing barriers in order to clearly outline the path to successful marketing and exploitation.

EcoReFibre is supported by 20 partner organisations and connects universities, research, industry, SMEs and associations, thus involving all relevant players from technology development to market acceptance.

EU funding for all partners: €12 million, 05/2022-04/2026

Horizon Europe project EcoReFibre explores smart sorting and processing technologies to recycle post-consumer waste wood back into fibreboards and into novel building products.