Grassification
Grassification
Priority Axis
Resource Efficient EconomySpecific objective
Circular Economy
Lead partner
Universiteit GentContact
Begindatum
01/03/2018Einddatum
30/11/2021Project budget
4 421 518 €ERDF amount
2 528 755 €ERDF rate
57%Over
Common challenge
The valorisation of roadside grass clippings are a problem throughout the 2 Seas Programme area due to their high volume and processing costs. The industrial sector, however, is interested in the possibility of using roadside grass clippings as an alternative resource (as opposed to fossil sources or dedicated agricultural produce).
The common challenges of applying roadside grass clippings as a renewable feedstock in industrial processes were threefold: the supply chains were not yet optimal, resulting in higher costs and a highly variable and heterogeneous supply; additionally, there was an unsupportive institutional framework leading to legal and political challenges.
Thus, the opportunities to be addressed by the Grassification project could be situated at different levels of the roadside grass clippings value chain, hindering altogether the use of grass clippings by the industry as a renewable resource (and thus hampering the pursuit of a bio-based and circular economy).
Overall objective
Main outputs
Cross border approach
Main Achievements
The Grassification project aimed at valorising roadside grass clippings as a renewable resource for bio-based products. The whole value chain for grass clippings valorisation was assessed, starting from the optimisation of the input material up to the techno-economical assessment of the entire process and the development of policy recommendations. A joint public procurement model to increase the quantity and quality of grass clippings available focused on Flanders was developed, along with recommendations applicable to the rest of the 2 Seas Programme Area. A new mowing head was developed for reducing the sand content in the grass clippings, thus increasing their potential for further processing.
For the bulk processing of grass clippings, a 700-t cell was constructed in the landfill of Vanheede for biogas production; two batches were successfully conducted, and the digested fibres were found suitable for use in biomaterials. The high-quality undigested grass fibres were also tested to produce building materials and bio-composites, and several prototypes, including a cardholder, a picnic set, nature-path planks and building structures, were produced. The liquid fraction obtained from the pressing of grass clippings was tested to produce biogas, fertilisers, and protein. Biogas production was successful. The use of the liquid fraction as fertilizer proved to be challenging due to an unbalanced nutrient composition. Finally, the liquid fraction proved to be a good nutrient source for the growth of protein-rich microalgae and this application resulted in a spin-off Operational Group in Flanders, Grass2Algae, which was also successfully finished with promising results. All these potential pathways have been inserted in a product flow diagram, which forms the base for the techno-economic assessment of the main value chains. The set-up of the supply chain optimisation model has been done and, thanks to the transnational character of the project, the collection of data across the three regions was conducted and a policy roadmap was made.
Based on all these results, the long-term effect of the project will reinforce institutional framework conditions, necessary to make the shift towards creating value from roadside clippings.
Testimonial
A house made from roadside grass fibres, sustainable energy generated from roadside grass, more sustainable and cheaper roadside management. Science fiction or reality? Within the Interreg 2 Seas GRASSIFICATION project, research institutes, land managers and industrial partners have examined the possibilities to create economically viable business cases for these and other applications starting from roadside clippings.