OBJECTIVES

The main objective of CORALIS is to create pathways for the decarbonisation of resource and energy intensive sector value chains through the implementation of viable industrial symbiosis approaches combining new business and management strategies with innovative technology-based enablers.

This whole approach will be demonstrated in three real industrial areas covering different sectors, geographical dimensions and resources, improving the knowledge basis and laying the foundations for exploiting the potential of Industrial Symbiosis in EU process industry.

SPECIFIC GOALS

CORALIS will model and profile already existing symbiotic interactions of the main 3 industrial areas involved in the project (Escombreras, Höganäs, Brescia) and compare them with relevant IS initiatives to identify the conditions and practices enabling and hindering successful IS implementation.

Furthermore, in order to assess the full dimension of IS, CORALIS will develop an overall framework for the evaluation of the IS readiness level, including technical (TRL), economic (ERL) and managerial (MRL) factors.

This evaluation together with CORALIS standard approach for collecting in a harmonised way data on the performance and benefits of IS in these industrial areas through a life cycle perspective, will contribute to enlarge the knowledge base for IS.

In order to enhance the willingness of industrial actors to engage in Industrial Symbiosis activities, CORALIS will empower Industrial Symbiosis facilitators for effectively supporting IS developments – for example, by assisting design and implementation of the projects, ensuring the fluid coordination of social processes, ensuring extensive and secure data and information exchange among the involved stakeholders, assisting fair sharing of the benefits and fostering trust for the long-term sustainability of the symbiotic case.

To this end, CORALIS will develop a set of tools and techniques to support IS facilitators in the fulfilment of their tasks in different stages of the IS projects including the identification and mapping of potential opportunities within an industrial area, adoption of supportive business models and management practices, assessment of business and environmental impacts of synergies, and enabling secure communication and data exchange protocols.

All these approaches will be embedded in an IS platform, that will support the monitoring and assessment of the CORALIS demonstration sites, providing a channel for the performance validation of the novel IS approaches while supporting their operation.

CORALIS will define and promote a set of business and contractual models to improve the economic and financial feasibility of the Industrial Symbiosis opportunities identified in the industrial areas involved in the project and to facilitate the attraction of funding sources for IS projects.

The definition of these new business models will be supported by the development of a new methodology for technoeconomic assessment of IS projects, easing the decision-making and increasing transparency to the economic results of the project.

On top of that a Life Cycle based approach for IS will be developed for the identification of best-practices that minimize both the economic and environmental impacts taking into consideration future operational and replacement needs. Besides, CORALIS will foster the dialogue between the industrial areas with already existing IS business cases (Lighthouses) and those that are aiming to implement identified opportunities (Followers), thus enabling experience and knowledge transfer among industrial areas.

As a result, CORALIS will provide recommendations to improve the existing IS interaction in the Lighthouses and will deliver new models and mechanisms for price settlement, shared ownership of assets and contractual agreements for the development of new industrial symbiosis cases, as well as tools for generating confidence among funding and banking sources for supporting the investment in the project.

CORALIS will demonstrate technology-based solutions as enablers for creating symbiotic relationships among processes while contributing to the decarbonisation of the full value chain in three complementary use cases:

  • (i) a symbiotic KNO3 production line, readapting processes to enable the production of fertilisers through substances recovery from wastewater and CO2 utilisation from neighbouring processes;
  • (ii) an integrated CCU and low-grade waste heat recovery unit for supplying CO2 and energy from a steel-powder industry to a greenhouse
  • (iii) industrial waste treatment technologies for replacing key raw materials and energy supply in metal production factories for the reduction of landfill disposal at regional scale. The impact of these approaches is significant, including 30% energy intensity reduction in Escombreras, 100% greenhouse thermal needs reduction in Höganäs and 100% reduction of industrial waste landfilling in Brescia.

To demonstrate the feasibility of the project approaches from all the stages of an IS initiative, CORALIS will guide the technical, economical and managerial evaluation of a set of already identified opportunities in three additional industrial areas (Basauri, Linz and Izmit), covering respectively:

  • (i) recovery of waste heat from a steel electric arc furnace for steam production and supply to surrounding industries
  • (ii) strategies for renewable H2 exchange between a steel factory and fertiliser company
  • (iii) reutilisation of refinery spent caustic soda in the pulp and paper industry.

CORALIS will also support the identification and mobilisation of the required stakeholders to enable the proper implementation of the case, including public authorities, industrial area managers or banking and funding sources.

As a result, CORALIS will provide these initiatives with a roadmap providing the guidelines for creating a resilient business and managerial structure for the successful deployment of the IS initiative.

To effectively ensure the dissemination of the project approaches CORALIS will establish a dialogue with key stakeholders from different sectors and areas of expertise to create a wide audience for the project results.

Additionally, specific workshops will be organized in different EU regions to facilitate knowledge transfer and experience sharing between stakeholders and providing feedback to CORALIS approaches.

This will be complemented with an analysis of technical and non-technical barriers found within the project, in order to develop a set of recommendations to create a suitable regulatory and standardization framework as well as the creation of learning material with the aim of training the next generation of workforce.

As a result, CORALIS will deliver an IS Handbook compiling IS best practices and providing recommendations for individual companies, regional initiatives, industrial associations and any other ecosystem which could act as facilitator of IS in the future.

CORALIS WITH THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS

Goal 7: Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy.

In Sweden, an integrated unit for CO2 capture and waste heat recovery from Höganäs steel company will be installed to supply a greenhouse. Further interactions with a fish farm (for exchange of waste heat and organic waste as fertilizers) and the revalorization of slags for civil works and other applications will be also analysed.

Goal 9: Build resilient infrastructure, promote sustainable industrialization and foster innovation.

In Escombreras (Spain), a novel process for KNO3 production enabling the use of by-products (H2SO4), residues (Ca contained in wastewater) and emissions (CO2) of the industrial area will be installed and a detailed analysis for the installation of a Concentrated solar power plant at industrial area level will be performed.

Goal 12: Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns.

The main objective of CORALIS is to create pathways for the decarbonisation of resource and energy intensive sector value chains through the implementation of viable industrial symbiosis approaches combining new business and management strategies with innovative technology-based enablers.