The vision of the Bioboost project is to develop a technically feasible and economically viable kraft lignin refining concept that will increase the valorisation potential of kraft lignins and enable new business for Finnish industry. The project goal is to increase the export potential and the use of refined kraft lignin in high value applications by ensuring high final product performance and lower CO2 footprint.
Bioboost will strengthen Finland’s global recognition in innovative sustainable solutions and will support European targets related to carbon neutrality and circular economy.
The kraft lignin refining concept to be developed in Bioboost is based on green solvent fractionation and expected to upgrade kraft lignin into fractions with controlled properties and better performance in polymer and energy storage applications. Thereby, the refining concept provides full utilization of the kraft lignin raw material as fractions with enhanced technical and economic value. Those lignin fractions will replace, partially or entirely, fossil-based chemicals or materials in end-use applications while maintaining or improving the final product performance. The project focuses on three main research axes:
- The development of high-performance materials out of kraft lignin fractions, focusing on polymer and energy storage applications, mainly tires, resins for wood products, conductive plastics, battery, and supercapacitor electrode materials.
- Deepening the understanding of the relationships governing solvent fractionation process conditions, lignin structure, and application performance.
- The development of solvent recovery concepts that can improve the economic viability of kraft lignin fractionation.
