Nowadays, the depletion of fossil sources as feedstock to produce industrial products and the increasing production of wastes, both organic and inorganic, are two major societal concerns. Both problems have negative environmental impacts and an approach to alleviate both problems is using biowastes as renewable feedstock alternative to fossil sources.

In this context, the group performs R&D work focused on municipal biowastes (MBW), biomasses (compost, digestate) and inorganic wastes (excavated soils and construction and demolition wastes).
Over the time, it has developed a chemical hydrolysis process converting MBW to soluble biopolymers (SBP) and the group is studying the performance of SBP as multipurpose products for the use in the chemical industry, as biosurfactants and for the manufacture of composite plastic materials, in agriculture as soil fertilizers and plant biostimulants, and in animal husbandry as diet supplement. Moreover, these substances are currently under investigation for their use as additives for anaerobic fermentation reactors, to improve the economy and environmental impact of the current fermentation technology. Further upgrading of SBD is under investigation at pilot level through different green processes aimed to obtain high value chemicals for various agricultural and industrial applications.

At pilot scale, a new implementation of the circular paradigm has been developed using both diverse organic and inorganic wastes with the aim to produce new substrates able to replace soils in urban settings.

• LIFE EBP: Ecofriendly multipurpose Biobased Products from municipal biowaste (2020-2024), LIFE19 ENV/IT/000004
• Progetto NODES (Nord Ovest Digitale e Sostenibile) - Spoke 2. Sostenibilità industriale e green technologies
• BIOENPRO4TO: Smart solutions for smart communities (2019-2022), POR FESR 2014-2020 Regione Piemonte
• Pa.T.Ch.: Parco Tessile Chierese - Recupero e restituzione di un bene comune (2020-2023), Bando Restauro Ambientale Sostenibile, Compagnia di San Paolo

• Fragalà F., Puglisi I., Padoan E., Montoneri E., Stavanato P., Gomez J.M., Herrero N., La Bella E., Salvagno E., Baglieri A. (2022) Effect of municipal biowaste derived biostimulant on nitrogen fate in the plant‑soil system during lettuce cultivation Scientific Reports 13, 7944 doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-35090-y
• Photiou P., Kallis M., Samanides C.G., Vyrides I., Padoan E., Montoneri E., Koutinas M. (2021). Integrated Chemical Biochemical Technology to Reduce Ammonia Emission from Fermented Municipal Biowaste. ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering 9, 8402-8413 DOI: 10.1021/acssuschemeng.1c00689
• Fragalà F., Castello I., Puglisi I., Padoan E., Baglieri A., Montoneri E., Vitale A. (2022) New insights into municipal biowaste derived products as promoters of seed germination and potential antifungal compounds for sustainable agriculture Chem. Biol. Technol. Agric.  9:69 doi: 10.1186/s40538-022-00333-z
• Evon P., Labonne L., Padoan E., Vaca-Garcia C., Montoneri E., Boero V., Negre M. (2021). A New Composite Biomaterial Made from Sunflower Proteins, Urea, and Soluble Polymers Obtained from Industrial and Municipal Biowastes to Perform as Slow Release Fertiliser. Coatings 11, 43 DOI:10.3390/coatings11010043 
• Montoneri E., Fabbri G., Quagliotto P., Baglieri A., Padoan E., Boero V., Negre M. (2020). High Molecular Weight Biosurfactants from Mild Chemical Reactions of Fermented Municipal Biowastes.  ChemistrySelect 5, 2564 –2576 DOI: 10.1002/slct.201904338

Laboratoire de Chimie Agro-industrielle (LCA), Université de Toulouse, INRA, INPT, 4 Allée Emile Monso, BP 44362, Toulouse Cedex 4, 31030 (France)
Green Chemistry Centre of Excellence, University of York, Innovation Road, York, YO10 5DD (UK)
Laboratory of Food Process Engineering, Processing and Preservation of Agricultural Products, Agricultural University of Athens (Greece)
Department of Environmental Science and Technology, Cyprus University of Technology (Cyprus)
Organohumiki Thrakis (Greece)
Sewerage Board of Limassol - Amathus (Cyprus)
Hysytech s.r.l., Str. del Drosso, 33/18, 10135 Torino (Italy)
Iren S.p.A., Via Nubi di Magellano, 30, 42123 Reggio Emilia (Italy)