Project Information Sheet
Conversion of Paper mill Sludge into Absorbent (CAPS)
Programme area:
Main area, main key action Recycling
Coordinator:
Technological, Environmental and Logistical Centre Ltd. –
TEC
(TOC d.o.o)
Dekani 3a
SI-6271 Dekani
Slovenia
Partners:
E-mail: info@toc.si
Tel: +38640 648377
Full name of the organisation (not only acronym), full name of country
KAREG Consulting Engineers, Finland
(Konsultointi Kareg Oy)
Website:
www.caps.toc.si
Benefits
(max. 150
characters incl.
space):
Which added value does your project generate?
Keywords:
Papermill sludge (PMS), Sustainable absorbent (HAWS), Sustainable
technology (CAPS), ports, yacht marinas..
The project is conceived on an inter- sectoral approach in order to
benefit a variety of European sectors:
The biggest environmental benefit will be the decreasing of GHG
emissions due to:
– Decreasing of landfilled and/or incinerated
papermill sludge - PMS (the latter will be used
instead as a raw material )
– Decreasing of production of synthetic absorbents
produced from fossil fuels
(PMS recycling and replacing the synthetic
material with natural one),
– High efficiency incineration of the used final
product HAWSC (higher calorific value of used
HAWSC),
– After incineration a new kind of inorganic (metacaolin) absorbent is produced which can be used as
an absorbent for cleaning hard surfaces (Longer
LCA)
The main economic benefits may be summarised as follows:
– CAPS Project allows cost reduction for paper
industry due to waste quantity reduction (direct
cost reduction, lowering of the environmental
taxes)
– Cost reduction for ports, oil industry and tourism
(ex. lower costs for ports and marinas for water
surface cleaning, particularly in case of an
accidental release, lower costs for petrol stations
and restaurants)
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Sector:
NACE code1 and description
E38: Waste Collection, Treatment and Disposal Activities: Material
Recovery
E38.3: Materials Recovery
E38.3.2: Recovery of Sorted Materials
Type of solution
Technology, sustainable product
Duration:
Budget:
Contract number:
01/09/2009 – 31/08/2012
€ (1.538.343 EUR (EU contribution: 60%)
ECO/08/238979/SI2.534272
Summary
Please summarise your project. The first paragraph should provide the essentials, giving key factual
information of your project (what? to whom? where? how? when?). The following paragraphs should
provide any complementary explanations necessary, and explain why the project is interesting and
relevant
The main goal of the CAPS project is for the paper industry to send paper mill sludge (PMS) to the CAPS recycling lines so
that it can be converted into an absorbent material capable of cleaning up oil and chemical spills on the water surface. Thanks
to the CAPS recycling solution it is possible to produce a material from the paper mill sludge (PMS) that absorbs more than
99% of the initial quantity of a hydrophobic substance on the surface of the water. The absorbent can be used in a dispersed or
packaged form. The Project aims to market replicate both the technology for a sustainable recycling of PMS as well as the
sustainable product (HAWSC). It is conceived on an inter- sectoral approach and will provide for a variety of environmental
and economic benefit to different EU sectors (paper industry, ports, marinas, turism..) with the consequent increasing in the
competitiveness of EU enterprises.
In fact, the increasing demand for a more convenient, ecological and more functional absorbents to deal with oil spills and
other environmentally damaging accidents such as those in the workplace indicate that this will be a viable product. For
example, oil and other petroleum-based product spills can cost huge sums of money. In oceans, such spills can damage
shorelines and destroy marine life. In workplaces, spills can cause hazardous conditions resulting in significant work-related
injuries. The final product (absorbent) can be applied either by scattering the absorbent directly over the hydrophobic
substance floating on the water surface (e.g. an. oil slick) or by scattering it over the area around the spilled substance (hard
surfaces). After being applied, the absorbent HAWSC and the absorbed substance (e.g. oil) are collected with specially
designed rakes. Another option is to use the absorbent in a packaged form or by encircling the affected water surface with a
specially designed thick rope filled with HAWS which can then absorb the spilled substance by slowly reducing the size of the
circle in the middle of the rope. HAWSC can also be used as an absorbent to collect hydrophobic dust (e.g. coal dust) from the
water surface by first spraying a non-toxic and fully biodegradable hydrophobic liquid (e.g. biodiesel) over the affected area in
order to capture the dust before applying the HAWSC absorbent. The average calorific value for the absorbent before it is
applied is 3.8 MJ/kg (megajoules per kilogramme). Depending on the calorific value of the absorbed substance it can increase
up to 33.5 MJ/kg. Due to the high caloric value of the material collected, the latter can be used as a secondary fuel (e.g.
secondary fuel for power lines or cement factories). There is also a possibility of using the non-harmful remnants from a
controlled incineration (the vitrified granules) as an absorbent to be used in cases of on shore spills of hazardous substances.
Therefore, the PMS instead of being landfilled or incinerated with the consequents substantial GHGs emissions will be used as
a valuable raw material.
On the one hand, this eco-innovation brings a solution as to how to recycle sludge produced by the paper industry, contributing
to a much more ecological recycling of such waste. At the same time it will solve environmental problems in other industrial
sectors, particularly those needing oil separators, including ports, petrol stations (around 110,000 in Europe), oil refineries,
mechanical workshops, car wash outlets, metal industries, and the machine building industry, yacht marinas, restaurants,
hotels, chemical industries and car parking.
The exploitation activities during the project duration will be developed from the two centres (Slovenia and Finland) It is
expected that the two production lines which will be set during the project duration will cover aprx. 2% of the potential EU
demand. Further exploitation actions will be developed after the end of the project period. One of the main goals of the
Project is also to raise awareness on how waste can be used as a valuable raw valuable with a substantially prolonged lifecycle (LCA)
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be accepted.
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Use clear language; avoid jargon and acronyms (RES, RUE, CFLCs, EE etc.) wherever possible.
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Please do not simply copy/paste the summary, list of Work Packages or deliverables lists from your work
programme.
Expected and/or achieved results
Please list the key outcome, impacts, expected uptake and potential market of your project
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5 points maximum, starting with the most important
1. During the three years of the EU project it is planned to industrialise the CAPS conversion production lines in
Slovenia and to set up a new production line in Finland, both with a yearly capacity up to 20.000 tonnes of PMS.
Beyond that, our aim is to meet the estimated increase in consumption of the sustainable absorbent HAWSC (from
67,000 tonnes per year now to around 570,000 tonnes per year fourteen years after the project has ended) and this
by setting up two new CAPS production lines per year (capable of processing 40,000 tonnes of paper mill sludge),
either directly or by granting licenses to other operators throughout the EU, after the EU project period. The aim is
for the product, HAWSC (Hydrophobic Absorbent for WateSurface Cleaning), to be used by 20% of the potential
market in Europe (including EU ports, yacht marinas, petrol stations, oil refineries, mechanical workshops,
restaurants and hotels) in the next ten years
2. The potential market where raw materials for CAPS can be sourced is made up of all the pulp and paper mills in
Europe. According to 2006 data from the Confederation of European Paper Industries (CEPI), there are around
1,200 pulp and paper mills throughout Europe. CEPI says that the European pulp and paper industry has a turnover
of 79 billion euros and invests 4.7 billion euros per year, with more than 10% specifically dedicated to direct
environmental protection. The main pulp-producing countries are Finland (29.5%) and Sweden (28.5%), followed
by Germany (6.9%), France (5.5%), Portugal (5.1%), Norway (5.1%), Spain (4.8%), Austria (4.6%) and the rest of
Europe, including Slovenia (around 10%). Given the consortium structure and work plan of CAPS, 33% of the
Slovenian and Finnish pulp and paper mill industries are projected to send their sludge for use in the CAPS process
in the first three years, with this figure growing to 26% and higher after the project period for the European market.
CAPS also has a large market for its eco-innovative materials (HAWSC) in several areas other than European
ports and yacht marinas, such as in petrol stations, restaurants and different types of factories that are legally
obliged to use oil separators.
3. Setting up a CAPS production line with a capacity of 20,000 to 40,000 tonnes/year will have a different impact
in different EU countries depending on their market size and structure. While in Finland only around 3% of the
total quantity of PMS will be recycled, in Slovenia this share will rise up to 30%. The application of CAPS in
smaller markets will have an even larger impact as even more than 30% of PMS will be diverted from land filling
or incineration, which will bring a direct cost benefit for the paper industry (waste management cost reduction)
while the country of origin of the CAPS production line will obtain an additional carbon footprint trade benefit of
53,780 – 107,560 tonnes of CO2 per CAPS line per year.
4. Our life cycle assessment of emissions of CO2 equivalent from oil spill absorbent production showed that
synthetic products generate around 502,840 tonnes of CO2 while HAWSC generates only 14,660 tonnes. If the
sludge were to be landfilled without being turned into an absorbent, it would generate an estimated 53,780 tonnes.
The comparison is based on 20,000 tonnes of material (PMS) per year, which is the expected capacity of the
expanded production lines in Slovenia and Finland.
5. The average calorific value for HAWSC before it is applied, for example to an oil slick or chemical spill, is 3.8
MJ/kg (megajoules per kilogramme). Depending on the calorific value of the absorbed substance, it can increase up
to 33.5 MJ/kg. Due to the high caloric value of the material collected, the HAWSC can also be used as a secondary
fuel (e.g. secondary fuel for power lines or cement factories).
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concentrating on figures and
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The information sheet will be published in the Eco-Innovation website. The EACI reserves the right to edit
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