 EcoPlastiC Steering Meeting (SM) took place on 12 April 2024 where partners presented the latest results within their respective Work Packages and discussed further actions, especially on potential commercialisation opportunities.

TUS shared the progress on the production of high yields of over 99% of terephthalic acid (TPA) monomer from textile feedstock by reactive extrusion (REX)/extraction/filtration processes, which was analysed by HPLC and fully characterised.

in a shake flask test under optimal conditions where similar results were observed for REXed PET and REXed metalized PET. In the mixed aerobic culture, continuous run with the aerobic sludge with REXed metalized PET was carried out, where it was observed that the REXed metalized PET is degradable and convertible in protein rich biomass, but optimisation might increase the yield. For the anaerobic sludge adaptation to REXed metalized PET, it was observed that 100 days were needed to start conversion into biogas.

At KTH, all biomasses obtained from NOVA and AVE were optimized at different temperatures with the common plasticising agents, glycerol and PEG 200, and then processed into films. All combinations look promising for improvement and implementation into multi-layer packaging applications.

IMGGE reported that the EcoPlastiC Newsletter #2 was successfully sent out to 213 subscribers and it’s available 

. Website continues to show excellent statistics and key performance indicators (KPIs) describing the social media activity are also increasing, as well as the number of EcoPlastiC publications and conferences.

Representatives from all partner institutions attended the SM:

 (Coordinator and Team Leader), Marija Mojicevic, Laura Rodriguez, Bor Shin Chee, Cuneyt Erdinct Tas, Buket Alkan Tas, Necdet Ozcelik, Zeliha Ece Ozcelik, Eduardo Lanzagorta Garcia, Jeovan Araujo, Chaitra Venkatesh

 (Team Leader), Kiran Reddy Baddigam, Anna Svagen Hanner

Regular EcoPlastiC SMs are organised each 2 months, to make sure this project moves forward according to plans.

Fifth EcoPlastiC Steering Meeting

The 13th CONGRESS OF MICROBIOLOGISTS OF SERBIA - 

: “From Biotechnology to Human and Planetary Health” was organised by the Serbian Society for Microbiology in Belgrade (Serbia).

 sessions were organised, and there were 

poster presentations from the research topics of:

INDUSTRIAL AND FOOD MICROBIAL BIOTECHNOLOGY

ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY AND BIOTECHNOLOGY

MICROBIAL GENETICS, METAGENOMICS AND METAPROTEOMICS

ALTERNATIVE APPROACHES IN ANTIMICROBIAL CONTROL

ACTIVE IMMUNIZATION AS THE KEY ELEMENT IN INFECTION PREVENTION AND CONTROL

MULTI-DRUG AND PAN-DRUG RESISTANCE/HEALTH MICROBIOLOGY AND BIOTECHNOLOGY

BIOINFORMATICS WORKSHOP - NGS TECHNOLOGY AND ITS APPLICATION IN MICROBIOLOGY

, there was 1 plenary lecture presenting the results from the EcoPlastiC project:

Keynote lecture “From soil to lab: exploring toxicology with 

” by Dusan Milivojevic, Bogdan Cerovic, Jasmina Nikodinovic-Runic, Institute of Molecular Genetics and Genetic Engineering (IMGGE), University of Belgrade, Serbia.

13th Congress Of Microbiologists Of Serbia - Mikromed Regio 5

Europe Towards a Circular Society: Circular Plastic Challenge

. The event was an excellent success and more than 65 people attended it.

The guest projects at this webinar presented their goals, technologies, and recent findings in relation to the circular economy toward a greener Europe.

 – Bio Innovation of a Circular Economy for Plastics

 – Eco conversion of lower grade PET and mixed recalcitrant PET plastic waste into high-performing biopolymers

 – MIXed plastics biodegradation and UPcycling using microbial communities

 – Upcycling Bio Plastics of food and drinks packaging

 – Business-driven systemic solutions for sustainable plastic packaging reuse schemes in mass market applications

 – Sustainable solutions for bio‑based plastics on land and sea

EcoPlastiC presentation at the BioICEP webinar