Network objectives

The aim of the network was to act as a focal point to build and sustain a community of academic and industrial innovators in the biomass biorefining field, who worked together to develop new and improved processes for the conversion of non-food biomass into sustainable fuels, chemicals and materials. The community was driven by the environmental benefits and socio-economic opportunities presented by the evolving sustainable bioeconomy.

The network objectives were to:

• bring the UK’s best scientists together with our most ambitious and innovative companies to drive forward the sustainable bioeconomy
• scan the horizon for this community, identifying opportunities and barriers to progress, and commissioning work to address these in a timely fashion
• serve as a voice for our research community and develop more effective ways to make the case to policy makers and ensure that opportunities are not missed by government and Research Councils
• strive to coordinate with and influence the multiple institutions and policy makers that have a stake in the development of the bioeconomy and ensure that our activities are harmonised where possible
• bring together practitioners in the biorefinery and biorenewables landscape from both industry and academia to catalyse innovation in the sector
• catalyse innovation in the biomass biorefinery and biorenewable product sectors
• emphasise translational research that encompasses and integrates sustainable biomass provision through to processing and production of fuels, chemicals and materials; encouraging genomic, synthetic and systems biology approaches in the research we sponsor
• provide an information hub to gather sector intelligence to inform policy makers, researchers and businesses, and help develop an enabling regulatory framework for innovation.

Some of the major challenges facing the biorefinery sector include; strain development, biomass deconstruction, process integration, product recovery and scale-up. Feedstocks include agricultural and forest residues, industrial, municipal and commercial waste, marine biomass and biomass crops. Our remit encompassef bioprocessing, bio-catalysis and fermentation of biomass, and embraces chemical conversion, engineering and combinations of these processes with thermochemical and other technologies. We worked with the Supergen Bioenergy Hub (which acts as a focal point for UK research, policy and industry communities to focus on sustainable bioenergy development) and other NIBBs to develop joint activities that combine our strengths to provide a holistic approach to biorefinery innovation. We brought together expertise from the bioscience, chemistry, engineering, environment, mathematics, economics, social and policy sectors to drive technological innovation through to market adoption founded on economic, social and environmental sustainability.

BBNet integrated and energised the UK bio-based sector to make the UK an attractive place for international companies to develop new technologies. We actively brought together the industry and academic players needed to drive innovation, and provide resources to catalyse their activities.

There are no follow on initiatives available at this time. However Supergen Bioenergy Hub is an active community that may be of interest.