This new interdisciplinary chair, launched at Centrale Lille for a period of 4 years, mobilises the scientific excellence in biology, chemistry, data sciences and humanities of 4 research laboratories and the industrial company SOLVAY. Combined with the power of the REALCAT high-throughput catalytic screening platform, it will explore new technologies for recycling aromatic polymers in the context of industrial applications that meet the principles of the circular economy.

The PLASTILOOP2.0 Chair is coordinated by Sébastien Paul, full professor and Head of the VAALBIO research team at the Catalysis and Solid-State Chemistry Unit (UCCS – UMR CNRS 8181) and coordinator of the REALCAT high-throughput catalytic screening platform. It brings together four academic laboratories (UCCS, BioEcoAgro, CRIStAL and E2P2L) and the industrial company SOLVAY. Together, they will work on the problem of the circularity of aromatic polymers by using digital technologies (data mining, AI, modelling). With a total budget of 1.8 million euros, PLASTILOOP2.0 is a winner of the ANR’s “Industrial Chairs” programme dedicated to partnership research.

The work of this chair is based on the REALCAT high-throughput catalytic screening platform, a unique piece of equipment in the world, which is located in our premises (C building) and which enables high-throughput research in chemical, biological or hybrid catalysis.

“Aromatic polymers are compounds used to create high-performance plastics used in sectors such as aeronautics and the automotive industry. Through the PLASTILOOP2.0 Chair, our ambition is to develop a multidisciplinary approach, catalysed by digital technologies, in order to improve the circularity of these polymers by finding recovery routes other than thermal recovery, which generates CO2. It is the coupling of our advanced expertise in chemistry-biology-data science-human sciences with the power of the REALCAT catalytic screening platform that allows us to contribute to a global deep tech innovation, aiming to extract high quality raw materials (monomers) to promote a new cycle of creation of aromatic polymers“, comments Sébastien Paul.

The scientific programme of this chair will be organised in 3 main parts:

  • The first part will study the biocatalyzed reconversion of aromatic polymers in order to reintroduce value into these wastes. This will consist in producing regular chemical synthons, sub-components of polymers.
  • The second batch will focus on transforming these synthons into monomers, molecules that can be directly used in the polymerisation processes already implemented by Solvay. This cycle will be completed when the characteristics of the new monomers correspond to the specifications required by the industrial end user.
  • The third part will focus on comparing methodologies for analysing the environmental, economic, and societal impact of the processes used to produce aromatic polymers. The team will therefore use innovative tools such as the institutional compass developed by Professor Michèle Friend of the VAALBIO team of the UCCS laboratory.

Artificial intelligence is involved at every stage of the Chair’s scientific programme. In addition to its ability to develop new degradation and synthesis routes using original catalysts, PLASTILOOP2.0’s main task will be to implement prediction algorithms that will make it possible to link the activity of these catalysts to the fundamental descriptors that characterise them. This approach will benefit from REALCAT’s screening capacity, generating the quantity of data necessary for their training, and allowing numerous experiments to be carried out, the results of which, both positive and negative, will feed the research work.

Because of its positive environmental and social impact, the PLASTILOOP2.0 Chair is part of the SOLVAY One Planet programme, which aims to protect the climate, preserve the planet’s resources, and promote a better life.

7 young researchers (3 PhD students and 4 post-doctoral fellows) will be trained in the disruptive technologies developed within the framework of PLASTILOOP 2.0.