Contact person
Helena Näsström
Innovations- och processledare
Contact HelenaWelcome to the Nordic Wood Biorefinery Conference (NWBC), where the latest discoveries and innovations in bio-based materials, chemicals, and products from biorefineries will be presented.
This time, the conference is arranged in Örnsköldsvik, where the heart of RISE's research and innovation arena in biorefinery, Bioeconomy Arena, is located. In the midst of the magnificent nature of the High Coast, the Nordic Wood Biorefinery Conference will offer a meeting place between research, innovation and industry, with a focus on value chains for the commercialisation of forest industrial biorefineries.
This year's theme is From Science To Transition. The following program with key note speakers will soon be presented on this site.
Please note that there are two different registration links. The difference between these links is if you register from Sweden or if you are an international participant. Please make sure you choose the right registration link.
It will be possible to pre-book meetings for matchmaking with other participants during the conference. More information can be found here.
Visit RISE new pilothall
Visit RISE new pilothall, the heart of Bioeconomy Arena, on Wednesday 16.10.2024 afternoon at 16:30-17.30. The site visit fee per person is 50-55 € (depending on if it is incl. or ex. VAT) and you can save your seat when registering to the conference.
We will organize transportation from Elite Hotell Plaza in the citycenter and back to the hotel after the visit. Travel time is about 10 min one way. Pick up at 16:15 and drop of around 17:45
NOTE: A limited amount of 58 seats are available
EBIO H2020 Project Final Event
Visit EBIO H2020 Project Final Event: Green chemistry approaches for the wood industry on Wednesday 16.10.2024 at 09:00-12:30
We have listed three great accommodations in Örnsköldsvik for your stay that will that give you discounted prices . You book your own stay. We will arrange transport between the conference and the hotels. More information about transport and accomodation can be find here.
Student (PhD-students/MSc) presenters are eligible for a further reduced conference fee, Student fee, that will be communicated upon confirmation of an accepted abstract (oral/poster). To apply for a student fee, student presenters are required to also submit a recommendation letter written by their supervisor when submitting their abstract. Recommendation letters are sent to abstractsnwbc2024@ri.se. Find more information on how to apply at Call for abstract
Themes this year are:
Eleonora Borén, RISE
Leif Jönsson, Umeå University
Christian Kugge, SCA
Hanna Hörhammer, VTT
Pietro Bartocci, RISE
Jenny Adrian Meredith, RISE
Capucine Dupont, IHE Delft Institute of Water Education
Magdalena Titirici, Imperial College
Silvana Sommer, Klabin
Virgine Chambost, EnVertis
Hanne Wikberg, FORTUM
Sylvia Larsson, RISE
Johanna B Olsson, Södra
Jaap van Hal, TNO
In June 2022, ground was broken for RISE’s new pilot hall in Örnsköldsvik, the heart of Bioeconomy Arena. With the arena, RISE supports industry and society to accelerate the development of new products and solutions based on sustainable origins. In the flexible pilot hall in Örnsköldsvik, as well as in operations around the country, companies will be able to test their innovations without starting from scratch.
"The pilot hall in Örnsköldsvik will be a national node where operators in research and industry can meet and realise ideas about how biomass can be used for the greatest possible benefit. And when large companies with practicable residual streams meet growing tech companies with ideas about what can be done, completely new business clusters can emerge" says Magnus Hallberg.
In a joint keynote, Bertel Karlstedt, CEO and Tony Duncan, Co-founder of Circa Group AS will share how Circa Group’s journey started with an ambition to valorise waste biomass to produce more sustainable molecules for industrial applications.
“The journey of over 15 years has been one of measured development – through five pilot plants, while testing markets with derivatives based on a patented process producing levoglucosenone. The route to the current position has been exciting, scary, frustrating and, ultimately, not one that we could have mapped out from the start. And Circa is certainly not at full vision yet. At NWBC 2024 we will give a frank overview of the challenges new companies have to bring products to commercialization”, says Bertel Karlstedt and Tony Duncan.
In this presentation, we explore the historical roots of the industry located just minutes away from the event venue, tracing its origins in the early 1900s when chemicals first were crafted from bio-based raw materials. From this tradition, Sekab as a fossil-free challenger is pushing for change through relentless innovation and strategic collaborations. We aim to redefine supply chains and revolutionize sectors spanning cosmetics to automotive.
Unlike other energy-intensive industries, the chemical industry cannot be made fully sustainable directly with renewable power. Hence, a strategy for fossil free competitiveness must include a transition to green carbon feedstocks. Sekab has a long history of converting bio-based ethanol to competitive green chemical products and based on this, our presentation highlights challenges and key factors for a transition in the chemical industry, from fossil-based economy to bio-based economy, including availability of feedstock, market opportunities, political conditions, and price development.
Jason Hallet, Professor of Sustainable Chemical Technology, Imperial Colleague, will present VALUED´s journey to build our most important functional materials from bio-based resources. These materials will lower CO2 emissions, helping the world reach zero emissions by 2050 while boosting high-performance technologies and creating new industries. This will form the cornerstone for a modern technology-dependent economy.
“At NWBC 2024 we will give an overview of the research involved in VALUED and an in-depth look at our use of novel solvents to obtain bespoke precursors for advanced materials synthesis.”, says Jason Hallet
Scientific Programme Overview NWBC 2024 (pdf, 1.24 MB)
09:20-09:50 Keynote: Bioeconomy Arena - a catalyst for sustainable transformation, Karin Johnson and Magnus Hallberg (RISE)
Topics: Upscaling at scale & Safer and resource efficient processing
Swedish fika and Poster mingel
Topics: Materials - Innovative and novel biobased applications & Advancements in Biofuel Production and Sustainability: From Pyrolysis to gasification
13:30-13:50 Keynote
Topics: Materials II - Biobased coatings, barriers, and films & Advancements in Biofuel Production and Sustainability: Catalytic pyrolysis and upgrading of oils
14:00-14:30 Keynote: Transforming a fossil industry - Embracing the Past to Shape the Future, Emill Källström and Anna Svedberg (Sekab)
Topics: Bio-based chemicals – Lignin & Bio-based chemicals – Biological routes
09:00 - 09:30 Keynote: VALUED: Bio-derived and Bio-inspired Advanced Materials for Sustainable Industries, Jason Hallett (VALUED)
Topics: System analysis – Environmental and economical process design & Digitalization and AI
12:00- 13:00 Lunch
Topics: Policy and programmes for biorefinery advancement & Novel uses of side-streams