FUSE – Assembling C6 furans that are sustainable by C5 bio-based value chains using bioelectrochemistry and CO2

The main goal of the FUSE project is to generate knowledge and green technologies to enable assembly of sustainable furan platform chemicals by bio-based value chains using bioelectrochemistry and CO₂. Furans are classified as top 30 renewable platform chemicals, yet green valorization methods for their production are lacking.

Today, furan production relies on cellulose in processes involving the utilization of high temperature and depend on harsh chemical and metal catalysis. The FUSE project will design truly sustainable bio-based valorization routes for furan production based on underutilized biomass, while at the same time allowing for assimilation of CO₂ into the final product.

The project’s electrochemical and enzyme-based methods (nature’s catalysts) under mild conditions will lead to negative emissions of CO₂, with no generation of toxic or harmful waste and with large energy saving potential, as fossil-based synthesis is replaced with sustainable manufacturing.