OHrigins PLANT STARTS CONVERTING LIGNIN AND BLACK LIQUOR INTO HIGH-VALUE ANTIOXIDANTS

After 30 months of design, construction and testing, the ZEBRA-LIFE pilot plant has been officially commissioned following 840 cumulative operating hours achieved across several continuous-processing campaigns. The pilot plant converts lignin, a by-product of the pulp and paper industry, as well as black liquors, into a robust strong renewable antioxidant for use in food, cosmetics, rubber, fuels and lubricants, among others. In doing so, it offers a sustainable alternative to conventional fossil-based sources. This pilot plant was designed and constructed within the framework of the European innovation project ZEBRA-LIFE and its feasibility has been officially confirmed after successful 840-cumulative continuous operating hours.

Located at CENER’s BIO2C (Biorefinery and Bioenergy Centre) in Navarra, Aoiz, northern Spain, the pilot plant transforms in a continuous mode, approximately 20 kilograms of lignin per hour to produce two different antioxidant products. The facility is placed near a pulp and paper mill (Smurfit Westrock-Sangüesa), creating an innovative-local circular economy loop.

The lignin, currently a by-product used mainly for energy, is upgraded through CENER’s proprietary OHRIGINS technology, which integrates depolymerization, fractionation and purification to obtain high-performance antioxidants with low polydispersity and molecular weight.

In a proof-of-concept run, the plant treated about one tonne of kraft lignin over 50 hours of continuous operation, verifying the complete conversion pathway and system integrity. Commissioning was then completed through three structured, multi-week campaigns, each consisting of preparation, operation and cleaning, culminating in a total of 840 cumulative operating hours. A fourth campaign begins next week to expand product validation with end-users

In the next phase, samples from the pilot campaigns will be sent to the different end-users for validation. These include applications in food (chorizo, cookies, and beef burgers), cosmetics, lubricants, engine oils, and rubber products. Each partner will evaluate the physicochemical properties of the antioxidant products and test their performance in real formulations against real fossil-based antioxidants. This validation will help confirm the effectiveness of OHrigins additives in replacing fossil-based ingredients while maintaining product quality and safety.

The pilot’s commissioning confirms the technical feasibility of producing bio-based antioxidants from lignin at pilot scale and provides a foundation for further scale-up of the OHrigins products.

About ZEBRA-LIFE

ZEBRA-LIFE is a project co-funded by the European Union under the LIFE Programme. It focuses on developing lignin-based antioxidants as sustainable alternatives to fossil-derived additives. The consortium brings together CENER (project coordinator), Smurfit Kappa Navarra, ASINCAR, Centro Tecnológico Riojano, Roka Furadada, Repsol, Bioquochem and Inveniam Group.