Future Materials Group to work on project creating materials from waste

by

Dr Koon-Yang Lee

Dr Koon-Yang Lee's Future Materials Group will lead on the design and manufacturing of sustainable composites made from waste materials

An 11-strong European consortium including Imperial College London has secured funding for the VAMOS project.

The project aims to demonstrate how generating waste sugars from household waste could produce high-performance bio-based materials and products. 

Department of Aeronautics academic Dr Koon-Yang Lee and his Future Materials Group will lead on the design and manufacturing of the sustainable composites made from waste materials. 

The VAMOS (Value Added Materials from Organic Waste Sugars) project has received funding from the Bio-Based Industries Joint Undertaking (BBI JU) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme. 

Dr Lee says “we will be designing textile fibres derived from waste as an alternative to viscose fibres, sustainable waste-derived packaging material in the form of flexible films and foams, waste-derived composite profiles for construction and furnishing applications, as well as for transportation interiors.” 


The three-year VAMOS project will produce second-generation sugars from paper and card-based materials from municipal solid waste or waste rejected from sorting and recycling processes. 

The waste-derived sugar will be used to produce a range of bio-based products for non-food applications in the construction, textile, furnishings and fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sectors. 

By recovering and adding value to waste, the project aims to reduce both the overall levels of waste being sent to landfill, as well as environmental plastic pollution levels. 

Reporter

Tom Creese

Tom Creese
Department of Aeronautics

Click to expand or contract

Contact details

Email: press.office@imperial.ac.uk
Show all stories by this author