Development of Innovative Biobased Technologies to Promote Circular Economy

The Project has been co-funded and co-implemented with Yerevan State University.

Principal Investigator: Prof. Garabed Antranikian

University: Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH), Germany

Research Group: Anna Poladyan, Ani Paloyan, Hovik Panosyan, Diana Ghevondyan, Ella Minasyan, Mane Tadevosyan, Rima Avetisyan, Lev Khoyetsyan

Contributed researchers։ Armine Margaryan, Karen Trchounian, Sargis Aghayan

Duration: 2020-2024

Status: Complete

Co-Funding and hosting partner: Yerevan State University

Project Importance

One of the major challenges that our society faces is the management of wastes from various industries including food, feed and agriculture. The production of e.g., cheese and wine has grown significantly in the last years. 18,000 to 23,000 tons of cheese and more than 200,000 tons of whey are being produced annually in Armenia. Around 50 grape processing companies use around 265,000 tons of grapes and produce 12 million liters of wine every year generating 3.6 million tons of organic side streams that are not utilized. These high value products are released to the environment, and only in some cases are used as fertilizer. These huge resources of organic material can be used as substrate for the production of fermentation products such as energy carriers, bioplastics, proteins, chemicals and pharmaceuticals by using biological systems from nature. An interdisciplinary approach involving microbiology, bioinformatics, molecular biology, biotechnology, AI and process engineering will contribute to the development of sustainable biotech industry in Armenia. The implementation of a circular economy will guarantee the utilization of waste streams from the industry and generate economic value and employment opportunities.

Results and Achievements

The project focused on addressing environmental challenges from Armenia's whey, wine, and packaging materials. Through innovative technologies, the team efficiently utilized these resources, minimizing their environmental impact and transforming them into high-value products like biodegradable bioplastics, food additives, enzymes, chemicals, and hydrogen energy carriers.

Key achievements include:

6 publications: 4 in Q1 and 2 in Q2 journals
Participated in 10 international conferences and visited the Principal Investigator’s laboratory in Hamburg
4 non-formal courses, lectures, and consultations held in Armenia

Development of biotechnological methods for cultivation of various biotechnological microorganisms from the organic side streams
Discovery of efficient microbial degradation of microplastics and concepts for producing energy carriers
New collaborations, including the €0.5 million Eurasia project in collaboration with “Armbiotechnology” SPC NAS RA, Germany, and Kazakhstan
Launch of a collaborative R&D project with YSU and German MicroHarvest
Training over 130+ researchers in biotechnology through 4 courses and consultations

The project’s interdisciplinary approach aligns with sustainability and innovation, driving Armenia toward a circular economy.

Courses