Summary:

Dutch authorities are looking for bio-based and circular alternative technologies for protecting banks of canals and ditches. The material must compete with the longevity of hard wood (currently used). To gain a better understanding of the state of the art, the market and the ideas of developers and suppliers, the authorities search for businesses with experience and extensive knowledge of the newest technologies. With the input, a precommercial procurement will be written and published.

Full description:

Several authorities in the Netherlands responsible for the water management replace many kilometers of bank protection every year.
To achieve the climate goals, they want to facilitate the application of bio-based building materials in this process. In this way biogenic carbon is stored in building materials and non-sustainable hard wood and CO2-intensive materials (like steel) can be displaced.

There are currently no bio-based alternatives on the market that can compete with the commonly used hardwood. In recent years, experiments have been conducted with alternatives to hardwood bank protection.
In terms of product development phasing, those experiments can be classified as TRL 6 or 7 (Technology Readiness Level). So far these experiments have not yet let to application of bio-based materials on large scale.
Still a lot of issues need to be addressed, like e.g. lifespan, leaching, weathering, cracking, color and strength in relation to the thickness of the material. The latter being especially challenging when scaling up to larger production.

As mentioned before, all involved public authorities try to get a better understanding of the state of the art, the market and the ideas of developers and suppliers about this challenge. The authorities invite businesses to share their expertise and knowledge. This input together with a successive market consultation will be used to initiate a precommercial procurement that addresses this societal issue.

Advantages and innovation:

The innovation concerns bio-based and circular alternatives/materials for protecting banks of canals and ditches, which can compete with hardwood in the long run.

– It displaces the use of hardwood struts, preventing deforestation in Asia and South America. This contributes to CO2 absorption and the preservation of biodiversity in those regions.
– Bio-based bank protection materials can be made from Dutch residual flows that are released in agriculture and horticulture or during the management of waterways by the water boards. The CO2 absorption of this type of crop is greater than that of forests per hectare.
– Bench protection is the most complex question, because the transition from water to air combined with temperature differences has the greatest degeneration effects on materials. Biomaterials that can withstand this degeneration are also suitable for other applications in construction and beyond.

Technical specification or expertise sought:

The innovation concerns bio-based and circular alternatives/materials for protecting banks of canals and ditches, which can compete with hardwood in the long run.

– It displaces the use of hardwood struts, preventing deforestation in Asia and South America. This contributes to CO2 absorption and the preservation of biodiversity in those regions.
– Bio-based bank protection materials can be made from Dutch residual flows that are released in agriculture and horticulture or during the management of waterways by the water boards. The CO2 absorption of this type of crop is greater than that of forests per hectare.
– Bench protection is the most complex question, because the transition from water to air combined with temperature differences has the greatest degeneration effects on materials. Biomaterials that can withstand this degeneration are also suitable for other applications in construction and beyond.

Expected role of the partner:

As mentioned before, all involved public authorities try to get a better understanding of the state of the art, the market and the ideas of developers and suppliers about this challenge. The authorities invite businesses to share their expertise and knowledge through a survey. This input together with a successive market consultation will be used to initiate a precommercial procurement that addresses this societal issue.