In line with the objectives of the Circular Economy^[1] and Zero Pollution Action Plan^[2], the EU Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability and the Chemicals Transition Pathway and its co-implementation, the successful proposals will facilitate the deployment of sustainable bio-based coatings. Successful proposals will also contribute to the implementation of the EU Bioeconomy Strategy^[3], the updated EU Industrial Strategy^[4] and the Biodiversity Strategy^[5]. Moreover, successful proposals, depending on application, will potentially deliver significant contribution to the objectives of the R&I Mission ‘Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030’ in particular to Objective 3: ‘Make the blue economy carbon-neutral and circular’ and indirectly to Objective 2: ‘Prevent and eliminate pollution of our oceans, seas and waters’.

Project results should contribute to the following expected outcomes:

• Diversified portfolio of bio-based coatings with high technical performances.
• Increased range of applications of bio-based coatings into final products used under demanding and/or extreme conditions.
• Improved sustainability and circularity compared to existing (fossil-based) counterparts.
• Improved health and safety profile compared to existing (fossil-based) counterparts.

Coating materials are used in a wide range of industries (such as transport, construction, processing industry, textiles, energy, electronics, telecommunications, water and waste management). They protect the product, communicate information to the user, increase its lifetime, and confer performance and functionality (e.g. anticorrosion, antimicrobial, antifouling). At present, coatings are mostly fossil- based or of mineral origin. Some paints and synthetic coatings are under scrutiny or have been banned altogether for their health & safety and environmental impacts. Safer and more environmentally friendly alternatives are needed. The main technical challenges in developing bio-based coatings are obtaining stable and homogenous formulations meeting market requirements in term of performance while showing potential cost-effectiveness in the perspective of further scale-up.

Proposals under this topic should:

• Develop innovative and efficient processes to obtain SSbD bio-based alternative(s) to (a set of) conventional coating(s) for applications under demanding and/or extreme conditions where e.g. high durability; resistance to fire, extremes temperatures, chemical agents, weather, fouling and mould, corrosion; hydrophobicity are needed. One or more relevant end-use sectors could be targeted, without limitation.
• Assess the functional properties of the developed coatings against application-driven parameters, including new systems to apply the coatings where relevant. Involve end users in the testing and validation activities. Moreover, address the end-of-life of the targeted final product(s), ensuring that the bio-based coating is not hindering the circularity of the final product(s).
• Include a task to integrate a prospective assessment based on the safe-and-sustainable-by-design (SSbD) framework, developed by the European Commission, for assessing the safety and sustainability of chemicals and materials.^[6] Under this context, projects are expected to contribute with and develop recommendations that can advance further the application of the SSbD framework.^[7]
• Perform a preliminary techno-economic feasibility analysis of the subsequent scale-up phase, including market considerations (demand; target price; competing products; estimated lead time).

Proposals should also describe their contribution to the Specific CBE JU requirements, presented in section 2.2.3.1 of the CBE JU Annual Work Programme 2024^[8].

Proposals should seek for links and complementarities and avoid overlaps with past, ongoing and upcoming EU funded projects, including those funded under H2020, HEU and the BBI JU and CBE JU ^[9]. Collaboration among projects from the same topic are encouraged.

[1] Brussels, 11.3.2020 COM(2020) 98 final.

[2] Brussels, 12.05.2021, COM(2021) 400 final.

[3] European Commission, Directorate-General for Research and Innovation, Review of the 2012 European Bioeconomy Strategy, Publications Office, 2018, https://data.europa.eu/doi/10.2777/086770.

[4] Brussels, 5.5.2021 COM(2021) 350 final.

[5] Brussels, 20.5.2020, COM(2020) 380 final.

[6] See document defining the framework and criteria: Safe and sustainable by design.

[7] More specifically, provide thresholds that can support the criteria definition and improvements for the assessment SSbD methodologies, including any specificities related with bio-based coatings. Recommendations should also include identification of data gaps, especially safety, environmental, but also socio-economic factors, as well as priorities for data collection.

[8] https://www.cbe.europa.eu/reference-documents

[9] PERFECOAT (H2020-BBI-JTI-2020), LIGNICOAT (H2020-BBI-JTI-2020), ECOFUNCO (H2020-BBI-JTI-2018), REFUCOAT (H2020-BBI-JTI-2016), Glaukos (H2020-BBI-JTI-2019), BIOnTop (H2020-BBI-JTI-2018), BioBarr (H2020-BBI-JTI-2016), BIORING (HORIZON-JU-CBE-2022), SuperBark (HORIZON-JU-CBE-2022).