Novis GmbH was awarded the contract for the PAWN project at the end of 2020. It is funded by the EU as part of the Horizon 2020 - Fast Track to Innovation (FTI) program. Together with partners from Germany, the Czech Republic and Israel, a diaper made from renewable raw materials is being brought to market maturity. The PAWN diaper is compostable. All plastic components that have not yet been produced from biomaterial - the cuffs, closure, adhesive and the liquid-absorbing core made of superabsorber - will be replaced by renewable components.

The project is linked to the EU's plans to reduce the consumption of plastics in Europe as far as possible. The project is worth 4 million euros.

As part of the project, Novis GmbH is responsible for the complete life cycle management of the ecological product, in particular for the successful composting of all parts of the diaper.

The extraction of peat is problematic: on the one hand, it destroys protected moorland biotopes and, on the other, the draining process releases greenhouse gases that are harmful to the climate.

 Novis GmbH has developed a process for producing a peat substitute based on used mushroom soil (Champost). To this end, Novis is building a test biogas plant on the farm of a local farmer with the support of the Federal Office for Agriculture and Food (BLE). Here, the Champost is fermented and further developed in an in-house process. The process should be ready for the market within the next two years - by June 2022. The peat substitute product is to be used in plant cultivation and as cover soil in mushroom production. Other partners in the project are the State School of Horticulture in Stuttgart-Hohenheim and the mushroom producer Rhein-Neckar-Pilze GmbH. 

In Sardinia, a disposal problem for slaughtering waste exists. The latter is many times not disposed in a correct manner but instead buried. Through the biogas plant “Macchiareddu”, Novis contributes heavily to solve this problem. The plant is developed for a throughput of 30t/d of slaughtering waste. In a combined heat and power unit, electricity and heat are generated. The heat is used for the sanitation of the slaughtering waste according to European standards as well as for heating the digesters. The generated electricity is fed into the public grid at current tariffs. 

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The biogas installation “Smartmushroom” is built in La Rioja, Spain’s biggest production area for mushrooms. The plant is fed with Spent Mushroom Substrate (SMS). The process was individually designed for a big mushroom growers association. In collaboration with the university of applied sciences Hamm-Lippstadt Novis had tested which composition of the mushroom compost together with which co-substrates and additives achieve the highest biogas yield. With the biogas generated by the SMS, fresh SMS can be dried. Then it can be processed to fertilizer pellets, easy to transport and to merchandise. For the purpose of the project, Novis has developed a fully containerized and pre-assembled biogas plant, which allows an easy installation process. Here is the link to the project's webpage.

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The biogas installation "Grimal" in the province of Aveyron, France, is technically seen, one of the most sophisticated biogas plants ever built. This plant is fed solely with sheep manure, which demands a substrate conditioning and a liquid substrate concentrator.

The process was individually designed for a costumer and was evaluated and tested in our labs for several months. The installation is running for several years now.

Bottom ashes from municipal solid waste incineration are a serious disposal problem for plant operators, due to high contents of heavy metals. Novis has developed a unique leaching-process ("Bioleaching") in the company lab, to extract metals with a wet bacterial-chemical treatment. Recovered metals can be sold. The remaining minerals are suitable as substitute for coarse aggregates in the concrete production. A successful transformation from waste with high disposal costs to precious raw materials.

The town of Bouaké in Ivory Coast has a lot of typical problems for the Sub-Saharan region. To support its twin city, the city of Reutlingen approached Novis. Target: improving the life conditions in Bouaké. Within the framework of the project, nine small biogas plants are build at nine school canteens. Municipal organic waste is transformed into biogas for school cooking.  Our engineers were looking beyond the actual biogas plant: in addition a plant-based water purification station as well as a substrate storage are built. Furthermore an innovative operators concept was established to guarantee a successful long-term function. A mayor focus is set on education and multiplication of this promising and resource efficient technology in the surrounding region.

In the framework of the international development aid, Novis has electrified the village of Kalom in Senegal. Core installation: a biomass pyrolysis plant, fueledby pelletised peanut shells. Because absolutely no electrical infrastructure was existing on site before, Novis installed: an earth grid, an island-grid control, household connections including counters, a battery park and the generator for power production. The fuel for operation - peanut shells - is a widely available production waste in the region.

During the processing of cocoa beans large amounts of cocoa shells are created as a leftover. They have a similar composition as defatted cocoa powder from beans, but some negative properties prevent a direct usage for food purposes. Novis has developed a process to treat the cocoa shells with a specially developed mixture of bacteria and enzymes. The wet biological treatment step conditions and optimises the raw product.

The final product is a cocoa powder substitue for the food industry - food graded of course!

With a pilot installation Novis has shown that biogas can be obtained from cocoa shells. Operating a biogas pilot plant in Ivory Coast Novis has given the proof of concept for a mono digestion of cocoa shells. The mobile pilot plant was located at one of the biggest cocoa bean processors in Ivory Coast.

A detailed technical and economical simulation for a 2MW power plant has resulted in a pay back time of less than four years.

Spent Mushroom Substrate (SMS) - Synonym Champost - is the used growing substrate left from mushroom cultivation. Usually it is used as agricultural fertilizer. To increase its value, Novis has developed a hydrolysis process which allows the re-use of large quantities of the SMS for the production of new growing substrate.

As a side effect, the process water can be used for biogas production. Bacteria and enzymes make it possible!