VITO’s LignoValue Pilot Plant has confirmed its technological robustness with a two successful continuous 72-88 hour runs, during which almost three tonnes of lignin-rich feed were processed. This repeated long, stable, and interruption-free operation marks an important step in further scaling up reductive catalytic processes for lignin valorisation towards industrial applications.
VITO’s pilot infrastructure for the processing and valorisation of lignin consists of the PILLAR II unit (dissolving/extracting lignin) and the LignoValue Pilot unit (reductive catalytic depolymerisation of lignin). It sits at the heart of the COUNTLESS project, taking the lignin feedstock and converting into useful intermediates for the chemical industry. Since the launch of this infrastructure platform in 2024, the pilot team has worked on transferring the continuously operated, lab-scale processes to pilot scale, with reproducible results in terms of product quality. This trajectory was completed with the achievement of an important milestone: a successful continuous run of 72 hours. Through continuous operation, 40 kg/h of lignin-based input was processed, with the potential to further scale this up in the future.
This continuous operation of the LignoValue Pilot plant was successfully repeated in the last week of June 2026, extending the operating time even further to 88 hours. In total, almost 3 tonnes of dissolved lignin were processed. The resulting lignin-based platform chemicals will be supplied to the application developers in the COUNTLESS project.
The LignoValue Pilot Plant is the first and only pilot line in Europe that depolymerises lignin and converts it into bio-aromatics. The installation, and by extension the entire pilot infrastructure platform, forms the crucial link between laboratory research and large-scale industrial processes, helping companies to bring new bio-based solutions to the market faster and with reduced risk. Moreover, the pilot line consisting of the PILLAR II and LignoValue installations is designed and built with the necessary flexibility, allowing a wide range of process conditions to be tested. This enables the development and optimisation of bio-aromatics and refined fractions tailored to diverse market applications.
In COUNTLESS, two different lignin feedstocks will be tested and optimal processing conditions for the targeted applications developed. The bio-aromatics and lignin-based intermediates from the LignoValue Pilot Plant open up opportunities for example for PU coatings, resins, and PU foams. In this way, the pilot plant sits at the centre of new value chains for circular, bio-based materials in sectors such as construction, chemistry and high‑performance materials.
