Pilot-scale biorefinery infrastructure & advice
Prove your bio-based process before you build it.
VITO gives industry, start-ups, SMEs and RTOs access to the full biorefinery process train — pretreatment, bioconversion and downstream processing — as a shared, easy access service. Test at scale, generate customer samples, and de-risk the investment decisions.
Why teams work with us: infrastructure without the capital risk
Building and qualifying your own pilot line takes years and a large upfront investment. We keep the door open at every scale, so you can validate the process, and the business case, before committing.
01 Validate strategic options faster
Test candidate routes early and put internal resources behind the ones with credible technical and economic evidence.
02 One-stop shop
Pretreatment, bioconversion and downstream processing under one roof. No need to coordinate several separate suppliers.
03 Samples for your customers
Produce representative volumes at multiple scales so you can present real material to your own buyers.
04 Beyond the core process
Support for the steps before and after bioconversion, including pretreatment and downstream processing, biomass disruption/fractionation, membrane separation, evaporation...
05 De-risk scale-up and capital investment
Reduce the technical and financial uncertainty around new infrastructure or product development before investing. Generate the evidence needed to invest in a demo line, or industrial plant.
06 Low-threshold contracts
Service agreements built from a single trial run, to a multi-year commitment. Start small and scale as the case proves out.
The full biorefinery process train, ready to test
Bring a feedstock, a target molecule, or a half-finished process, we can plug in at any stage.
Pretreatment & fractionation
Break down complex biomass — lignocellulosic, agro-residue or waste-derived — into usable process streams.
Conversion
Extraction, chemical processing, fermentation, biocatalysis and biomass derived component processing routes, e.g. lignin, from lab to pilot.
Downstream processing
Separation, fractionation, purification and concentration to take a crude stream to a product your customer can evaluate.
Techno-economic & Life cycle assessment
Translate pilot results into a realistic investment case, CO2 footprint and SSbD included.
Ready for your sector
Whatever you're trying to valorise, we've likely processed something similar.
Retrofit the core mill economics with higher-value outputs.
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Valorise side streams (black liquor, lignin, hemicellulose, sludge) into bio-based chemicals, fuels or materials instead of low-value energy only.
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Cut waste volumes and landfill costs through circular process water and sludge concepts.
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Explore retrofitting existing mills into integrated biorefineries without disrupting the core paper business.
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De-risk new product lines with techno-economic assessment and pilot demonstration ahead of investment.
Turn residues into a new revenue line for the value chain.
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Convert agricultural residues into materials, chemicals rather than waste.
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Handle seasonality and biomass variability through storage, pre-processing and flexible process routes.
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Design regional value chains connecting farmers, cooperatives and processors, including logistics and quality specs.
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Quantify environmental benefit (reduced burning, nutrient recycling, lower emissions) for policy and sourcing claims.
Multiple products from one complex stream.
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Turn complex organic waste into products minimising residues.
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Develop robust pre-treatment and fractionation strategies for highly variable streams at scale.
Bio-based performance, built to spec.
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Develop bio-based drop-in or functionalised chemicals from biorefinery intermediates.
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Co-design processes and molecules against your customer's performance specification.
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Secure a reliable, spec-consistent bio-based feedstock supply from agricultural, forestry or waste streams.
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Build a credible green-premium narrative backed by LCA and carbon footprint data.
From lab strain to demo-scale proof point.
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Convert lignocellulosic or waste-derived sugars into high-value biochemicals via fermentation or biocatalysis.
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Integrate upstream fractionation with downstream bioconversion to use every fraction of the biomass.
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Scale from lab to pilot to demo, with process control and downstream purification validated along the way.
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Support establishing long-term off-take agreements with end-users to de-risk investment in a new bio-based platform.
How a project starts
From first call to a scale-up decision
1. Scoping call
45 minutes with a technology advisor to understand your feedstock, target output and constraints.
2. Feasibility
We match your case to the relevant part of the infrastructure and outline what a first trial looks like.
3. Pilot access
Run the trial at the scale that fits your question.
4. Scale-up roadmap
Leave with samples, data and a techno-economic view to take to your own investment decision.
Get in touch
Book a call with a technology advisor.
Tell us what you're trying to valorise. We will follow up to scope a first conversation, no obligation.
During a first call we usually cover:
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The feedstock or stream you're working with
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What you're trying to improve: yield, quality, cost…
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The scale you need: lab, pilot, or demo
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Your timeline for a go/no-go decision
