The EU-funded Wood2Wood (W2W) project aims to recover, reuse and recycle the millions of tonnes of wood discarded every year in Europe.

A huge amount of wood is embedded in construction and demolition waste and discarded furniture, and very little of it is currently brought back into the loop. This project, which will run until the end of next year, takes a cascade valorisation approach to improve resource efficiency and maximise value. It focuses mainly on the polluted wood from industrial and urban waste. 

Using advanced sorting and separation technologies and digital tools, it will transform wood waste into high-value products. 

There are four key components to their approach: 

• Advanced separation and sorting technologies; 
• Upcycling processes and technologies; 
• Digital tools for improving circular flows of secondary materials; and 
• Supportive framework in policy, market and skills. 

The project will demonstrate the efficiency and sustainability of producing wood without pollutants, bio-composite building materials, biopolymers, polyols and chemical detergents, and facilitating nutrient recovery. State-of-the art technologies and digital tools will support the selection of optimal cascade paths for further use of wood products and the materials in them.

The end result will be less need for virgin materials, less waste sent to landfills and incineration facilities, and a sector aligned with circular economy principles.