CERTECH

Certech is a research & development partner and supplier of analytical and technological services for companies involved in activities related to (bio)chemistry: pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical and healthcare; environment and energy; polymers; automotive and transport; packaging; construction. Certech’s mission is to provide innovative solutions for the improvement or development of products and processes, in agreement with the principles of sustainable chemistry and circular economy to meet industrial and societal needs. Certech multidisciplinary team is composed of 35 employees, highly qualified and experienced in the field of materials, chemistry and industrial processes, environment/air quality, analytical and technological services.

Certech will contribute to the BIOSAFIRE project with the following activities:
• Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) and odours characterization of flame retarded materials
• End-of-Life validation activities, including mechanical recycling evaluation of thermoset and thermoplastic materials, formulated with the new biobased flame retardants.

In order to fulfil these tasks, Certech will leverage the expertise it developed in past projects. For instance, in the H2020 project MMAtwo (2018-2022), Certech developed methods for characterising regenerated methyl methacrylate monomer (obtained by depolymerisation of various waste streams) and derived polymers. Analyses included composition, purity, emissions and odours. Also, the exposure of workers to the regenerated monomer was modelled in different scenarios. Certech also led the WP investigating the use of the regenerated monomer in various polymer applications. In the Walloon region project PUR4UP (2020-2023), Certech participated to the development of new end-products incorporating high-quality recycled plastics from end-of-life vehicles (ELV) and waste of electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE). Certech drew on its expertise in the field of plastic recycling to carry out various tasks on recycled streams, like extrusion and filtration in the melt, formulation optimisation (compounding) and characterisation in order to draft technical datasheets.