From January 2024 to February 2025, tasks within Work Package WP1, "New Solutions for the Feed Opening Section (FOS)," of the PROMATAI project were carried out. All project partner organizations participated in the research activities within WP1.

• During the secondment at IEP, Toruń, Poland (Task 1.1), more than ten different concepts of the Feed Opening Section (FOS) for a single-screw extruder were analyzed, and four main concepts were selected for further R&D activities in the project;
• During the secondment at TUK, Kosice, Slovakia (Task 1.2), the material was selected, and three batches of bio(nano)composite with different granule sizes were produced and analyzed in terms of their structure and properties;
• During the secondment at UWA, Athens, Greece (Task 1.3), virtual models of these four FOS concepts were developed, and the necessary design documentation was prepared with support of IEP;
• During the secondment at CET, Sofia, Bulgaria (Task 1.4), computer simulations of the developed virtual FOS models were conducted with support of UWA, determining the maximum throughput of the models for three types of bio(nano)composite pellets;
• During the secondment at LPH, Vranov nad Toplou, Slovakia (Task 1.5), rapid prototyping of the FOS was carried out using 3D printing. As a result, four full-scale (1:1) 3D models of the FOS were obtained and used for experimental throughput studies in Task 1.6;
• During the secondment at DIR, Kaunas, Lithuania (Task 1.6), the throughput of the four FOS 3D models was experimentally studied using pellets of different sizes. Additionally, the main "smart" FOS (with an adjustable feed opening size) was designed for the extruder, an NC program for CNC machining was developed, a metal prototype of the FOS was manufactured, and machine learning algorithms for the FOS were proposed.

All development and research tasks planned in WP1 have been successfully completed.