GreenNanoFilms

Projektbeschreibung

Carbohydrate biomass constitutes an abundant and renewable resource that is attracting growing interest as a biomaterial. Convincingly the use of different natural "elementary bricks", from oligosaccharides to fibers found in biomass, when mimicking self-assembly as Nature does, is a promising field towards innovative nanostructured biomaterials, leading to eco-friendly manufacturing processes of various devices. Indeed, the self-assembly at the nanoscale level of plant-based materials, via an elegant bottom-up approach, allows reaching very high-resolution patterning (sub-10nm) never attained to date by petroleum-based molecules, thus providing them with novel properties.

GreeNanoFilms aims to use carbohydrates as "elementary bricks" (glycopolymers, cellulose nanocrystals and nanofibers) for the conception of ultra-high resolution nanostructured technical films to be used in various markets, from large volume sectors, such as (i) high-added value transparent flexible substrate for printed electronic applications, (ii) thin films for high-efficiency organic photovoltaics, to growing markets, such as (iii) next generation nanolithography and (iv) high-sensitivity SERS biosensors.

GreeNanoFilms main impacts are the implementation of a new generation of ultra-nanostructured carbohydrate-materials that will play a prominent role in the achievement of the sustainability improvement of various opto- and bio-electronic sectors. A network of industrial end-user leaders is integrated in the project to facilitate the innovator-to-market perspective. The prospective environmental impacts and benefits of new green processes, eco-efficient nanomaterials and nanoproducts will be quantified with Life Cycle.

Universität Bremen is work package leader of the WP8 "Environmental and techno-economic sustainability" with the following objective

  • prospective technology and sustainability assessment,
  • assessment of positive and negative effects on the environment during all life cycle stages of selected nanoproducts as well as comparative conventional products; prospective Life Cycle Assessment and Risk Assessment,
  • development and validation of green nanotechnologies design criteria for sustainable products, and
  • assessing future costs and social aspects of the selected applications.
GreeNanoFilms has been launched on 1st February 2014 and will continue for 36 months, bringing together nine partners from five EU countries with a total budget of about 5 million EUR. (Grant agreement no: 603519) Information provided by Michael Steinfeldt and Henning Wigger at UniHB.

Further information can be obtained from the following webpage: www.greenanofilms.eu