Enhancing the Sustainability of PhotopolymERs ANd phoToinduced prOcesses (ESPERANTO)
Lead Research Organisation:
Imperial College London
Department Name: Chemical Engineering
Abstract
Esperanto (Enhancing the Sustainability of PhotopolymERs ANd phoToinduced prOcesses) aims at i) improving the sustainability of photopolymers ii) boosting the use of photopolymerisation processes in the industrial sector to replace less sustainable processes iii) training a new generation of researchers with advanced scientific skills and sustainability consciousness. Gathering 8 universities and 8 non-academic partners, ESPERANTO will reach its objectives through individual PhD projects addressing sustainable innovation, within an international and intersectoral research network of academic institutions and enterprises in the field of photopolymers and high-tech. Photopolymerization is a key enabling technology for coatings, adhesives, printing inks, packaging, wood finishing, and electronics. Photoinduced reactions are greener than most chemical processes, as they do not use solvents, are not energy intensive, are fast and efficient. However, they still present sustainability issues, namely use of fossil-based raw materials, migration of components during the service life of the product (limiting their use in medical and food applications), need of harmful UV lights, and limited applicability to thick/opaque samples or non-illuminated areas. Furthermore, photopolymers are mostly crosslinked, thus non-recyclable.
ESPERANTO will tackle the technical and environmental issues of photopolymerisation, developing greener and safer materials for present processes and investigating innovative photopolymerisation processes. Implementing new sustainable materials and prototypes based on new photoprocesses, it will set innovative and sustainable light-based technologies, able to enter new markets (e.g. the medical sector) and innovate existing ones, making an impact on EU's economy. Moreover, ESPERANTO will prepare highly skilled and employable researchers, with strong environmental consciousness, strengthening Europe's human capital base in sustainable R&I.
ESPERANTO will tackle the technical and environmental issues of photopolymerisation, developing greener and safer materials for present processes and investigating innovative photopolymerisation processes. Implementing new sustainable materials and prototypes based on new photoprocesses, it will set innovative and sustainable light-based technologies, able to enter new markets (e.g. the medical sector) and innovate existing ones, making an impact on EU's economy. Moreover, ESPERANTO will prepare highly skilled and employable researchers, with strong environmental consciousness, strengthening Europe's human capital base in sustainable R&I.
| Description | We have demonstrated the origami, precise folding of a material into prescribe shape, can be achieved in polymer networks manufactured by light. The process is called "frontal photopolymerisation" and converts a liquid resin (containing monomers and photoactive components) into a solid polymer network. The structure of the network has a gradient, which modulates may of its properties, including mechanics and response to the environment. By patterning these networks, we can achieve their precise folding and unfolding, as required for origami and active response. Such origami FPP provides a type of exceptional 3D printing, where the objects then self-assemble into precise shapes. |
| Exploitation Route | Yes, in 3D printing, or 4D printing, as time becomes the 4th variable. A range of materials can support origami FPP, with applications in various industries. |
| Sectors | Chemicals Manufacturing including Industrial Biotechology |
| Description | Minimal surfaces and origami in photopatterning |
| Organisation | National Institute of Standards & Technology (NIST) |
| Country | United States |
| Sector | Public |
| PI Contribution | Experimental data on pattern formation by photopolymerisation |
| Collaborator Contribution | Theory underpinning pattern formation and coupling of phase behaviour to patterning |
| Impact | Early stages |
| Start Year | 2023 |
| Description | Rheomechanics of photopolymerised materials |
| Organisation | University of Bristol |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Experimental data on the spatiotemporal evolution of polymerised networks |
| Collaborator Contribution | Modelling of the spatiotemporal evolution of polymerised networks |
| Impact | Collaboration at an early stage |
| Start Year | 2023 |