Extraction, isolation and application of natural polyphenols, polysaccharides and pigments from British seaweeds for high-value applications (Seaweed3P)

The purpose of this project is to extract natural compounds from British seaweed varieties and utilise them in new high-value applications for skin and hair care, creating high-value opportunities for a UK sustainable material. The overall objective is to develop a comprehensive range of hair colorants, hair care agents, and skin care agents derived from British seaweeds with a whole life cycle of sustainable technology from source, through production, to end use and appropriate disposal. To enable this Böd Ayre Products Ltd. (BA; source materials & developments) is leading a project in collaboration with The University of Leeds (UoL; fundamental research), Critical Processes Ltd (CP; materials processing), The Body Shop (BS; product end use and marketing), L’Oréal (LO; product end use and marketing), Independent Cosmetic Advice Ltd (ICA; product end use and marketing), and Higgins’ Consultancy Ltd (HC; process/product scale-up and project management). The seven main objectives over 24 months are:
1. Research novel methods for extracting polysaccharides, polyphenols, and pigments from target British seaweeds using clean methods;
2. Assess the dyeability of human hair with compounds derived from seaweed;
3. Assess the ability of seaweed extract to protect human hair from UV/oxidative damage and colour fading;
4. Assess seaweed extracts’ ability to adsorb UV radiation, as antioxidants, UV protective agents, and as whitening agents to enable their application in skin care products;
5. Modify the application methods as necessary to provide a sustainable system that can be used domestically and in salons;
6. Develop the successful products to full commercial exploitation;
7. Develop new sites for growth and new growing methods for most promising seaweeds.
Scope
This project aligns with many of the technology priority areas of the SM&P competition.
This project is firmly aligned with “substitution of materials which are scarce, expensive and deleterious to health and the environment”: There is significant concern about the hair coloration industry because some of the compounds used in hair dyes are known to cause cancer and/or severe allergic reactions. It is necessary to develop alternative coloration methods, preferably using natural compounds from renewable sources, as desired by the cosmetics industry. Additionally, the benefits of extracting UV-protecting and antioxidant compounds will provide the consumer with products that can prevent or reduce cancers and other diseases. From a social perspective, hair care and cosmetics are huge businesses, however, a significant health risk to people using and working with hair colorants exists and safer methods are desirable. The majority of such products are chemicals derived from non-renewable petroleum products; substantial volumes of hazardous waste are produced in their manufacture. In addition, volatile organics involved in the manufacture give rise to pollution in the workplace and in the environment generally. Up to 95% of hair colorants applied are washed away, producing potential chemical hazards in the water environment.
Extraction of the products from the plants aligns with “the development of less polluting, wasteful and energy intensive processes”, which will be carried out using as green a procedure as possible, using water and/or carbon dioxide as solvent, depending upon the compound to be extracted.
Aligning with “development of new bio-based materials and supercritical processing, including the production of materials and products with lower embodied energy and from renewable feedstocks”, the collaborative project is a novel approach in plant extraction techniques and the use of such extracts in products for human use. The target compounds are from renewable sources (seaweeds), which utilise a previously under-exploited UK sustainable material as their main source, which does not require fertilizers, pesticides or irrigation. The project will also develop clean efficient and selective extraction methods, which will be a significant addition to the technology base.