This new Horizon Europe project focuses on the development of sustainable antiviral and antimicrobial coatings for textiles and high traffic objects made of plastics and metal, such as textiles, bathrooms and switches manufacturing industries.

Lurederra will coordinate SUSAAN Project, which started in June of 2022 and has an estimated time of 42 months to completion. This organization is a technological center that carries out research and applied technological development activities in the fields of nanotechnology, new materials, and advanced environment.

The project aims to develop sustainable antiviral and antimicrobial coatings based on active nanomaterials, such as bio-based active materials and inorganic nanoparticles. It includes the development of fast active-response and durable surfaces, taking into consideration their ease of use, low toxicity, and health issues, and targeting a global sustainability concept.

Toxicological, ecotoxicological and several tests for the new active substances and resulting coatings will be performed, as per the risk & regulatory assessment of Active Nanomaterials (ANMs). A full sustainability assessment involving the three main approaches will be performed, including environmental life cycle analysis, life cycle cost and social life cycle assessment. These studies will validate the sustainability and feasibility of the suggested ANMs and coatings but also support the design and selection of sustainable and marketable products.

Validation of the reproducibility, quality, and durability of the results will be done by applying standard end-user procedures and collecting real data on the processes, technical performance, and economics for the business strategy. The technical advantages and general benefits in comparison to current solutions will be used to present SUSAAN solutions to potential clients.

Three relevant market sectors have been selected to validate the benefits of the antiviral and antimicrobial additives: textile, plastic and metallic industries. According to their efficiency, the durability of their effects/integrity and the toxicity results at lab-scale, they will be used for each one of the above-mentioned applications. In this context, it can be stated that a large part of the common hand-touch sites and/or objects are covered by the project, maximizing the final impact of the project.

The wide range of profiles in the consortium is one of the strongest points of SUSAAN. The technological and scientific partners are experts in the areas of nanoparticles, coatings, bio-based nanocapsules as well as social, environmental, economic and toxicity assessment. The companies involved in the project cover the whole value chain from the coatings production to final products such as bathrooms manufacturing, home appliances and textiles.