GREENER: Towards a bio-based and biodegradable replacement for polyacrylic acid

Microplastics are nowadays ubiquitous and form a growing problem for the environment. Everyone is aware of the “plastic soup” in the oceans as a result of plastic waste that breaks down into small particles that can accumulate in water for example, and enter our food chain. The GREENER project aims to develop polymers with the same properties as the widespread, water-soluble polymer polyacrylic acid, but with the advantage that they will be both bio-based and biodegradable, two characteristics that are not met by polyacrylic acid. Bio-based raw materials for polymer synthesis are an important alternative for the increasingly scarce fossil raw materials, which are also associated with harmful impacts on the environment. The GREENER project starts from natural resources as alternative raw materials for polymers with similar properties to polyacrylic acid. The GREENER project also considers the era of polymers after usage. Nowadays non-biodegradable polymers like polyacrylic acid are too often incinerated after use or dumped in landfills or oceans, where they contribute to the microplastics pollution. The alternative polymers that will be developed in this project are based on polyaspartic acid will have as major advantage that they are biodegradable and will only release non-toxic natural products upon degradation. The purpose of this project is to valorize the newly developed polymer platform replacing polyacrylic acid in a plethora of applications, ranging from superabsorbent materials in healthcare, to biomedical materials (e.g. wound dressings, cell carriers, scaffolds, etc.), cosmetics and coating applications.