Eco-Design Strategies for Engineering Renewable Nanomaterials Webinar

This webinar will present our latest research on applying eco-design strategies to engineer renewable nanomaterials with enhanced environmental and functional performance. We will highlight an enzyme-based platform for producing cellulose nanoparticles—nanofibrils (CNF), nanocrystals (CNC), and nanospheres (CNS)—with tunable properties tailored to specific applications. Green approaches for surface functionalization will also be discussed. Additionally, we will introduce a chemical-free, energy-efficient method for producing lignin nanoparticles at high yield and their integration into the development of active packaging and functional textiles. Application-focused examples in packaging, textiles, and biomedical systems will illustrate how eco-design principles guide sustainable material innovation. Selected results from life cycle assessment (LCA) studies will also be presented, highlighting their role in identifying environmental hotspots and assessing potential trade-offs across production routes.

Keywords: 

• Ecodesign
• Cellulose Nanoparticles
• Lignin Nanoparticles
• Functionalization  

Learning Outcomes:

1. Describe eco-design strategies for producing and functionalizing cellulose and lignin nanoparticles through enzyme-based and chemical-free approaches
2. Summarize key application areas and environmental considerations, including how life cycle assessment (LCA) helps identify sustainability hotspots

Dr. Valdeir Arantes is an Associate Professor and Vice-Head of the Department of Biotechnology at the University of São Paulo (Brazil), where he is the President of the Research and Innovation Commission. He leads the Applied Bionanotechnology Lab, focusing on the engineering of renewable nanomaterials, particularly cellulose and lignin nanoparticles, through eco-efficient technologies, both as stand-alone solutions and integrated into biorefinery frameworks. His RD&I activities also include the development of bioactive compounds such as xylooligosaccharides (XOS) with prebiotic activity, expanding the functional scope of biorefinery outputs. Dr. Arantes has been recognized for five consecutive years as a Top 2% Scientist Globally in Enabling & Strategic Technologies and is a Research Productivity Fellow of Brazil’s National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq). He holds a B.Sc. in Chemical Engineering and a D.Sc. in Industrial Biotechnology from the University of São Paulo, which included a research stay at the University of Maine (USA). He completed a two-year postdoctoral fellowship and held a four-year research position at the University of British Columbia (Canada), earned an MBA in Project Management, and completed Green Belt training in Lean Six Sigma.