The Project


Multidimensional integrated quantitative approach to assess safety and sustainability of nanomaterials in real case life cycle scenarios using nanospecific impact categories

Introduction


The Safe and Sustainable by Design (SSbD) framework aims to steer the innovation process towards the green and sustainable industrial transition, substitute or minimise the production and use of substances of concern, and minimise the impact on health, climate and the environment during sourcing, production, use and end-of-life of chemicals, materials and products. However, SSbD implementation to nanomaterials (NMs) is hampered by a lack of harmonized or specific data and datasets which poses a challenge to the design of safe and sustainable NMs and their incorporation into nano-enabled products (NEPs).

INTEGRANO aims to:


• Support decision making in NM development, enabling stakeholders (scientists, material engineers, policymakers) to tackle the SSbD challenge in the NM context.
• Promote the design and redesign of NMs and NEPs by reducing R&D and approval lead time, minimising costs and increasing data transparency.
• To support industry by reducing research and technological development and innovation risk related to safety and sustainability by enabling impact-based informed investment decisions.

To address these aims, INTEGRANO will develop a nanomaterial specific assessment methodology, operating within the SSbD framework, and which is underpinned by primary performance data obtained within specific design case studies which will be performed within the project. This will entail the development and validation of new toxicological and eco-toxicological assessment methods and specific nano-ecotoxicity and nano-toxicity impact indicators. The INTEGRANO approach addresses the whole NM life cycle and is based on quantitative assessment principles as well as modelling and computation. This overcomes the lack of harmonised specific data and allows an impact assessment which supports SSbD case studies that rely on the minimum and representative set of primary data required to predict multi-optimal design cases, thereby reducing the time and cost burden associated with NM characterisation.

Through a digitalised Digital Support Tool (DST) implementing a multi objective optimisation design (MOOD) algorithm INTEGRANO will offer digital supported decision making in the SSbD approach to NM and NEP development. The DST will be provided to support manufacturers and regulators in assessing the sustainability of NMs and NEPs via optimisation of their performance in terms of cost, functionality, environmental and health impacts, and will inform regulatory frameworks regarding specific hazards of new materials, validated approaches to the measurement of hazards, and innovative life cycle impact assessment models.