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What is BIOMAT

BIOMAT is a highly innovative 4-year European Project aiming to establish an Open Innovation Test Bed (BIOMAT-TB) for providing services to a wide range of European industries and SMEs in order to accelerate and facilitate the uptake of innovation in nano-enabled bio-based cellular materials. 

BIOMAT consortium has identified a large demand for nano-enabled bio-PUR foams with very large markets. Thus, the BIOMAT project selected five of these targeted markets for proof of concept: Building, Construction, Automotive, and Furniture & Bedding.
Thus, BIOMAT will develop a set of multidisciplinary technologies to produce biobased polyurethane foams, including the production of high-performance nano-fillers, adhesives, or bio-polyols that will be complemented with processes for inline monitoring, digital twin pilots, nanosafety, and characterization methodologies. Furthermore, different relevant services such as business plans, LCC and LCA studies, and funds raising will also be provided at fair conditions and cost.

The project will have a significant impact on:

Biobased plastics sustainability production;

 

Production of ecological materials for the construction and automotive industries;

 

Reduction of energy consumption in the large industrial sectors of construction automotive industries and furniture;

 

A new generation of highly-skilled personnel in research and development of sustainable biobased technologies and product innovation;

Initiation of new jobs;

 

Sustainable non-food/edible natural resources for consumer-based row materials;

 

Recycling technologies;

 

Enhancing sustainable growth;

 

Boosting Europe’s competitiveness.

 

Industries
Building and Construction, Automotive, and Furniture & Bedding industries.
Building and Construction

Enhance competitiveness and sustainability. It is the European Commission’s main goal for these sectors, and BIOMAT is there! BIOMAT partners will develop materials with high heat-insulation capability, improved thermal and mechanical performance, noise insulation, flame retardant, hydrophobic and hydrolysis stability, reduced energy consumption with antifungal and anti-rotting properties.

How? By producing nano-enabled bio-based rigid and semi-rigid polyurethane (PUR) foams from bio-polyols and bio-nanofillers to produce waterproofing lining road tunnel, molded insulation panels and/or sandwiches for the construction and building industries.

Automotive

The European Union is among the world’s biggest producers of motor vehicles and BIOMAT aims to influence there! This Project paves the way towards highly innovative, safe, and sustainable plastic-based car parts such as seat cushions, headrests, and steering wheel, using the newly developed novel soft and semi-rigid bio-polyurethane (bio-PUR) foams. This will further result in reduced cars energy consumption, improved reliability, durability, and reduced life-cycle costs.

Furniture and Bedding Industry

BIOMAT is developing a new generation of polymer for chairs, sofas, and mattresses for the Furniture and Bedding industries. Mattresses and upholstered sofas and chairs based on nano-enabled soft and semi-soft bio-polyurethane foams, with a structure based on open-cell resulting in  increased density, durability, flexibility, strength, fatigue resistance, form stability, air permeability, and body support. These foams are also Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) free. This is the Project main goal for the Furniture & Bedding Industry, to replace the unsustainable petroleum-based PUR foams used in typical soft and semi-soft foams applications.