Surface Engineering

CIDETEC will actively participate in the INN-PRESSME project

The packaging, automotive, and other consumer goods industries have received EUR 14.5 million funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 programme for a project aiming to replace petroleum-based goods with bio-based products. The INN-PRESSME project will function as an ecosystem, involving the development of recyclable and/or biodegradable packaging, energy, and vehicle solutions and other consumer goods.

Coordinated by VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, the project involves 26 other European organisations from nine European countries, including CIDETEC, through CIDETEC Surface Engineering and CIDETEC Energy Storage.

The core of the new INN-PRESSME ecosystem (Full name, “Open innovation ecosystem for sustainable plant-based nano-enabled biomaterials deployment for packaging, energy/transport, and consumer goods”) is comprised of pilot devices owned by ten European partners.. The services of the ecosystem make it possible to develop new products with a high value added that are recyclable and biodegradable, or solutions that replace oil-based products.

A goal of the project, which operates on the principle of open innovation, is to expand into a Europe-wide ecosystem offering research and pilot services for enterprises of different sizes. The ecosystem offers companies the possibility to reduce risks linked with developing new products and to accelerate market access.

The specific goal of CIDETEC in the project is upgrading its Pilot Line for inks formulation (CIDETEC Surface Engineering) and Pilot line for continuous coating (CIDETEC Energy Storage), which will be used for scaling up (nano)cellulose-based electrolytes and slurries for applications in smart labels (specifically electrochromic displays and batteries) and ultracapacitors.

INN-PRESSME has received funding under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (Grant Agreement N° 952972).

The project, providing product solutions that are based on biomaterials, was launched on 1 January 2021 and runs until 31 January 2025.

Co-ordinated by VTT, the INN-PRESSME project also involves the following partners:

– Belgium: Innovation in Research & Engineering Solutions (IRES), Greenovate! Europe EEIG
– Finland: Keskuslaboratorio Oy – Centrallaboratorium Ab (KCL), Walki Plastiroll Oy
– France: Centre Technique Industriel de la Plasturgie et des Composites (IPC), Commissariat à l´Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives (CEA), Polymaris Biotechnology SAS, Arjowiggins France
– Germany: Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der angewandten Forschung e.V., WSVK OEDERAN GmbH, Skeleton Technologies GmbH
– Italy: Stam srl, Centro Ricerche Fiat SCPA
– Poland: Instytut Włókien Naturalnych i Roślin Zielarskich
– Spain: Fundación CIDETEC, Fundación AITIIP, Asociación de Investigación de Materiales Plásticos y Conexas (AIMPLAS), Gnanomat SL, Global Equity & Corporate Consulting SL,

Asociación Española de Normalización (UNE), MAIER S. Coop, Albéa Services, Podoactiva SL

– Sweden: RISE Processum AB, Skanem Skurup AB
– United Kingdom: Granta Design Ltd.

Description: A ball made from nanocellulose from which the biomaterial film was produced.
Source: copyright VTT

Cidetec Surface Engineering is currently developing a new material for the aeronautical and energy industry that will enable huge savings on both time and maintenance costs. This research forms part of the NEOCROSS project, which aims to develop and offer a new generation of high-performance composites and epoxy adhesives allowing subsequent disassembly. The new composites will be manufactured using traditional methods, but unlike those existing today they will enable the parts to be disassembled and easily repaired by applying heat and pressure to the damaged area.

The composites to be developed in the NEOCROSS project still have all the advantages of conventional thermosets – high thermal and mechanical performance – but they also have all the benefits of the 3R technology developed by Cidetec: they can be repaired, reprocessed and recycled. This is made possible by an innovative system of thermoset resin with dynamic cross-links responsible for the 3R properties.

One of the major advantages of NEOCROSS is the repairability of the manufactured parts, avoiding most of the drawbacks of current composite repair technologies. This new material is repaired by applying heat and pressure with a portable repair tool. This means work that had previously taken hours or even days can be done in minutes, with complete recovery of the material’s properties. Also, the innovative NEOCROSS adhesive with tailored disassembly will allow for easy separation of the damaged parts, meaning the delaminated parts can be taken apart for repair.

The NEOCROSS innovations will lead to development of quicker and cheaper repair technologies for composite delaminations, both under production and in service, also enabling recovery of manufacturing rejects. All this means lower costs for airlines and also for wind turbine manufacturers and maintenance centres.

The NEOCROSS project – “New epoxy matrix composite with self-healing properties via dynamic crosslinking” – co-financed by the member states within the EUREKA framework and the EC, will conclude in 2023. The project coordinator is GAIRESA and the participants in addition to Cidetec Surface Engineering are SOFITEC,GMI Aero SAS and RESCOLL.

The aim is to develop multifunctional structural composite materials suitable for thermoelectric power generation (TEG)

Two years after the HARVEST Project, in which CIDETEC is participating, began, the researchers involved are still working on the development of innovative technologies for the aeronautical sector with the aim of developing multifunctional structural composite materials that can be used to generate thermoelectric energy.

To achieve this, HARVEST combines unidirectional (UD) carbon fibre reinforcements with new 3R (repairable, recyclable and reprocessable) epoxy matrix systems – technology patented by Cidetec. The previous experience of the eleven members from six different European countries is proving to be essential in the race to achieve the objectives.

CIDETEC leads the way in defining the roadmap towards the development of TEG-enabled hierarchical composite parts, as well as the key technical activities related to the development of 3R resins with improved electrical and thermal properties and their subsequent application in the manufacture of thermoelectric and repairable compounds for the Aero sector. It is also the member that is responsible for the dissemination and communication of the progress made, as well as being in charge of taking the proposal to the website portal.

The project is part of the H2020 programme financed by the European Union and began in September 2018, with an estimated duration of at least three years.

CIDETEC is glad to present a new H2020 project Carbo4Power:“New generation of offshore turbine blades with intelligent architectures of hybrid, nano-enabled multimaterials via advanced manufacturing”, which targets the development of a new generation of more durable, multifunctional and digitalized rotor blades for offshore wind turbines that will increase their operational performance. The innovative concept is based on nano-engineered hybrid (multi)materials and their intelligent architectures with the scope to deliver both wind and tidal turbine blades. This initiative is coordinated by National Technical University of Athens and integrates 18 partners from 9 EU Countries: Greece (NTUA, Biog3D Nees Texnologies 3D), France (IRT Jules Verne, Sabella, Sense in), Spain (CIDETEC, AIMEN, ITAINNOVA), Belgium (IRES), Germany (FRAUNHOFER IFAM), United Kingdom (University of Birmingham, Catapult, HAydale, Cambrige Nanomaterials technology), Estonia (Aideas), Austria (Bionic Surface Technologies) and Portugal (Inegi).

CIDETEC will participate in Carbo4Power as the leader of Work package 1, for the development of nano-engineered composite materials. Cidetec will contribute with new sustainable nano-engineered composite materials, based on CIDETEC´s proprietary 3R technology with dynamic epoxy resin formulations for fiber-reinforced composite materials (for more information see: https://cidetec.es/en/top-achievements/3r-leading-technology).  Formulations will be adapted to the required specifications and the manufacturing processes to be used, and will contribute to improve turbine blades reparability and recyclability.

Additionally, CIDETEC will contribute with coatings with tailored functional properties for the improvement of durability and performance of offshore energy plants. For this, several omniphobic approaches will be followed, including omniphobic technologies, comprising the patented ionogel technology that prevents adhesion to the underlying substrate by implementing high slippery and self-cleaning properties to avoid the accumulation of fouling, based on low-vapour pressure lubricants and low energy surface polymer materials (for more information see:https://cidetec.es/en/top-achievements/omniphobic-surfaces).