Project description
Biofilm-inspired surface coatings: sustainable, self-healing and eco-friendly
The use of coatings and surface treatments to protect materials from environmental conditions is ubiquitous in engineering. Many of these treatments involve harsh chemicals and/or energy intensive processes while consuming large volumes of increasingly precious water. The EU-funded ARCHI-SKIN project will turn to nature for inspiration, developing a bioactive protective coating system for engineered materials based on fungal biofilms known more for the harm than good they can do. Harnessing a combination of experimental and mathematical methods to characterise the mechanisms of biofilm formation and the structure and performance of the biofilms, the team will develop a sustainable optimised biofilm capable of self-healing and bioremediation to protect many surface types.
Objective
Biofilms, an assemblage of surface-associated microbial cells that is enclosed in an extracellular polymeric substance matrix, are recognised as one of the most stable biological systems on earth. The beneficial use of biofilms for protection is nearly unexplored since up-to-date research is focused on the prevention of its formation. In the ARCHI-SKIN project, we will explore the design principles underlying fungal biofilm to bridge the knowledge gap on the chemistry-structure-properties of the biological systems’ interface. Mechanisms of biofilm formation, its structure, function, quorum sensing, and performance will be understood at multiple scales following the best practices of materiomics. It will be achieved by advancing state-of-the-art in-situ laboratory routines and use the latest mathware solutions in combination with the design-build-test-learn approach for the experimental work.
In the following step, we will develop a bioactive protective coating system working in conjunction with nature. We will benefit from the synergic strength of living fungal cells, bio-based ingredients, and bioinspired concepts for materials protection. Advanced in-silico methods will be used for the integration of active ingredients and modelling of optimal and long-lasting nutrient sources compatible with the enzymatic profile of selected fungal strains. We will design and create technically applicable, controlled, and optimized biofilm built by the yeast-like ubiquitous and widespread oligotroph fungus, Aureobasidium pullulans, that will effectively protect the surfaces of biomaterials, concrete, plastics, and metals, among others, assuring optimal service life performance and remarkable functionalities including self-healing and bioremediation.
Our pioneering approach for materials protection will push the boundaries of traditional materials concepts toward the development of engineered living materials capable to interact, adapt, and respond to environmental changes.
Fields of science
- engineering and technologyenvironmental biotechnologybioremediation
- natural sciencesbiological sciencesmicrobiologymycology
- engineering and technologymaterials engineeringcoating and films
- engineering and technologyindustrial biotechnologybiomaterials
- natural sciencesmathematicsapplied mathematicsmathematical model
Programme(s)
- HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC) Main Programme
Funding Scheme
HORIZON-AG - HORIZON Action Grant Budget-BasedHost institution
6310 Izola
Slovenia