Safe and sustainable by design of next generation chemicals and materials: SSbD4CheM project innovations in the textiles, cosmetic and automotive sectors

Abstract

The strategic objective of the Safe and sustainable by design of next generation chemicals and materials (SSbD4CheM) project is to develop screening and testing strategies for a variety of substances and materials to ensure safer and more sustainable products in line with the Sustainable Products Initiative. SSbD4CHeM is focusing on chemical safety using new approach methods, including in vitro studies without animal models and in silico tools. Additionally, it integrates environmental sustainability for the implementation of the Safe and Sustainable by Design (SSbD) framework including risk assessment and ex-ante life cycle assessment. New methods and models for safety and sustainability assessment along chemical, material and product life cycles will be developed, validated, and applied to three case studies, including biobased self-cleaning, water repellent, and antimicrobial treatments for textiles, nanocellulose as an additive in cosmetics, and microcellulose composites for the automotive industry. By employing a multidisciplinary strategy, SSbD4CHeM addresses key challenges in material innovation, ensuring regulatory compliance while reducing hazards to environmental and human health. The project will accelerate the development of next-generation sustainable materials, promoting industry innovation, regulatory progress, and improved consumer safety. Ultimately, SSbD4CheM aims to establish a new benchmark for the development of chemicals and materials that conform to safety and sustainability goals.

Keywords: Chemical engineering; Chemical safety; Materials engineering; Nanoparticles; Nanotechnology; Risk assessment; SSbD framework; Sustainability.

Graphical abstract

Fig. 1

Overall SSbD4CheM workflow - Sustainable chemical design framework incorporating data management, collection, analytics, safety, and risk assessment. (SSbD: safe- and sustainable-by-design, EC: European Commission and LCA: Life cycle assessment).

Fig. 2

Framework of the SSbD4CheM toolbox and data management ecosystem for the safety and sustainability assessment of chemicals and materials. (SSbD4CheM: Safe and sustainable by design of next generation chemicals and materials and LCA: Life cycle assessment).

Fig. 3

A Cellulose chain with the hydroxyl groups of two sequential monomers (top) and a cellulose dimer with its functional groups R1, R2, R3 and R4 (below, left) substituted with a range of groups (below, right). Carbon, Oxygen, Nitrogen and Hydrogen atoms are illustrated with light blue, red, blue and grey colors.

Fig. 4

Eos Cloud Platform and its SSbD4CheM instance (https://eoscloud.entelos.eu/ssbd4chem.html), which hosts the Hydro-NanoConstruct tool for the digital construction of energy-minimised metal oxide nanoparticles in aquatic media at different pH and the calculation of their atomistic descriptors.

Fig. 5

Innovative models for safety assessment within SSbD4CheM. Created with biorender.com.

Fig. 6

SSbD4CheM industrial demonstrators from automotive, textile and cosmetics sectors acting as safe and sustainable materials and products manufacturers, to provide: (i) material samples, (ii) industry insight, and (iii) application and validation of SSbD4CheM framework. (LCA: Life Cycle Assessment, s-LCA: Social Life Cycle Assessment, TVOC; Total Volatile Organic Compound, hiPSC: Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells).