A Technology Platform For the Sustainable Recovery and Advanced Use of Nanostructured Cellulose from Agri-Food Residues ({PANACEA} Project)

The PANACEA project, within the frame of PRIN 2017 call supported by the Italian Ministry of University and Research, proposes an approach based on the recovery of cellulose and bioactive compounds from AFRs, with high yield, at various degrees of hierarchical organization, by cascading different physical and chemical processes of increasing complexity, including physical processes and microbial digestion to obtain micro-and nano-sized cellulose structures while preserving their bioactivity. Chemical and enzymatic processes are used to isolate, purify, and functionalize NC at different levels of hierarchical organization, and to design advanced functional materials such as food ingredients, edible coatings, functional colloids, biocides, and flame retardants.