PROFORM
Transforming Nanoparticles into Sustainable Consumer Products
through Advanced Product and Process Formulationation

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A new collaborative project, PROFORM, was awarded funding from the European Commission (Framework Programme 6) to investigate processes for dispersing nano-particles into a liquid medium. This is a STREP (Specific Targeted Research or Innovation Project), which started on 1 July 2004 and is planned to continue until the end of 2007.

The ten partners of the consortium from industry (who comprise both large companies and SMEs that are active in production, research and consultancy or software development) and academia have a wide range of unique and complementary expertise relevant to this project.

Project Objective
The practical application of nano technology in the process sectors and their client industries relies heavily on the ability to incorporate nano-particles into products in a fully dispersed and stable state, which when used for its intended purpose allows the material to fully express its functionality. Currently, the design of processes that involve the dispersion of micro- and nano- particles is primarily based on past knowledge rather than fundamental understanding. This constitutes a major barrier to taking a new product to market within a short period of time. Additionally, the waste associated with preliminary "trial and error" type of work, non-optimal final processes result in excessive waste production. The main driver for this project has therefore been the need for design methods for the manufacture of novel dispersed nano-particulate products.

In a fast changing market, such methods must be capable of rapid implementation and must lead to the production of improved and predictable particle forms, which meet rigorous quality standards. Throughout this project, a fundamental study on processes that involve the dispersion of micro- and nano- particles in a liquid medium will be undertaken. This will form the basis for producing methodologies for advanced product formulation and process technologies. These processes typically involve several steps depending on the particle type: wetting; incorporation into the liquid phase; dispersing and dissolving.

The objective of the project is therefore: To develop the next generation of process tools and methodologies for the design and production of products containing nano-particles in a highly dispersed, functional and stable state.