Specific programme: Industrial Leadership: NMBP
UPV/EHU Partner Status: Beneficiary
UPV/EHU PI: Jose Ramon Leiza
Project start: 01/06/2020
Project end:   31/05/2024

Brief description: Nano-scaled materials are abundant in different stages of industrial manufacturing. Physical and chemical properties of these materials are strongly dependent on their size. Characterisation of mean size, size distribution, and shape of nanoscaled particles is very critical for the quality and efficiency of manufacturing processes. Yet, conventional characterisation technologies still show manifold shortcomings which represent a major innovation obstacle for manufacturers of nanoparticles. The NanoPAT consortium aims at closing this gap by the demonstration of 3 novel, real-time nanocharacterisation Process Analytical Technologies (PAT), namely Photon Density Wave spectroscopy (PDW), OptoFluidic force induction (OF2i) and Turbidity spectrometry (TUS) including real-time data handling for digital process monitoring and product quality control. Those will be validated in 5 different industrial ceramic, polymer and mineral nanoparticles manufacturing and converting environments. This implies that innovating PATs will be paired with new data-analytical technologies in order to provide, for the first time, a real-time analysis for manufacturing processes of particles in the nanometer scale with sub minute temporal resolution. NanoPAT will intensively contribute to enhancing the innovation capacity of the European nanotechnology sector. As a result, the NanoPAT real-time nano-characterisation technologies will have reached TRL 6, promising valuable improvements in terms of quality, productivity and sustainability for the process industries in the EU and beyond.