We are proud to share that Ing. Luca Bertolla, Ph.D. and his team have been granted the European patent WO 2025/244586 A1, protecting an innovative method for the production of nanofibrillated cellulose (NFC).
This breakthrough is the result of a long-term collaboration between the Institute of Physics of Materials, The Czech Academy of Sciences and CEMEA.
🔬 What makes this innovation unique?
The team developed a highly versatile, low-cost, and eco-friendly semisolid medium that enables easy mechanical defibrillation of raw cellulose fibres into nanofibrillated cellulose.
🌱 Key Advantages
• Universality – Suitable for various cellulosic sources such as paper waste, wood waste, and textiles.
• Cost-effective & eco-friendly – Aqueous-based medium using inexpensive raw materials and non-toxic solvents. No enzymatic pretreatment or TEMPO oxidation required. Fully recyclable.
• Energy-efficient – Thorough defibrillation achieved within minutes. High shear stresses at low deformation rates reduce energy consumption while ensuring controlled processing and defect-free CNFs.
• High aspect ratio – Produces CNFs with cross-sections of 20–70 nm and lengths exceeding 4000 nm.
• Low shear-rate exfoliation & storage stability – The medium prevents hornification and bacterial degradation, serving also as a storage environment.
This patented technology represents a significant step toward scalable, sustainable, and industrially viable cellulose nanomaterial production.
Congratulations to the entire team on this outstanding achievement! 👏
