Ivana Burzic is Project Leader at Wood K plus, a research organisation in the field of wood and wood-related renewable resources in Linz, Austria. Within SSbD4CheM, she leads the work package dealing with the development and validation of novel materials for the three case studies, with fulfilled sustainability and safety aspects.
Tell us a bit about yourself. What is your area of expertise?
Ivana Burzic: I have many years of experience in researching thermoplastic-based materials/formulation development and their application to various polymer processing technologies. I hold a position at Wood K plus R&D Center (Austria) as International Project Manager in the Bio-based Composites and Processes (BCP) team. Previously, I studied Organic Chemistry and Polymer Engineering from the University of Belgrade (Serbia), and I’m interested in sustainable and circular materials for different application areas. Before joining Wood K plus, I spent 3 years at the Johannes Kepler University (Austria) at Institute of Polymer Extrusion and Compounding, where I worked closely with students as a research associate. During this time, I enjoyed teaching students about plastic welding. I really love teaching young people, especially children, how we can change the future by having good habits and acting responsibly.
How does your specific work package “SSbD driven R&D of novel materials and Demonstration of Industrial Assay” contribute to the project?
IB: The WP7 work package of the SSbD4CheM project plays an important role as it develops novel renewable composites with optimised Total Volatile Organic Compounds (TVOC) emissions and odour for automotive applications, PFAS-free coatings for textile applications and investigates different types of nanocellulose as a sustainable additive in cosmetics in the light of the implementation of the SSbD framework. In order to fully exploit the potential benefits that innovative SSbD4CheM materials can offer, it is essential to prioritise safety aspects in conjunction with sustainability considerations. Therefore, by applying different steps of the Safe and Sustainable by Design (SSbD) Framework considering different SSbD4CheM use cases, the WP7 work package will work closely with partners from other WPs to integrate functionality/innovation with safety and sustainability considerations as early as possible in the innovation process at TRL3/4 (R&D development process), thus saving costs towards their market introduction.
What is the most exciting thing about the activities in your work package?
IB: Collaboration with international teams as well as close collaboration with industrial partners (representatives of Stellantis Group, AHAVA and KORTEKS) to address different, sometimes complex issues related to the different use case requirements.
- Ivana Burzic
project leader at Wood K plus“To fully exploit the benefits of innovative materials, we must prioritise safety alongside sustainability, integrating both as early as possible in the development process.”
From your point of view, who can benefit the most from the project?
IB: Compounders, converters for automotive sector, textile industry in general, cosmetic industry (outcomes from non-animal testing), SSbD community (learnings from concrete industrial case studies), textile companies, consumers/end users (car users, people in general from all 3 case studies), regulatory bodies (outcomes in respect to SSbD testing, non-animal testing), policy makers (outcomes in respect to SSbD testing, non-animal testing), industry in general how to apply SSbD Framework, etc. will benefit from our findings.
