The 4th edition of the International Conference on Microplastic Pollution in the Mediterranean Sea (µMED 2025) took place in Ischia, Italy, from 19–22 October 2025.

The conference brought together experts from diverse disciplines, including the scientific and industrial sectors, policy makers and environmental organizations, to explore all aspects of micro- and nanoplastic pollution, offering a valuable opportunity to share the latest developments, highlight recent advancements, and identify innovative materials, technologies and strategies to detect and mitigate this pressing environmental challenge.

On October 20^th, approx. 130 participants from reasearch and industry stakeholders joint Milica Velimirovic‘s (VITO) oral presentation. Under the title “Progress in analytical strategies for micro- and nanoplastics detection and characterisation“, Milica shared the work in SSbD4CheM’s textile study from microfibers release. 

µMED 2025 once again proved to be a valuable platform for knowledge exchange and collaboration, driving forward the scientific understanding and mitigation of microplastic pollution in marine environments.

Final Programme available here.

The 1st SENTIATECH Congress took place in Valencia (Spain) on 21–22 October 2025. The two-day event focused on “Detection, Measurement and Control of Emerging Risks”, highlighting specially emerging chemicals (such as PFAS and micro/nanoplastics), sensor technologies, and Safe-and-Sustainable-by-Design (SSbD).

The congress aimed to foster cross-sector collaboration, facilitate knowledge exchange, and accelerate the implementation of innovative solutions for managing risks related to the environment, human health, and materials/manufacturing.

Approximately 200 participants attended, mainly from the research and scientific community, along with industry representatives, regulatory partners, and local authorities who joined during the closing session.

SSbD4CheM participated in this particularly relevant event, as it closely aligned with the project’s objectives, addressing innovative techniques for detecting and assessing contaminants. Fruela Pérez and Pau Camilleri, from ITENE, delivered an oral presentation introducing the project. Their talk focused on how Steps 4–5 of the SSbD framework are integrated into the project’s activities. Their presentation entitled “Embedding Sustainability: How LCA Shapes the SSbD4CheM Approach” is available under DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.17426621.

Outcomes of participation included:

• Increased visibility and recognition of the project
• Strengthened networking and collaboration opportunities
• Knowledge exchange and constructive feedback from peers
• Contribution to the project’s dissemination and impact goals

Some impressions of the congress:

In October 2025 (concretelly on Oct. 15th), Ivana Burzic, from Wood K plus, presented SSbD4CheM’s automotive case study at a dedicated meeting on the PARC project (European Partnership for the Assessment of Risks from Chemicals).

In her presentation, Ivana highlighted the safety (emissions) and sustainability (recycled materials, cellulosic fillers) goals of this case study on renewable based composites (WPC) with optimized TVOC emissions and odor for automotive car interior trims, as well as how the project is implementing all 5 steps of the SSbD framework. The presentation also covered different tests performed like weathering and TVOC emissions, before and after weathering tests, to ensure a safer production and application of the composites developed within the project, covering different cellulosic materials. The presentation also included LCA results.

The online meeting gathered PARC partners and European Commission Joint Research Centre (JRC) representatives to exchange experiences and contribute to building the EU SSbD toolbox. This collaborative effort supports a harmonised European approach to safer and more sustainable chemical assessments, enhancing environmental and health protection.

Demonstrating cross-project commitment to SSbD principles, Ivana also presented BIO-SUSHY’s food tray packaging as a case study, highlighting the PFAS-free, bio-based coatings that embody safety and sustainability principles from the very beginning of development.

This engagement underscores SSbD4CheM’s active participation in the European SSbD community and reinforces its position as a reference point for sustainable materials innovation.

The presentation is publicly available under DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.17403579 (Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license).

On 21 May 2025, during the second day of our General Assembly in M17 in Valencia (Spain), the colleagues of NovaMechanics and Entelos (Panagiotis Kolokathis and Tassos Papadiamantis), gave an internal training to the whole consortium (approx. 25 participants) on the ChemoInformatics tools that they develop, to learn how to use them for data analysis and machine learning, run exposure scenarios, calculate atomistic desriptors, run already developed machine learning model and understanding their output (e.g. applicability domain).

During the session entitled “Investigation of Chemicals and Materials Safety through the Isalos, Enalos and Eos Cloud Platform tools and functionalities”, participants learned to use computational tools powered by the Enalos Cloud Platform, Eos Cloud Platform, and the functionalities/workflows of Isalos Analytics Platform, to predict the properties of a range of chemicals and materials for a range of case studies. Additionally, all partners discussed ideas about the applicability of these tools within the project.

Detailed program:

1. Lung Deposition – A web application developed for analyzing particle deposition in human lungs and evaluating associated hazards based on the ICRP or the MPPD model.
2. SimpleBox4Planet – This tool provides a user-friendly environment to access the SimpleBox, a multimedia mass balance model used to evaluate the fate of chemical substances in the environment. The tool includes a database with the properties of candidate substances used as PFAS alternatives.
3. MicroPlasticFate – This web application simulates the fate and behaviour of nano- and microplastics (NMPs) aross multiple environmental scales, including regional, continental and global scale, each of which consists of compartments/media of air, soil, water and sediment.
4. NanoXtract – Unique online tool for the calculation of 18 image descriptors based on Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) images of nanomaterials.
5. UANanoDock – It is a web-based United Atom multiscale nano-docking tool for predicting protein adsorption onto nanoparticles at a selected pH (e.g., preferential protein orientation, adsorption energy, etc).
6. Titania – Tool for the simultaneous property and toxicity prediction of sets of chemical compounds. Users can import compounds of interest by drawing molecules and inspect a 3D visualization of their molecular structures post-drawing.
7. Nanotube Construct – Tool for the digital construction of energy minimized nanotubes of single layer materials and calculation of their atomic descriptors powered by the Enalos Cloud Platform.
8. HydroNanoConstruct – Toolbox for the digital reconstruction of energy minimized metal-oxide nanoparticles, based on their CIF files and the calculation of their atomistic descriptors, in water.
9. Sbd4Skin – SbD4Skin incorporates quantitative structure-property relationship (QSPR) models for skin toxicity endpoints prediction (acute dermal toxicity, skin irritation potential, and skin sensitization potential).
10. Isalos Analytics Platform (Reference link 1 and Reference link 2) – The so-called Isalos, is a simple and user-friendly software designed to facilitate data manipulation and model development without requiring programming skills. This platform empowers non-programmers to engage in data analytics through an intuitive interface, which leverages commonly used computer functions such as menus, buttons, and spreadsheets.