The European

Polysaccharide
Network
POLYSACCHARIDE
S

PROJECT TEAM
P1: ARMINES-ENSMP-Centre de Mise en Forme des Matriaux CEMEF,
(Higher education, Research), France (P. Navard)

Role in the project: chemical physics, thermodynamics, rheology, rheooptics, modelling

Main general activities: rheo-optics of polymeric materials

P2: Institute of Chemistry, Christian Doppler Laboratory for Pulp

Reactivity, University of Agricultural Sciences (BOKU), (Higher
Education, Research), Austria (P. Kosma)

Role in the project: wood organic chemistry

Main general activities: organic chemistry, wood, cellulose pulping and
bleaching chemistry, solvent systems

P3: Centre of Excellence for Polysaccharide Research at the University

of Jena, Germany (T. Heinze)

Role in the project: fundamental chemistry of derivatisation

Main general activities: Chemical functionalization of polysaccharides.
Structure analysis. Structure-properties relationships. Nanostructures

P4: Fraunhofer-Institute for Applied Polymer Research, Germany (H.-P.

Fink, W. Vorwerg)

Role in the project: structural characterisation, starch applications

Main general activities: Derivatization of cellulose and starch. Chemical
modification of starch. Characterisation and testing
P5: VTT Biotechnology, Finland (T. Reinikainen)

Role in the project: applied enzymology, encapsulation

Main general activities: enzymatic modification of cellulosic fibers,
hemicellulose and chitin, starch films and starch encapsulation

P6: Federal Research Centre of Forestry and Forest Products, Germany

(J. Puls)

Role in the
hemicelluloses

project:

polysaccharide

raw

material

extraction,

Main general activities: Enzymology of wood polysaccharides

degradation. Enzyme-aided bleaching of primary pulps and enzyme-aided
recycling of waste paper

P7: Abo Akademi University, Laboratory of Forest Products Chemistry,

Process Chemistry group, Finland (B. Holmbom)

Role in the project: Fibre and papermaking chemistry. Mannans,

galactans and pectins
Main general activities: pulping, bleaching an refining of wood, recovery
of polymeric hemicelluloses from plants, characterisation of lignin

P8: Petru Poni Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, Romania (B.

Simionescu)

Role in the project: cellulose and hemicelluloses applications

Main
general
activities:
polymer
chemistry
and
polysaccharides, vegetal biomass, pulp and paper technology

physics,

P9: Laboratory for Characterization and Processing

University of Maribor, Slovenia (K. Stana-Kleinschek)

of

Polymers,

Role in the project: interfaces chemistry, physics and properties

Main general activities: cellulose fibres, surface chemistry, solid
polysaccharides surface properties and surface modification, structure,
synthesis of polyfunctional reagents, organic analysis, molecular
characterisation, standardized analyses of textile materials, polymer
solutions, melts and solids

P10: ATO, The Netherlands (J. Van Dam)

Role in the project: polysaccharide conversion

Main activities dealing with the project: Fundamental and applied
research to develop novel industrial applications for renewable
resources, e.g. fibre crops, cellulose, starches, and other plant
constituents: plant fibre morphology, and fibre cell wall formation,
cellulose orientation and structural deformation during extraction and
processing, chemical carbohydrate composition in relation to fibre
quality, chemical and biotechnological cellulose extraction and
modification, lignin chemistry (dyeing bleaching); rheology of
thermoplastic starches, particle size distribution, plasticisers and
processing aids

P11: Thringische Institut fr Textil- und Kunststoff-Forschung (TITK),

Germany (F. Meister)

Role in the project: Chemical processing, development of natural

polymer applications, molding and shaping
Main general activities: Modification and forming of natural polymers.
Chemical recovery of polymer wastes into processable monomers and
oligomers. Technology developments

P12: Institut
Ciechanska)

of

Chemical

Fibres,

Poland

(H.

Struszczyk,

D.

Role in the project: Microbiology, chemistry and applications of

chitin, chitosan and alginates. Applications in medecine and
agriculture
Main general activities: Biotechnology, microbiology, dynamic
biosynthesis of bacterial cellulose. Processing of fibres, films,
microspheres, nanostructures
P13: School of Biosciences, Division of Food Sciences, University of
Nottingham, UK (J. Mitchell)

Role
in
the
project:
Starch
processing,
polysaccharides in pharmaceutical industry

applications

of

Main general activities: starch characterisation and processing,

materials science of biological molecules in food and pharmaceutical
applications

P14: INRA, Centre de Recherches Agro-Alimentaires de Nantes, France (P.

Colonna)

Role in the project: Starch interactions/complexations in multicomponents

systems, local order in biomimetic or cell wall architectures. Synergic
polysaccharides interactions from dispersions to films
Main general activities : Structures, interactions, and processing of plant
polysaccharides from cell walls and organelles to foods and materials

P15: Christian Doppler Laboratory for Textile and Fibre Chemistry in

Cellulosics, Institute of Textile Chemistry and Textile Physics, University
Innsbruck, Austria (T. Bechtold)

Role in the project: Textile applications

Main general activities: textile chemical analysis, physical textile testing,
textile processing of cellulose, pre-treatment, dyeing, finishing

P16: University of Utrecht, Department of Science, Technology and

Society (STS), The Netherlands (M. Patel)

Role in the project: Polysaccharide policy, environmental assessments

Main general activities: Life cycle assessment, Techno-economic analysis,
Policy analysis

General Excellence of the network and complementarity

best groups in Europe in their field
- more than 30% of papers on polysaccharides
- organising the major conferences in this field
- best marks or evaluations from their National evaluation
committees
- industrial partnership
- recently received awards
ability to work in a trans-disciplinary, international manner
- international collaborations through EU contracts
- direct industrial contracts
- working with more than one polysaccharide type
covering expertise needed
- scientific expertise in polysaccharides
- expertise in complementary disciplines (chemistry, biology,
enzymology, physics, modelling, materials science, simulation,
processing, life cycle and economy)

Main pieces of equipment that will be sheared

Characterization: Avance 300 MHz NMR (Bruker) with QNP probehead for H,C,

N, P with z gradients, NMR spectroscopy (Varian 400 MHz (solid state 13CCP/MAS) solid, Varian 500 MHz (solutions)), HPCE, HPLC / GPC with MALLS,
fluorescence, RI, UV-DAD detection, MALDI-QTOFMS, FTIR, GC, EPR (Jeol), ICPSFMS, Laser-Ablation ICP-MS, UV/Fluorescence, 400 MHz Bruker AMX NMR
spectrometer, FTIR Bio-Rad FTS 25 PC, TGA Mettler Toledo TC 15, Elemental
analyzer CHNS 932 Leco, JASCO GPC (DG-980-50; PU-980; RI-detector 930; UVdetector 975), Mettler Toledo Coulometer DL 37

Physical analysis and testing: TOF-SIMS, XPS, AAS, Ion chromatograph, DCPAES, SEM-EDXA, FTIR, AFM, ICP-MS, Perkin Elmer DSC7, Perkin Elmer Diamond
Pyrus Step Scan DSC, Seteram Microcalorimeter. Texture Analysers, Dynamic
Mechanical Thermal Analysis, Rapid Viscosity Analyser, Rosand Capillary
Rheometer, Dilute Solution Capillary Viscometer, Stable Microsystems Powder
Rheometer, Phase Transition Analyser, several rheometers (Bohlin, Haake,
Reologica, Rheometrics), thermoanalytics (DSC, DMA; Perkin Elmer), pore
characterization by Hg, BET- and SAXS-methods, electron microscopy (Jeol SM
6330F incl. Oxford-direct cryo-transfer-system, EDX, Philips CM 200 TEM),
environmental electron microscopy, Brewster, confocal, phase contrast,
transmission microscopes, X-ray scattering (several small and wide angle film
cameras, light scattering (sophica)), High performance liquid chromatography
(HPLC, SEC; Waters, Perkin Elmer), ion exchange chromatography (Dionex)

Modification and shaping equipments: jet-cooker, pilot-scale spray drier,

several extruders, lab press equipment, mini pilot plant carbamate synthesis,
mini pilot plant NMMO technology, mini pilot plant wet spinning (viscose,
carbamate), several extruders, Clextral BC21 Twin Screw Extruder, injection
molding

OBJECTIVES
Overall objectives
to establish during the first 18 months of existence of the project an
independent, non-profit, private, single administrative and legal entity called
the European Polysaccharide Network Association ( EPNA) that will run all the
activities developed in common and interact directly inside the partners
organization
to combine all fields around polysaccharide research
to train students, scientists in academia and industry
to spread knowledge, results and excellence
to attract the interest of citizens for science
to organise in an efficient way the economical and administrative
integration
Scientific and technological integration and basic science / applied science
integration. Programme for jointly executed research
Building of a set of rules and actions to have a continuous flow of
information from the network activity and the activity of its members towards
individual EU companies
Development of specialised competence laboratories
Planning and organisation of the collective research work in agreement with
the jointly executed research topic
Definition of the needed resources (money, students)

General structure

Overall management structure

Scientific Integrated Activities: the Jointly Executed Research

Polysaccharide raw materials extraction, structural characterisation and
molecular modeling
- extraction of the various components of the always multi-material
raw sources
- understanding the structure and morphology of the individual
components and their nano and micro self-assembly superstructures
New principles
polysaccharides

of

enzymatic,

chemical

and

physical

conversion

of

- polysaccharide derivatisation
- novel functionalities by enzymatic modifications
- new polysaccharide structures
Combination of different polysaccharides
- blends of cellulose and starch
- development of systems with viscosity regulating properties
- development of systems with adhesive properties
- investigation of modified blends for encapsulation of active agents
and living biological materials
Advanced materials and products. New environmentally friendly processing
routes of isolated and mixed polysaccharides
- preparation of nanostructures in dependence on molecular
composition
- coupling the sophisticated functionalities of polysaccharides to
other materials

Integration activities to spread excellence and knowledge

Exchange of permanent staff
Establishment of rules allowing the PhD students of the members to spend
time in other locations. Organisation of these short term relocations. Search
for the financial support
Establishment of courses open to academic and industrial scientists; Elearning modules
Building of common Internet communication tools towards outside the
network, incorporating both EPNA and individual members data
Establishment of an internal web site and of tele-conference facilities in
each location
Promoting high level polysaccharide research dissemination by
reestablishing the sleeping Cellulose Chemistry and Technology journal,
editing by Partner P8
Translation of National programmes (Dutch Polymer Institute for ex),
national conferences (French Groupe Franais des Polymeres for ex.) into
English and posting of them on the internal web site of the Network
Meetings - organisation of the general annual meeting of the network;
participation to already established conference by organising specific
symposium; organisation of brain-storming type of meetings to promote free
discussions and ideas
Relations with the European citizens. Public Relation actions towards
students to promote science and policy makers
Basic working condition equality

Partnership expansion
No partnership expansion will take place during the first 18
months
The condition to increase the size of the consortium is that
the shift from EC money to competitive money is as planned
above
It is expected that increasing the size of the consortium will
increase the need to raise industrial funding