Engineered living materials (ELMs)
Advances in biomimetics have led to the production of materials and surfaces with properties similar to the biological sources that inspire them. These materials form the foundation for the development of a new generation of building materials with remarkable properties, typically unattainable through traditional approaches.
The webinar will provide an overview and describe the main challenges concerning potential innovations in the green building sector, focusing on the development of nature-inspired materials. An interdisciplinary perspective combining biology, materials engineering, and architecture will be presented. Participants will learn the functional principles of living organisms within their environments. They will discover how bio-inspired solutions can be identified, developed, and applied to design a new generation of building materials. Finally, the webinar will introduce the innovative concept of merging living cells with materials, aiming to inspire out-of-the-box thinking.
The webinar is organized into the following thematic sections:
- Addressing the climate reality: the urgency for change
- Learning from nature: bio-inspired design
- Bio-based materials for architecture
Anna Sandak
Anna is the InnoRenew CoE Deputy director and Head of research department for materials.
She is associate professor and research associate at the Faculty of Mathematics, Natural Science and Information Technology at University of Primorska. She was previously employed at Trees and Timber Institute of Italian National Research Council, where she coordinated the Laboratory of Surface Characterization.
She has PhD in Wood Science and M.Sc. in Biology. Anna is a member of Italian Society for Near Infrared Spectroscopy, International Committee for Near Infrared Spectroscopy, International Research Group on Wood Protection, and International Society for Plant Spectroscopy. In 2012 she was appointed as IUFRO Officeholder, deputy of division 5.03.05 – Biological resistance of wood. In 2023 she was nominated by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF), and joined the AcademiaNET. She also actively contributes to several COST actions, including FP1006, FP1101, FP1303, FP1407, FP1405, TU1403, CA 15216, CA16226and CA19145.
In 2022 Anna was awarded the ERC consolidator grant for the project ARCHI-SKIN (101044468-ERC-2021-COG) to develop the novel concept of a bio-active living coating system, pushing the boundaries of traditional materials toward the development of engineered living materials. Anna is analyzing multi-scale relationship and performance of modified and functionalized bio-based materials and implementing them as new architectural elements. Her passion is to search for biomimetic solutions for design of new materials and to promote knowledge-based use of bio-inspired materials in modern sustainable buildings.
Wojciech Jakub Pajerski
Wojciech Pajerski is a researcher in the InnoRenew CoE’s Materials research department.
He obtained his master’s degree in biology and his PhD in chemistry from Jagiellonian University in Kraków, Poland. During his interdisciplinary doctoral studies, he explored the critical role of surface charges in interactions at bacteria-solids biointerfaces. After completing his PhD, Wojciech moved to Prague and worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, exploring biological interfaces in the field of soft matter.
He spends his free time travelling, tasting local cuisine, and hiking.
