10th International Conference on Biopolymers and Polymer Sciences November 18-19, 2019 Helsinki, Finland

Biomaterials are natural or synthetic materials that are manufactured and designed to replace materials present in biological systems such as collegen, bone, blood vessels and certain body tissues. Such materials are biocompatible and do not cause fouling or inflammation at the implant site. This field of material science emerged as an interdisciplinary subject that includes chemistry, biology and medicine. Various class of materials are included in this field including, biocompatible metals and ceramics and also a large collection of Polymeric materials.

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\r\n Bioengineering involves tissue engineering where lost tissue or damaged tissue is replaced by tissue grown artificially using tissue engineering techniques. Biocompatible scaffolds are utilized to grow the tissue or organs, often composed of Biopolymers or nanocomposite materials.

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• \r\n Nanocomposites for biomedical applications
• \r\n Tissue engineered hydrogels
• \r\n Biomimetic porous Mg for bone regeneration
• \r\n Biodegradable Polymer Networks for Biomedical Applications.
• \r\n Functionalized Silk Fibroin Hydrogel for bone repair
• \r\n Three-dimensional (3D) Printed Scaffold and Material Selection
• \r\n Extracellular Matrix-Mimicking Material
• \r\n FasL-functionalized PLG scaffolds
• \r\n Collagen scaffolds for bone tissue engineering
• \r\n Fiber Reinforced Composites (FRCs) in Dentistry
• \r\n Biofabrication of Electrospun Scaffolds for the Regeneration of connective tissues

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\r\n In modern times, a new class of biocompatible polymers and therapeutic polymeric systems and materials are being researched and have shown good amount of attraction for areas in polymer science. Attention towards polymeric compounds that can be bioassimilated is increased, primarily in the field of time-limited therapeutic applications. Among all the new candidates for materials that can be used to implant within the body, only a handful exhibit all the necessary properties required for safe functioning within the human body. Many researchers are turning towards synthesizing novel artificial polymeric materials  or biopolymers, i.e polymers of non-natural origin that are composed of pro-metabolite building blocks which can be utilized as components of biomedical or pharmacological therapeutic systems.

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\r\n The medical devices or implants composed of these polymers possess properties of non-toxicity, non-carcinogenecity and non-immunogenic. They also should have thermal mechanical biological properties such as easy to manipulate and sterilizable. The market for these materials is on a steady growth and hence, newer materials are researched every day.

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\r\n Tissue engineering also utilizes polymers and biopolymers as scaffolds for the growth of organs and tissue for grafting purposes. The scaffolds are biocompatible and no other type of material is capable of supporting the tissue development. Therefore there is immense research being performed to develop these biomaterials.

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• \r\n Nanodelivery systems
• \r\n Crosslinking Biopolymers for Advanced Drug Delivery
• \r\n Encapsulation vs. Polymer Therapeutics
• \r\n Chitosan-Polyvinyl Alcohol-Ampicillin
• \r\n Bioartificial Polymeric System
• \r\n Nanopharmaceuticals and nanomedicines
• \r\n Polyamidoamine Nanoparticles for oral drug administration
• \r\n Electrochemiluminescent immunoassay for diclofenac using conductive polymer\r\n
• \r\n Polymers for Biosensor Applications
• \r\n Biopolymers for diabetic wound healing management.
• \r\n PHA synthesis in flax on plant mechanical properties
• \r\n Chitosan-based film production for food technology

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Bioplastics are a type of moldable plastics synthesized by microbes or derived from plants which are improved by genetic engineering. These materials are not derived from petroleum resources like traditional plastics and they are exhibit biodegradability. Bioplastics are polymerized form of assembled similar chemical units known as monomers. The physical properties of the materials are determined by the type of monomers and the number of cross links formed between them. A high number of cross links indicates high rigidity and thermal stability. Bioplastics were discovered in 1926 and the first known bioplastic was polyhydroxybutyrate but its discovery it was overlooked for many decades. But improvements in genetic engineering has led to increase in bioplastic yield and several different were produced, bioplastics were established. Among the synthesized ones are Polyhydroxybutyrates (PHB) Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA), which are synthesized by microbes from microbial fermentation using plant-derived sugars and starch. Bioplastics are capable of degradation by microorganisms or by water. This grants bioplastics the validity for it to be a material for fabrication into biodegradable bottles and packaging film. Also, the degraded products are natural metabolites, these biopolymers are preferred for in medical applications like controlled-release packaging and absorbable surgical sutures.

Unfortunately, Bioplastics currently make up only fraction of total global plastic production. This is a result of high production cost and low yield. But, increasing petroleum prices and the declining availability of synthetic plastics have led to the upgradation of the bioplastic technology and reduced overall cost of production.

• Biodegradable Stents
• Biodegradable food packaging material
• Polyester and polylactic acid (PLA)
• Glycolipid Biosurfactants as Surface Modifiers in Bioplastics
• Biodegradable Plastic Blends
• Synthesising polyhydroxyalkanoates
• Lignocellulosic Biomass
• Starch-based bioplastics
• Protein-based bioplastics with antimicrobial properties
• Biodegradation of bioplastics in environment

The utilization and dependence on bio-fibers have increased in recent years. Biofibers are classified into lignocellulosic fibers, bacterial cellulose and nanocellulose. Green biocomposites can be manufactured from both biobased fibres and polymers. Polymer and biofiber composites are emerging as an effective material, however there is always incompatability between hydrophilic biofibers and hydrophobic polymer matrix could cause performance issues in of the composites. Biofibers are modified in order to improve the performance of the biocomposites. Grafting Co-polymerization is an effective method to achieve this. Also, polymerization techniques such as ring opening polymerization, grafting the materials via coupling agent and free radical induced grafting. The properties such as mechanical, thermal and water resistance have bestowed grafted biocomposites with possibilities for new applications in industries.

• Structure and mechanical properties of silk sericin
• Novel cellulose-collagen blend biofibers
• Biofibers from spider silk
• Hybrid biofibers wet-spun from nanochitin hydrogels
• Renewable cellulose nanofibrils
• Polylactide-based renewable green composites
• Natural rubber biocomposites reinforced by bio-fiber
• Chitosan-nanobiochar composite
• Resin-based composites
• Polymer Composite Beads for Selective Heavy Metals Removal
• Geopolymer Matrix Composites

The Bioeconomy is the production of renewable biological resource and the conversion of these resources and waste into value products, like food, bio-based products, feed and bioenergy. These sectors have a strong potential for innovation due to their wide range of sciences, that allows for industrial technologies. The shift to a feasible bio-based economy implies that the historically developed structures and the traditional way of life need to be completely reconsidered. Therefore, it is critical to bring into line researches into a broad basis to the solution of the budding societal challenges and to progressively integrate social and economic sciences, as well as cultural and humanities disciplines. This is a prerequisite to undertake the issues facing us as communal challenges and to realize technological innovation as a part of social structures and human life. The communal transition towards a bioeconomy raises questions around the ethical fundamentals as of the political and institutional framework conditions, in short, the regulating resources of such a comprehensive change. 

• Plastic as a global challenge and bio-based polymers is the key solution
• Development of Bio-based polymers
• Efficient production of Biomass for materials and bio-fuel
• Integration of Bio-based polymers into todays materials
• Economical, social and commmunal accepatnce of bioeconomy 

\r\n Biodegradable polymers are one of the most advantageous alternatives for synthetic polymers in terms of eco-friendly solutions for material production. Some of those advantages include, manufacturing from renewable resources, thus eliminating the problem of exhaustion. Secondly, they exhibit biodegradability, the polymer in will ultimately decompose and used as compost. The most utilized biopolymers include lignin, starch, chitin, cellulose, etc. They are available in abundance in the environment, but the sources vary and selecting the most reliable and developing efficient method of extraction is matter of importance. Lignin and starch are the readily available sources as they are available in tons as a result of waste product from pulp and paper industries.

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\r\n Plants and crop waste are also an abundant source for biopolymers and they produce it in large amounts for the purpose of maintenance and structural integrity and carbon storage. The stored biopolymers can be utilized in bulk material production such as plastics and elastomers, in the response to depleting oil resources and climate change. This is a technical and bottlenecks in production of novel or improved materials in transgenic or alternative crop plants. If plant sources aren’t sufficient researchers can look into the animal kingdom for more resources. Crustacean exoskeletons have been used and researched for a long time as a viable source for chitosan, it is also available in waste from the fishing industry. Several similar novel resources can be exploited for biopolymers extraction and processing for economic and bulk production.

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• \r\n Functional Bio-nanocomposites from the Assembly of Clays and Biopolymers
• \r\n Biodegradable biopolymers its precursors and production processes
• \r\n Sugarcane bagasse cellulose as a source for hydrogel drug carrier
• \r\n Producing of chitosan-TiO2 composite film with anti-microbial properties
• \r\n Functional lignocellulosic materials from wood
• \r\n Agro-waste as biomass for bioplastic production
• \r\n Microbial monomers for synthesis of aromatic polymers

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Polymer processing is the technique of converting raw polymeric materials into completed products having desirable shape, microstructures and properties. The raw form of polymers is available initially as pellets which are heated to its glass transition temperature to form into a viscous fluid. The fluid is then subjected to moulding and rapid solidification by cooling which results in the development of the required shape and microstructures. This method has been a standard since for thermoplastic processing since the 1960s. Thermosetting plastics utilize a similar processing method but with additives and cross-linking agents. The crosslinking formed after cooling are and irreversible and re-heating will not be effective in liquefying the polymers.

Polymers are modelling process has become prominent since the last decade, especially for processing soft materials. New sampling methods are developed to increase the exploration of configuration space, which has been still continues to be of paramount importance in the determining the properties of polymeric materials. The time duration and scaling issues are being addressed with new coarse-grained methods, while more traditional methods are being applied in increasing chemical complexity and reality. Advances in polymer modelling are providing insight into intramolecular nature of the chemical structure of monomeric units which helps to determine the macroscale properties of materials.

• Polymer modification matrix in pharmaceutical hot melt extrusion
• Multiscale modelling of biodegradable polyesters
• Polymer extraction and modelling
• Modelling of heat transfer through a nanocellular polymer foam
• Modelling of silk-reinforced PDMS

In the field of Polymer science and nanotechnology, nanopolymers and nanoclays have gained massive interests from researchers and in recent literatures. Nanotechnology is included in the most popular areas for today’s research and development and basically in all areas of technical disciplines. This also includes polymer science, which includes an wide range of sub-fields. Nanopolymers are used in microelectronics and the micro-devices are now below 100 nm. Both Nanopolymers and Polymer based Biomaterials are used for drug delivery, miniemulsion particles, fuel cell electrode polymer bound catalysts, polymer films, inprint lithography, electrospun nanofibers and polymer blends. Nanopolymers include variour physical properties that are applied in composite reinforcement for imparting abilities to the composite such as barrier strength, electro-optical properties, flame resistance. Nanotechnology is not a new field for polymer sciences. In fact it was a section of polymer sciences, but great number of recent studies and progress has made nanotechnology into a different field. Polymer blends can achieve nanoscale and phase dimensions. The domain morphologies of block copolymers are usually at a nanoscale level. Recent enthusiasm in polymer matrix based nanocomposites was emerged initially with interesting observations involving exfoliated clay and more recent studies with carbon nanotubes, carbon nanofibers, exfoliated graphite (graphene), nanocrystalline metals and a host of additional nanoscale inorganic filler or fiber modifications.

• Nanobiopolymers Fabrication
• Membrane Based on Ti(IV) Functionalized Nanopolymers
• bio-nanocomposite hydrogel beads
• Polymer nanocarriers
• functionalized soluble nanopolymers
• conductive nanopolymers and polymer electronics
• Biocompatible nanopolymers and treatment of cancer
• Nanomedicine made of cyanoacrylate polymer
• multifunctional textile cotton fabrics with polyvinyl acetate metal nanocomposite
• Polymer Brush Coated Colloids
• Polymeric Nanoparticles
• Carbon Nanotubes from Biodegradable Poly-lactic Films
• Graphene incorportated polymers

Mankind has been producing natural grown resources to make higher added value products. These resources can be grown and extracted from nature and therefore referred to as renewable resources, biobased feedstocks or biomass. These bio-based feedstocks include a large number of plants and trees, including some of the familiar kinds such as cotton, rubber, sugarcane, corn and rapeseed. The products extracted from these resources are utilized for manufacturing Bio-based commodities such as medicine, paper, textile, composites for construction, bioplastics, etc.  Corn stach was used as an effective source to produce bioplastics, several electronic parts are made from sugarcane cellulose. The industrial production of these materials is considerable in recent times. An estimated of 5 million tons of starch are currently used by the paper industry alone. In the EU, 2015, the starch consumption was 9.3 million tons, from which 38% was utilized for non-food applications, primarily paper making and chemical industries. Bioplastics and biochemical are beneficiaries as an alternative solution to the conventional counterparts made up of petroleum resources and its derivatives. Bioplastics are also reduce carbon foot prints by reducing the dependency on fossil fuels and at times improve product functionalities and performace in many cases. Bioplastics such as PLA are made from renewable, biobased carbohydrate-rich feed stocks, such as sugar beet, corn and sugarcane.

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• \r\n Sustainable PHA production
• \r\n Hemicellulose in production of Furfural
• \r\n Lignin-Based Materials for polymerization
• \r\n Recombinant host microorganisms for monomer production
• \r\n Carbon-rich wastes as feedstocks for biodegradable polymer

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Complex polymer modification techniques are of immense economic significance for the synthetic polymer industries and similar sectors where the usage of polymer blends is escalating exponentially, hence the requirement for the constant advancement of polymer blends and polymer composites, alloys, and laminates. In the recent decades, advanced polymer modification techniques have grown by leaps and bounds to a point of no return, hence the change in the cost/performance ratio engendered by controlling the structure of polymers. Blending dissimilar polymers, preparing composites where a matrix polymer is modified by adding fillers such as nano cellulose, nano fibers and producing multilayer structures and laminates are some of the most considerable polymer modification techniques. There should exist synergistic effects between the polymer components to attain admirable performance without compromising an acceptable low cost. In the estimated future, it is conceived that enormous progress in technologies will be accomplished for the development of superior and more well-refined grades of compatibilizers that are customized for specific applications of altered polyolefinic, styrenic, and probably select nonstyrenic block copolymers. A comprehensive control to make the resulting morphology of the blends persistently finer and better should be considered. It is expected that compatibilizers for biodegradable polymeric systems will, in all possibilities, grow extensively and will probably find applications in the medical field, in spite of environmental concerns of synthetic and nondegradable polymers.

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• \r\n Polycaprolactone electrospun nano fibers
• \r\n Monochromophore-Based Polymer
• \r\n Nanosystems Formed by Degradable Antibacterial Poly(Aspartic Acid)
• \r\n Shape Memory Polymers
• \r\n Biomedical Applications of PAMAM Dendrimers
• \r\n Polyethersulfone/Epoxy Composites
• \r\n Lanthanide-based supramolecular polymers
• \r\n Nonfullerene Polymer Solar Cells
• \r\n Hybrid Solid Polymer Electrolytes
• \r\n Smart Polymersomes

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The use of polymers has increased rapidly in energy applications, where they are used for energy storage and conversion. New researches are being conducted to modify the polymer molecular structure and the change in molecular structure can be finely tuned to achieve properties that will lead to the polymers for having new and applications. The energy sector is one of the areas where these modifications are performed to incorporate the polymers in devices such as lithium batteries, photovoltaics and solar cells. Each of these devices will be more efficient in their functions due to the polymer properties.

Polymer hydrogels are being applied to function as low to intermediate electrolyte-based fuel cells. Polymer blend electrolytes have been designed for lithium batteries, which provides them improved and faster charge storage. Solar cells have also been modified by adding organic multiple quantum dots (MQDs). Polymers solvents are being used in organic photovoltaic devices. On and overall view several electronics manufacturers are holding patents as fast as possible on these new materials to compete with the ever changing market.

• Polymer-based photovoltaic devices  
• Polymer blend electrolytes
• Polymer hydrogel materials for fuel cells
• Hybrid polymer-inorganic composites
• Polymer composites for energy storage applications
• Polymer membranes in energy applications
• Polymer-based organic batteries
• Optical and electrochemical characterizations of polymers

Petroleum resources provide the raw materials to form polymer compounds have low production cost due to the abundance of feedstock, combined with the ingenuity of chemical engineers who devise various efficient manufacture techniques. Therefore, polymers are manufactured in abundance with various classifications. New manufacturing processes for more advanced polymers, polymer composites, nanoclays, polymers for photovoltaics and other advanced polymers are made more efficient for industrial production.

• 3D Printing of polymers and nanopolymer microstutures
• Additive Manufacture of polymeric materials
• Conductive Polymer Nanocomposites by Joule Heating
• Composite Silicon Elastomers for Cell Culture and Skin Applications
• Frontal polymerization technique for polymers and composites

\r\n Polymers are synthesized in large volumes and it is no surprise that the waste left behind is a threat to the environment. The problems caused by these non-degradable materials is causing an alarming number of issues such are death of ocean creatures, pollution of water resources, air pollution and many more. Polymers, unlike other materials cannot be assimilated by micro-organisms. Polymers make only 10% of the total municipal waste and that amount is sufficient for causing overflowing landfills, littering, marine water pollution all of which is attributed to its non-degradability. Several government in Europe and USA have begun regulating the production and usage of plastics in the economy for applications such as packaging, water treatment, paper and textile sizing. As a consequence of this, waste management has become a important aspect in the economy. Plastic waste management currently is utilizing a combination of methods such as inceneration, recycling, and biodegradation. Bio-degradation is the most desirable method but is still in the phase of research and is being applied on a lower scale. However, incineration and recycling have become operational.

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• \r\n Plastic pollution and promising solutions
• \r\n Microplastics management in oceans and other water bodies
• \r\n Ill effects of plastics pollution to the natural environment
• \r\n Managing and optimising household and industrial plastic waste
• \r\n Polymer membranes for waste water treatment

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\r\n Polymer physics deals with the structure and properties of polymers and also the reaction kinetics of polymerization of monomers and degradation of polymers that are in the form of solids, glasses, elastomers, gels, solutions, melt and semi-crystalline. These properties are of great interests in polymer technologies such as optoelectronics, coatings, medicine, food and pharmacy. Polymer chemistry is a vast field that involves the study of monomers and polymerization and the synthesis of new materials from various combinations and characteristics. The composition of monomers and the applied chemical and processing techniques can largely affect the properties the polymer will possess at the end of the production.

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• \r\n Polymer gels
• \r\n Molecular motion of polymers in a solution
• \r\n Chemical properties of an isolated polymer molecule
• \r\n Polymer solutions
• \r\n Crystalline polymers
• \r\n Chain formation in polymers
• \r\n Rubber elastic state of polymers

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