The goal of the project is to develop crosslinked biopolymer nanocomposite gel materials based on polyvinyl alcohol, polysaccharides of various origins, hyaluronic, alginic, and γ-polyglutamic acid, and Ag or ZnO nanoparticles to stimulate the regeneration of living tissues and wound healing.

The main tasks of the project :

1. Create biopolymer gel materials based on polyvinyl alcohol – hyaluronic acid, polyvinyl alcohol – alginic acid, polyvinyl alcohol – γ-polyglutamic acid in different ratios of polymer components with different content of Ag or ZnO nanoparticles.
2. Using chemical and physical methods, crosslink the obtained biopolymer gel materials.
3. Perform structural and morphological studies of the obtained materials using Raman, FTIR, WAXS, TEM and SEM methods.
4. Investigate the thermophysical and thermomechanical properties of the original and filled gel materials using DSC, TGA, and TMA methods.
5. Investigate the mechanical properties of the samples.
6. Investigate the antimicrobial, cytotoxic and genotoxic effects of materials.
7. To study the efficiency of the obtained materials to stimulate living tissue regeneration and wound healing.

The concept of sustainable development of the research infrastructure:

In 2021, a new infrastructural object, namely Laboratory for Polymer Materials Science was established at the E.O. Paton Electric Welding Institute of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine with the grant support of the National Research Fund of Ukraine within the framework of project No. 2020.01/0222 (2020-2021) “Development of nanocomposite polymer biomaterials with effective antiviral and antimicrobial action and 3D printing technology of products from them” competition “Science for the safety of man and society”.

The laboratory was equipped with the latest scientific equipment for structural studies and mechanical tests. This project will make it possible to significantly expand the scientific and technical capabilities of the Laboratory, in particular in the field of morphological and thermophysical research, and in the future to create a unique Research Center for Polymer Materials Science on its basis, and in the future – a State Key Laboratory.

At the same time, in order to carry out scientific research, first of all, the development of personnel potential is necessary. Therefore, one of the first priority, although not a direct scientific task, is the training of young scientific personnel. And this task is already being successfully solved thanks to the fruitful cooperation of the plastic welding department with various faculties of the NTUU “KPI named after Igor Sikorsky”. This is implemented for students of the NTUU “KPI named after Igor Sikorsky”, who are doing scientific practice, completing diploma theses or conducting long-term research as part of individual projects .

At the same time, the project will allow to attract more students to scientific practice and training and young specialists to research works.

Project is performed by the E.O. Paton Electric Welding Institute of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, and specialists from 3 organizations, namely D.K. Zabolotny Institute of microbiology and of virology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, National scientific center of radiation of medicine, hematology and oncology of the of National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine and Kyiv city clinical Hospital No. 1.

Project team is presented by scientists from various fields of science – chemistry, physics, microbiology, genetics and technologies, who deal with the problems of creating polymer and biopolymer materials and nanomaterials for various industries, primarily medical, food, agricultural, etc.

Valeriy DEMCHENKO

Dr. Science (Hab.) in Chemical Sciences, senior researcher (Assoc. Professor)
Project supervisor (Principal Investigator), leading researcher at the Plastics Welding Department of the E.O. Paton Electric Welding Institute of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine

Maksym IURZHENKO

Corresponding member of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Dr. Science (Hab.) in Engineering Sciences, Professor
Head of the Plastics Welding Department of the E.O. Paton Electric Welding Institute
of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine

Nataliya RYBALCHENKO

PhD in Biological Sciences, senior researcher (Assoc. Professor)
Senior researcher at the Antibiotics Department of the D.K. Zabolotny Institute of microbiology and of virology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine

Svitlana ZAHORODNIA

PhD in Biological Sciences, senior researcher (Assoc. Professor)
Head of the Virus Reproduction Department of the D.K. Zabolotny Institute of microbiology and of virology
of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine

Olena DEMCHENKO

PhD in Biological Sciences, senior researcher (Assoc. Professor)
Senior researcher at the Department of Medical Genetics of the National scientific center of radiation of medicine, hematology and oncology of the of National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine

Sergyi PODPRYATOV

Doctor of Sciences (Hab.) in Medical Sciences
Surgeon of the Kyiv City Clinical Hospital No. 1, Doctor of the highest category

Ilia SYTNYK
Student of the NTUU “KPI named after Igor Sikorsky”
Technician of the 1st category at the Plastics Welding Department of the E.O. Paton Electric Welding Institute of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine

The basis of the project BiopolGEN is the results of the project Biopol (project No. 2020.01/0222 (2020-2021) “Development of nanocomposite polymer biomaterials with effective antiviral and antimicrobial action and 3D printing technology of products from them” funded by grant of the National Research Fund of Ukraine in competition “Science for the safety of man and society”), which in 2020 was recognized by NRFU as the winner of the competition for the implementation of scientific research and development and was successfully implemented.

As a result of the implementation of the project, the main structural and morphological regularities of the formation of biopolymer gel nanocomposite materials will be established (in particular, the size, shape and distribution of nanoparticles in polymer matrices). This will make it possible to reveal the peculiarities of nanoparticle size regulation, to solve the problems of their stabilization and ensuring a narrowly dispersed uniform distribution in the polymer matrix, as well as to establish a relationship between the structure, morphology, antimicrobial properties and efficiency for regeneration and wound healing of biopolymer gel nanocomposite materials with the aim of developing the most effective compositions of materials.

It is expected that the project BiopolGEN will end at the TRL level of at least 4. At the same time, to increase the TRL level of the development of the project in order to bring it to the level of TRL 5-6 and higher and to find potential investors, and accordingly, to ensure sustainable financing of the infrastructure facility at the expense of implementation of development into production, project team members take and will take part in various pitching events, such as Innovation Breakthrough Day 2023, organized by NRFU together with the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, UFS and YEP, in which team members have already participated,

hackathons, such as ” Raw Materials Hackathon : CHANGE4FUTURE” or hackathon “Innovations in the field of deep technologies”,

and acceleration programs such as “Development and Renovation and Science Intensive Innovation”, implemented by Vacuum Deep Tech Acceleration with the support of the USAID program “Competitive Economy of Ukraine”.

and other similar events.

Considering the results of the project at the level of TRL 4 as a pre-seed StartUp Funding application, the participation of project team members in similar events will provide opportunities to reach the level of TRL 5-6 and move to the seed status, which will ensure sustainable financing of the infrastructural facility – the Laboratory for Polymer Materials Science with expanded scientific and technical capabilities. This will certainly allow the project team to compete with foreign colleagues when submitting new projects, in particular, to the European programs, such as HORIZON Europe, ERA, etc.

1. Demchenko V., Zahorodnia S., Rybalchenko N., Artiukh L., Zaremba P., Iurzhenko M., Sytnyk I., Ovsiankina V., Neimash V. Polymer gel materials based on polyvinyl alcohol and silver nanoparticles. Bulletin of NTUU «Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute», Series «Chemical Engineering, Ecology and Resource Saving». 2024. №. 3. 83–92. https://doi.org/10.20535/2617-9741.3.2024.312424.

Reports on the project:

1. Demchenko V.L., Rybalchenko N.P., Iurzhenko M.V., Sytnyk I.O., Neymash V.B. Hydrogel materials based the polyvinyl alcohol and silver nanoparticles, cross- linked by electron beam irradiation. International conference on Welding and Related Technologies (WRT 2024), 7-10 October 2024, Yaremche, Ukraine .

Previous publications of the project team members:

1. Demchenko V., Riabov S., Sinelnikov S., Radchenko O., Kobylinskyi S., Rybalchenko N. Novel approach to synthesis of silver nanoparticles in interpolyelectrolyte complexes based on pectin, chitosan, starch and their derivatives. Carbohydrate Polymers. 2020. Vol. 242. P. 116431 (IF = 11.2, Q₁). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.carbpol.2020.116431
2. Demchenko V., Iurzhenko M., Riabov S., Vashchuk A., Rybalchenko N., Zahorodnia S., Naumenko K., Demchenko O., Adamus G., Kowalczuk M. Nanocomposites based on polylactide and silver nanoparticles and their antimicrobial and antiviral applications. Reactive and Functional Polymers. 2022. Vol. 170. P. 105096 (IF = 5.1, Q₁). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.reactfunctpolym.2021.105096
3. Demchenko V., Rybalchenko N., Zahorodnia S., Naumenko К., Riabov S., Kobylinskyi S., Vashchuk A., Mamunya Ye., Iurzhenko M., Demchenko O., Adamus G., Kowalczuk M. Preparation, Characterization, Antimicrobial and Antiviral Properties of Silver-containing Nanocomposites based on Polylactic Acid–Chitosan. ACS Applied Bio Materials. 2022. Vol. 5. P. 2576–2585 (IF = 4.7, Q₁). https://doi.org/10.1021/acsabm.2c00034
4. Demchenko V., Mamunya Ye., Kobylinskyi S., Riabov S., Naumenko К., Zahorodnia S., Povnitsa O., Rybalchenko N., Iurzhenko M., Adamus G., Kowalczuk M. Structure-MorphologyAntimicrobial and Antiviral Activity Relationship in Silver-Containing Nanocomposites Based on Polylactide. Molecules. 2022. Vol. 27. P. 3769 (IF = 4.6, Q₁). https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules27123769
5. Demchenko V.L., Kobylinskyi S.M., Rybalchenko N.P., Iurzhenko M.V., Rokytskyi M.O., Demchenko O.M. Effect of cationic polyelectrolyte on the structure and antimicrobial activity of silver-containing nanocomposites based on interpolyelectrolyte complexes with a pectin anionic component. Applied Nanoscience. 2022. Vol. 4, No 12. P. 459–466 (IF = 3.87, Q₂). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13204-021-01670-5
6. Demchenko V.L., Kobylinskyi S.M., Riabov S.V., Shtompel V.I., Iurzhenko M.V., Rybalchenko N.P. Novel approach to formation of silver-containing nanocomposites by thermochemical reduction of Ag+ ions in interpolyelectrolyte-metal complexes. Applied Nanoscience. 2020. Vol. 10, No 12. P. 5409–5419 (IF = 3.87, Q₂). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13204-020-01368-0
7. Demchenko V., Riabov S., Kobylinskyi S., Goncharenko L., Rybalchenko N., Kruk A., Moskalenko O., Shut M. Effect of the type of reducing agents of silver ions in interpolyelectrolyte-metal complexes on the structure, morphology and properties of silvercontaining nanocomposites. Scientific Reports. 2020. Vol. 10, No 1. P. 1–9 (IF=4.6, Q₁). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-64079-0
8. Demchenko V., Riabov S., Rybalchenko N., Goncharenko L., Kobylinskyi S., Shtompel’ V. X-ray study of structural formation, thermomechanical and antimicrobial properties of copper-containing polymer nanocomposites obtained by the thermal reduction method. European Polymer Journal. 2017. Vol. 96. P. 326–336 (IF=6.0, Q₁). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eurpolymj.2017.08.057
9. Demchenko V., Shtompel’ V., Riabov S. Nanocomposites based on interpolyelectrolyte complex and Cu/Cu2O core-shell nanoparticles: Structure, thermomechanical and electric properties. European Polymer Journal. 2016. Vol. 75. P. 310–316 (IF=6.0, Q₁). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eurpolymj.2016.01.004
10. Demchenko V., Riabov S., Shtompel’ V. X-ray study of structural formation and thermomechanical properties of silver-containing polymer nanocomposites. Nanoscale Research Letters. 2017. Vol. 12. P. 235–240 (IF=5.4, Q₁). https://doi.org/10.1186/s11671-017-1967-2
11. Патент на винахід № 114386, Україна, МПК (2017.01) C08J 3/00 B82Y 30/00 B82B 3/00. Спосіб одержання металонаповнених полімерних нанокомпозитів / Демченко В.Л., Гончаренко Л.А., Штомпель В.І., Рябов С.В. // 25.05.2017, Бюл. № 10. https://base.uipv.org/searchINV/search.php?action=viewdetails&IdClaim=235619
12. Патент на винахід № 116751, Україна, МПК (2018.01) C08J 3/00 C08J 3/20 (2006.01) B82B 3/00 B82Y 30/00. Спосіб одержання металонаповнених полімерних нанокомпозитних матеріалів / Демченко В.Л., Гончаренко Л.А., Рябов С.В. // 25.04.2018, Бюл. № 8. https://base.uipv.org/searchINV/search.php?action=viewdetails&IdClaim=246262
13. Патент на винахід № 124127, Україна, МПК (2021.01) C08K 3/08 (2006.01) B82Y 30/00. Біодеградабельний металонаповнений полімерний нанокомпозит з антибактеріальними властивостями / Демченко В.Л., Юрженко М.В., Кобилінський С.М., Гончаренко Л.А., Масючок О.П. // 21.07.2021, Бюл. № 29. https://base.uipv.org/searchINV/search.php?action=viewdetails&IdClaim=277188
14. Патент на винахід № 124126, Україна, МПК (2021.01) C08K 3/08 (2006.01) B82Y 30/00. Бактерицидний сріблонаповнений полімерний нанокомпозит / Демченко В.Л., Юрженко М.В., Кобилінський С.М., Гончаренко Л.А. // 21.07.2021, Бюл. № 29. https://base.uipv.org/searchINV/search.php?action=viewdetails&IdClaim=277187

Valeriy DEMCHENKO

Dr. Science (Hab.) in Chemical Sciences, senior researcher (Assoc. Professor)
Project supervisor (Principal Investigator), leading researcher at the Plastics Welding Department of the E.O. Paton Electric Welding Institute of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine

dvaleriyl@ukr.net
https://paton.org.ua/naukovi–viddili/viddil-80/