Tèxtils.CAT is a partner in the ZeroF project – Development of verified safe and sustainable PFAS-free coatings for food packaging and upholstery textile applications, which held its virtual kickoff meeting on January 10, with the participation of representatives from the European Commission.
The goal of ZeroF is to develop safe and sustainable alternative coatings to replace PFAS compounds in food packaging and textile upholstery, offering high water and oil repellency.
Over the next three years, ZeroF will create new chemical products and textile coating formulations, validated with industry users. This process will include environmental impact assessments (Life Cycle Analysis, Life Cycle Costing, and Environmental Footprint) and toxicology evaluations.
The ZeroF consortium consists of research centers and industrial partners, covering the value chains of both packaging and textile coatings, including end users.
Tèxtils.CAT, as the representative of the advanced materials sector, will be responsible for communication, dissemination, and industry engagement to ensure later replication. ZeroF continues the work of previous LIFE projects coordinated by the cluster, such as MIDWOR-LIFE, which evaluated sustainable alternatives to DWORs (Durable Water and Oil Repellents). A key outcome of that project was identifying the lack of commercially available sustainable solutions for oil repellency, emphasizing the need for further R&D, which ZeroF will pursue.
The ZeroF Project is led by VTT in Finland and includes established partners such as Tèxtils.CAT and its members LEITAT and E.CIMA in Catalonia, FRAUNHOFER in Germany, the Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology, the University of Bologna, and companies like KEMIRA (Finland), YANGI (Sweden), LGI Sustainable Innovation (France), and IDEACONSULT (Bulgaria).