A Green Multifunctional Polymer from Discarded Material: Chitin Nanofibrils

Chitin Nanofibril (CN) is the purest crystal form of chitin obtained industrially from fishery and crustacean waste. Characterized by positive charges covering its surface, this natural polymer has the ability to form block copolymeric nanoparticles with electronegative natural or man-made compounds, entrapping active ingredients also.
Due to its own biological properties, CN complexed with hyaluronic acid and entrapped with different active ingredients has been included into cosmetic emulsions, electrospun fibers and transparent films obtained by the casting technology.
The antiaging activity of the obtained emulsions has been reported as well as the first technical characteristics of the non-woven tissues and the transparent films made by two EU research projects:
BIOMIMETIC (www.biomimetic-eu-project.eu) and n-CHITOPACK (www.n-chitopack.eu).