Bio: Dr. Monika Mortimer is a Principal Investigator at the Laboratory of Environmental Toxicology at NICPB in Tallinn, Estonia. Before her current role, she conducted research at the University of Geneva in Switzerland, the University of California, Santa Barbara, and China Jiliang University in Hangzhou, Zhejiang. Her research interests encompass nanotoxicology, microbiology, environmental chemistry, and toxicology. Her recent grant focuses on developing a safe-and-sustainable-by-design (SSbD) strategy for using nanocomposites in metal recycling.

Abstract: The design of novel nano-based materials should maximize functionality while ensuring safety. This presentation will discuss how toxicity data can serve as a feedback mechanism for guiding the development of eco-safe and efficient nanocomposite materials for the circular economy. This will be illustrated through a case study of metal-phenolic network nanocomposites (MPN NCs). MPN NCs are an innovative class of sorbent materials that consist of plant-based chelators—polyphenols—and metals coordinated with polyphenolic linkers, all coated on a nanoparticulate core. These nanocomposites show great promise for applications such as the adsorption and recovery of toxic metals, owing to their exceptionally high surface area, tunable pore sizes in the polyphenolic matrix, and adjustable surface properties. We employed fast and straightforward environmental toxicity tests to assess the eco-safety of MPN NCs with varying compositions (including tannic acid moieties and coordination metals like Fe3+, Ni2+, Co2+ or Cr3+). Additionally, the same biotests were utilized to confirm the effectiveness of the safe MPN NCs as adsorbents for toxic metal ions, such as copper (Cu2+), nickel (Ni2+), and cadmium (Cd2+), in aquatic environments. Measuring endpoints like intracellular oxidative stress and bioavailable copper allowed us to elucidate how MPN NCs reduce the toxicity of heavy metals in aquatic environments. The biotest-based approach proposed here can help identify the characteristics of MPN NCs that enable their safe and practical applications.