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REDONDO – Advancing Recyclable Polymers and composites: Safety, Sustainability, and Material Innovation

As part of the European project REDONDO (Reversibly Designed Cross Linked Polymers, www.redondo-project.eu), ISQ is hosting a workshop focused on the implementation of Safe and Sustainable by Design(SSbD) principles for recyclable polymers and composites. Considering growing environmental challenges and evolving regulatory frameworks, SSbD has become a key guiding principle for innovation. The workshop will bring together recognized experts presenting diverse approaches to materials characterisation, safety, and sustainability assessments relevant to the development of materials in line with SSbD principles. The program also includes perspectives on standardization and legislation, creating a forum for sharing best practices and exploring SSbD’s role in advancing responsible innovation.

RDC Informatics
RDC Informatics has more than 2 decades of successful presence in IT & New Technologies market specialising in software applications development & utilisation in corporate environments and in digital marketing. Their involvement in dozens of projects of every size, in both the public and private sectors, has made them highly renowned as experts in their field and allowed them to grow on national and international levels. Additionally, their services have been certified via the latest quality assurance protocols (ISO 9001 & ISO 27001) and recognised by the most well-known companies in the world (Google, Microsoft and others).

ISQ
ISQ is a private and independent association of public utility, established in 1965 with the aim of supporting industry through the transfer of knowledge and technology in the field of welding. Its mission is to provide scientific and technological support, promoting continuous improvement, innovation, and the safety of people and assets in industry and services, with an international presence and outlook, ensuring its sustainability and the development of its employees.

ISQ is recognised for the competence and integrity with which it delivers its inspection, testing, technical consultancy, and other services to all sectors of the economy. It has established itself in Portugal and worldwide in a highly technical sector such as TIC – Testing, Inspection and Certification.

nuno pedrosa (1)

Nuno Pedrosa

R&D director of ISQ

Dimitrios N. Bikiaris

Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece

griffini photo portrait 4 cropped

Gianmarco Griffini

“Giulio Natta” - Politecnico di Milano, Italy

elena semenzin (1)

Elena Semenzin

Ca' Foscari University of Venice

francisco silva

Francisco Silva

CTCV

javier (1)

Javier Alcodori Ramos

ITENE

estela

Estela López-Hermoso Vallejo

EU Project Manager at European Bioplastics

helena

Helena Monteiro

Low Carbon & Resource Efficiency Unit, R&D-i, ISQ

gomez

Manuel Gomes

Mechanical Testing Laboratory of ISQ

maria manuel farinha (2)

Maria Manuel Farinha

Department of Environment, Sustainability and Safety of ISQ

teresa pagana

Teresa Pargana

Head of Unit for Studies Conception and Technical Support to Inspection Activity Division

ana (2)

Ana Cristina Carrola

Member of the Board of Directors of the Portuguese Environment Agency (APA)

AGENDA 02/10/2025

09:00 – 09:20 Opening Session
Nuno Pedrosa (ISQ) Welcome by the director of the R&D department
General presentation of REDONDO project, by Prof. Bikiaris AUTH
09:20 – 09:50 Session 1: Methods for characterisation/Materials functionality assessment
Manuel Gomes (ISQ)
- Mechanical properties characterisation of composite materials -
Gianmarco Griffini (Polimi – Politecnico di Milano)
- Recyclable-by-design polymers and composites: when structure meets function for enhanced circularity -
09:50 – 10:35 Session 2: Safety assessment
Maria Manuel Farinha (ISQ)
- Health & Safety -
Javier Alcodori Ramos (ITENE)
- Application of SSbD Framework to Polymeric Materials -
Francisco Silva (CTCV)
- Exposure to incidental nanomaterials during additive manufacturing and other processes -
Q&A
10:35 -10:50 Coffee Break
10:50 – 11:25 Session 3: Sustainability assessment
Helena Monteiro (ISQ)
- The role of Sustainability Assessment tools to support recyclable Polymers and Composites -
Elena SEMENZIN (Ca’Foscari University)
- Assessing chemical safety and sustainability of innovative bio-based products -
Q&A
11:25 – 12:15 Session 4: Standardization and Legislation
Estela López-Hermoso (European bioplastics)
- Policy and standardisation landscape for biopolymers recycling at EU level -
Teresa Isabel Quetina Pargana (Authority for Working Conditions, ACT)
- Occupational Health and Safety and Technology - ACT Perspective -
Ana Cristina Carrola (Portuguese Environment Agency, APA)
- tbd -
Q&A
Closing Session AUTH & ISQ

This event will be held in English.

The “Advancing Recycable Polymers and composites” will be held in 2nd of October, supported by the REDONDO project.

Register today for free!

You may attend the Advancing Recycable Polymers and composites Workshop, either physically or virtually.

Register here

Looking forward to seeing you in Lisbon!

Venue: ISQ
Address: Av. Dr. Mário Soares 35, 2740-119 Porto Salvo, Taguspark, Oeiras, Portugal

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The REDONDO project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon program under the Grant Agreement No. 101058449. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or HADEA. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.

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Nuno Pedrosa

R&D director of ISQ

Nuno Pedrosa, Director of the R&D and Innovation Department at ISQ, holds a PhD in Mechanical Engineering and has a professional career with over 20 years of experience. He has held high-complexity technical positions associated with management activity in the last 10 years. He has an extensive knowledge of different industrial sectors, both at national and international level, with a strategic vision of how R&D and Innovation activity can contribute to the development and strengthening of the organizations.

Prof. Dimitrios N. Bikiaris

Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece

Professor Dimitrios N. Bikiaris is the coordinator of the REDONDO project. He is a leading expert in polymer chemistry and technology at the Department of Chemistry, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece. His research focuses on the synthesis and characterization of biobased polyesters, copolymers, composites, and nanocomposites, with an emphasis on sustainable materials. Lately, he has been interested in the formation and characterization of microplastics. Professor Bikiaris has authored over 560 peer-reviewed articles in international journals, has been cited more than 26,000 times and having an h-index of 85. He has contributed to over 65 national and European research projects, acting as principal investigator in approximately 35. In 2021, he was ranked 4,990th among the top 2% of scientists worldwide and 5th among Greek scientists, while in recent years, he has consistently held the second place nationally in Chemistry and first place in the field of Materials Science.

Prof. Gianmarco Griffini

Department of Chemistry, Materials and Chemical Engineering “Giulio Natta”Politecnico di Milano, Italy

Gianmarco Griffini is an Associate Professor of Materials Science and Technology at the Department of Chemistry, Materials and Chemical Engineering “Giulio Natta” of Politecnico di Milano (Italy). He received his MSc degree in Chemical Engineering from Politecnico di Milano in 2005 and his PhD degree in Materials Engineering from the same institution in 2012, after spending a few years in the private sector working as process engineer. He has held visiting positions at University College London (UK), at University of California at Berkeley (USA), and at University of Castilla-La Mancha (Spain). His research interests are mainly focused on the design, synthesis and characterization of polymer-based materials and on the study of their structure-property relationships. Areas of major effort include: bio-derived and biodegradable polymers and composites for sustainable manufacturing and the circular economy; materials and devices for solar energy harvesting, management and conversion, and for energy storage; stimuli-responsive polymeric materials for smart, advanced manufacturing. In these areas, he is/has been involved as scientific coordinator in several regional, national and European funded projects, and as responsible for different research contracts with the private sector. He currently serves as editorial board member of the journal Aggregate (Wiley).

Elena Semenzin

Ca' Foscari University of Venice

Elena Semenzin, Associate Professor in Environmental chemistry at Ca’ Foscari University of Venice (Venice, Italy), Dept. of Environmental Science, Informatics and Statistics (DAIS), and Delegate of the Rector for Sustainability.

She holds a PhD degree in Environmental Sciences at Ca’ Foscari, completed with a Marie Curie fellowship at Wageningen University (Wageningen, The Netherlands).

Her research interests are in Environmental Risk Assessment for both traditional and emerging pollutants (e.g. nanomaterials) along the life cycle of products/processes and including the Safe and Sustainable by Design (SSbD) concept; sustainability assessment (integrating tools belonging to the environmental, social and economic pillars) and, more specifically, assessment of environmental sustainability (through e.g. environmental footprints, LCA) in the circular economy context.

She has a strong expertise in Environmental Risk Assessment for contaminated sites (both aquatic and terrestial ecosystems), focusing on the development of integrated risk indexes based on the Weight of Evidence (WoE) approach and Multi Criteria decision Analysis (MCDA) methods, and in the conceptual design of decision support systems (DSS).

She is currently scientific responsible for Ca’ Foscari of the HEU projects GREENART “Green edeavor in art restoration” and BioSusTex “Towards absolute safe and sustainable biobased textile”, and of the CBE JU project SurfToGreen “Bio-based sustainable SURFactants TO foster GREEN industry”.

Since 2023 she is the Director of the Project of Excellence (funded by the Italian Ministry of University and Research, MUR) of DAIS.

Francisco Silva

Researcher at Technological Centre of  Ceramics and Glass (CTCV)

Academic Qualifications:

  • PhD in Industrial and Systems Engineering, specialising in Human Engineering, from the School of Engineering, University of Minho.
  • Postgraduate degree in Human Engineering, Department of Production and Systems, School of Engineering, University of Minho.
  • Postgraduate degree in Occupational Safety in Construction – Management and Coordination, Department of Civil Engineering, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Coimbra.
  • Bachelor’s degree in Ceramic and Glass Engineering from the Department of Ceramics and Glass Engineering, University of Aveiro.

Professional Activity:

  • R&D Projects Technical Manager/ Researcher at the Technological Centre of  Ceramics and Glass (CTCV).
  • Collaborating Researcher at the Algoritmi Research Centre, University of Minho.
  • Adjunct Professor at ISLA Gaia – Polytechnic Institute of Management and Technology.
  • Member of the following Technical Committees:
    CEN/TC 352 – Nanotechnologies
    ISO/TC 229/WG3 – Nanotechnologies
    IPQ/CT 194 – Nanotechnologies

Javier Alcodori Ramos

ITENE

Javier Alcodori Ramos holds a degree in Biotechnology and a Master’s in Research and Development in Biotechnology and Biomedicine from the University of València. His work focuses on the research and assessment of the toxicity and ecotoxicity of nanomaterials, chemicals, and other substances, aiming to develop comprehensive toxicological profiles. He actively contributes to the implementation of the Safe and Sustainable by Design (SSbD) framework, an initiative led by the European Commission to promote the responsible development of materials and products. Additionally, he is engaged in the development of innovative solutions with antimicrobial, antifungal, and virucidal properties, including advanced paints and disinfectants.

Estela López-Hermoso

EU Project Manager at European Bioplastics

Estela López-Hermoso Vallejo is the EU Project Manager at European Bioplastics, with over a decade of experience in EU public affairs, policy, stakeholder engagement, and EU project management. She focuses on connecting research with policy, particularly in the fields of sustainability, innovation, and bioplastics. Her expertise includes the EU regulatory and standardisation landscape related to the recycling of biopolymers. She holds a master’s degree in European Interdisciplinary Studies.

Helena Monteiro

Low Carbon & Resource Efficiency Unit, R&D-i, ISQ

Senior researcher, Technical Coordinator of Sustainability Assessment group, at the Low Carbon & Resource Efficiency Unit, R&Di, at ISQ, she leads research works on environmental, economic and social Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). Helena Monteiro holds a PhD in Sustainable Energy Systems (MIT-Portugal Program, UC) and a Master’s in Energy for Sustainability. With over 16 years of experience, she is a dedicated researcher specializing in sustainability assessment and environmental and economic LCA. Her work focuses on energy efficiency and the modelling of environmental LCA for a variety of systems, including industrial products, production, and maintenance processes. This encompasses a wide range of processes and materials such as metals, ceramics, polymers, composites, concrete materials, waste valorisation, and building components. As a project manager, she oversees H2020, HEU, and PT projects (BIOMAC, AID4SME, CannValue, PRR Agenda ECP Ecocerâmica e Cristalaria de Portugal, among others). Over the past years, she has led and contributed to 24 projects and supervised several Master theses. Helena also co-authors multiple publications in international scientific journals and conferences, contributing to the fields of sustainability and energy systems. Her project management experience and extensive multidisciplinary research, allows her to support projects advancing sustainable energy and product systems and industrial developments.

Manuel Gomes

Mechanical Testing Laboratory of ISQ

In 1986, completed a Bachelor’s degree in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering at Instituto Superior Técnico (Lisbon) and a PhD in fracture mechanics of high-speed steels at the university of Bradford (UK) in 1993. Main fields of research have been powder metallurgy of high speed steels and heavy alloys; mechanical behaviour of metallic alloys at high temperature under creep and fatigue conditions and more recently mechanical behaviour of light alloys and composite materials. Besides research work, has also been an invited lecturer at universities and higher education institutes in Portugal, and been the head of the Mechanical Testing Laboratory of ISQ for over 20 years.

Maria Manuel Farinha

Department of Environment, Sustainability and Safety of ISQ

Maria Manuel Farinha holds a degree in Chemical Engineering, specialising in processes and industry, from Instituto Superior Técnico (IST) at the University of Lisbon. Her academic journey also includes research activities at the Technological and Nuclear Institute, the Interfaculty Reactor Institute in Delft, the Netherlands, and the Jožef Stefan Institute in Slovenia, with a focus on air quality and the environment.

She has developed strong expertise in critical areas such as Team Management and Leadership, Sustainable Finance, Sustainability, Circular Economy, Industrial Safety, Occupational Safety, and Risk Management. With over two decades of experience in consultancy services in the fields of environment, sustainability, and safety, Maria Manuel Farinha stands out for her role as a project manager and leader of both internal teams and external partnerships. Since 2014, she has been leading the Department of Environment, Sustainability and Safety of ISQ (Portugal), reflecting her ongoing commitment to delivering integrated and sustainable solutions.


Teresa Pargana

Head of Unit for Studies Conception and Technical Support to Inspection Activity Division

  • Degree in Law/Post graduate course in health and safety at work
  • Labour Inspector – Until 2007: inspection activities

Control compliance with legal provisions at the workplaces concerning labour legislation and working conditions in all sectors of activity
Provide information and technical advice to employers, workers and their representatives
Cooperation with social partners in information sessions

  • Head of Unit (since 2007) in the Central Services of Authority for Working Conditions in Lisbon

        Main responsibilities:

  • Research, collect and study of labour legislation to prepare internal orders and guidance on labour law for Local
  • Branches of Authority for Working Conditions
  • Participation on legal transposition process of the European Union labour law and the ratification of International Labour Conventions
  • Assess and evaluate of the application of Conventions of the International Labour Organization (ILO) ratified by Portugal
  • Prepare reports of application of European Directives
  • Cooperation with social partners (trade unions and employers representatives in national campaigns of promotion of better working conditions)

Ana Cristina Carrola

Member of the Board of Directors of the Portuguese Environment Agency (APA)

Ana Cristina Carrola holds a degree in Chemical Engineering, specialising in Processes and Industry, from Instituto Superior Técnico of Lisbon, and a Post-Graduation in Water Quality and Pollution Control from the Civil Engineering Department of the Faculty of Science and Technology of the University of Coimbra.

Since 1994, she has been involved in environmental matters, beginning her public service career at the Water Institute. Currently, at the Portuguese Environment Agency (Agência Portuguesa do Ambiente, APA), she is responsible for the technical areas of Waste, Environmental Licensing, the Environmental Reference Laboratory and its regional network, as well as Circular Economy.

I understand that by registering for this event I consent to the organized workshop and the REDONDO project and their partners to take or have taken by others, photographs, digital images and/or audio and/or video footage of myself, and to store the images and publish them in any form, in whole or in part, and distribute them in any media including, but not limited to, print media, Internet, social media, radio, TV, other multi-media uses or graphic representation, cinematography or video, with the aim to promote the event. The organized workshop and the REDONDO project and their partners undertake not to use any images in a way that would cause embarrassment or misrepresent the intent of the participant.