Proposals under this topic should:

• Develop innovative and efficient processes to obtain SSbD bio-based alternative(s) to (a set of) conventional coating(s) for applications under demanding and/or extreme conditions where e.g. high durability; resistance to fire, extremes temperatures, chemical agents, weather, fouling and mould, corrosion; hydrophobicity are needed. One or more relevant end-use sectors could be targeted, without limitation.
• Assess the functional properties of the developed coatings against application-driven parameters, including new systems to apply the coatings where relevant. Involve end users in the testing and validation activities. Moreover, address the end-of-life of the targeted final product(s), ensuring that the bio-based coating is not hindering the circularity of the final product(s).
• Include a task to integrate a prospective assessment based on the safe-and-sustainable-by-design (SSbD) framework, developed by the European Commission, for assessing the safety and sustainability of chemicals and materials. Under this context, projects are expected to contribute with and develop recommendations that can advance further the application of the SSbD framework.
• Perform a preliminary techno-economic feasibility analysis of the subsequent scale-up phase, including market considerations (demand; target price; competing products; estimated lead time).