NYMPHA

Natural polYsaccharides from Microalgae for the Protection of cultural HeritAge (NYMPHA)

Avviso Pubblico “Progetti di Gruppi di Ricerca 2020” (Determinazione dirigenziale n. G08487 del 19 luglio 2020). Progetto approvato con determinazione n. G04014 13 aprile 2021. POR FESR LAZIO 2014 – 2020 Sostegno finanziario: € 147.710,85.

The Institute of Crystallography received funding from the European Regional Development Fund for the study of environmentally friendly products suitable for the restoration of cultural heritage.

Currently a strong attention to the environment protection is growing, as well as the need to take conscious and sustainable actions. In this context, NYMPHA project responds to the needs in the field of Cultural Heritage, promoting a new solution for the restoration/ protection of poly-material surfaces, presently absent in the market, but with strong potential for the trade. The objective is to provide an innovative material based on microalgae polysaccharides, characterized from the chemical/qualitative point of view, compatible with ancient materials and not harmful for the restorers and the environment. The strong potential of the extract lies in its antifungal, antibacterial and structural restoration capabilities. The innovation of NYMPHA therefore derives from the nature of the product and its multi-applicability on different materials constituting cultural heritage (organic and inorganic).

The project is based on a close collaboration between partners (CNR – Sapienza University of Rome) and the overall structure of the work plan can be summarized as follows:

• An initial extraction phase (CNR-IC) with water, at different times and temperatures, of polysaccharide compounds from different algal strains. Specifically, marine microalgae, freshwater, wild type and mutants will be tested. The extracted polysaccharides shall be purified by ion exchange chromatography and fractional precipitation;

• Characterization activity (CNR-IC, Uni Sapienza- DIP. CHIM) of the extracts by antioxidant tests, NMR and IR spectroscopy, GC-MS and HPLC mass spectrometry;

• In order to identify the best product and its most effective technique of application on different polymer surfaces, will follow the phase of experimentation of compounds that will be applied on substrates of organic origin (Uni Sapienza- DIP. DBA) and inorganic (Uni Sapienza- DIP. DST) used in the field of cultural heritage. The extracts will be applied in different concentrations to verify how this parameter can influence their effectiveness. The characterization phase is fundamental in order to evaluate the properties of extracts in relation to different substrates, concentrations, providing benchmarks compared to products currently marketed in the field of restoration;

• Optimisation of the extraction process and structural fine analysis (CNR-IC, Uni Sapienza- DIP. CHIM) of polysaccharides most effective results in experimentation, by ultrasound and microwave for extraction and GC-MS and HPLC for structural analysis.

Coordinator: Prof. Gabriele Favero, Dipartimento di Biologia Ambientale – Sapienza

Responsible IC: Dr. Amina Antonacci

Collaborator IC: Dr. Annalisa Masi

Institute of Crystallography

Phone: +39 06 90672417

e-mail: amina.antonacci@ic.cnr.it

annalisa.masi@ic.cnr.it

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ProjectNympha

Twitter: @ProjectNympha

Instagram: @nympha_project