Functional Materials by Circular Chemistry Approaches

Dear Colleagues,

The circular economy, acknowledged as “an opportunity to rethink our economic future”, is considered a new chance to build a more sustainable world from an economic, environmental, and social point of view. Currently, the prevalent productive system is based on a “take/make/dispose” logic, based on the no longer valid assumption that energy and resources are unlimited. This linear economy approach is no longer sustainable in the global context, because of the sharply increasing exploitation of non-renewable resources and the consequent growing degradation of our planet, to which these resources are returned in the form of waste. An accessible alternative is a new production and consumption model, the so called “circular economy”, which serves as a possible answer to the limited availability of necessary resources through recycling, reuse, and a reduction of resource consumption.

In this scenario, the pivotal role of chemistry appears to be well acknowledged, as chemistry offers an underlying methodological and theoretical framework for all material systems. Therefore, chemical approaches for designing and producing systems may ingeniously contribute to sustainable solutions, compliant with the relevant paradigms of a circular economy. This Special Issue intends to address different possible declinations of synthetic chemistry in tackling material and chemical production and recycling according to a “circular chemistry” approach.

This Special Issue will encompass about 12 contributions dealing with the synthesis of functional inorganic, polymeric, and organic materials using circular chemistry approaches.

Emphasis will particularly be given to approaches based on the following:

• natural or recycled feedstocks 
• Earth-abundant and non-critical raw materials
• LCA supported synthetic approaches
• material design for recycling
• low energy consumption and low ecological footprint
• valorisation of biomasses
• valorisation of waste

as well as any combination thereof. 

Prof. Dr. Silvia Gross
Prof. Dr. M. Lucia Curri
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Materials is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

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• circular chemistry
• synthetic chemistry
• recycling
• feedstocks
• biomasses
• waste
• end-of-life