As part of the 2025 “Day of Science” at the vocational school Meißen-Radebeul, Sascha Putzke had the pleasure of giving two talks to apprentices from vocational and technical secondary schools. Representing the InsBIOration project, he shared insights from his work as a technical staff member at IPF Dresden in the research group Interface Design and Interphase Characterisation.
Under the title “Sustainability on the Surface: Method Development Meets Bioinspired Interfaces”. Sascha Putzke introduced the students to how nature can inspire innovative and more sustainable technologies - with a special focus on methods part and materials.
20th – 22nd of May 2025
The final three-day InsBIOration project workshop, organized by the project coordinator in Dresden at IPF, brought together industry and academic partners for an engaging and fruitful exchange. The event provided an excellent opportunity to reflect on the scientific progress made throughout the project, with a particular focus on the versatile applications of polydopamine and tannic acid. These include antimicrobial surface coatings, plastic metallization and energy storage in supercapacitors.
Lively discussions highlighted the potential of these bio-inspired materials to address current industrial challenges in a more sustainable manner. Participants shared insights into technical advancements and practical considerations as well as highly sophisticated analytics which was especially valuable for bridging the gap between research and application.
Additionally, the workshop served as opportunity to forge new connections, with several promising contacts made with industry stakeholders. These interactions underlined the relevance of the project results and formed follow-up ideas for future collaborations.
We are proud of what has been achieved through this joint effort, and we are excited about the confident opportunities that sustainable, bio-inspired material science offers for the future.
Heads up: 20th – 22nd of May 2025
The IPF group is proud to host the final workshop of the InsBIOration project. We look forward to welcome our project partners from Germany, Finland, France, Romania and Slovenia for 3 days of intense discussion, lab tours, and various social events. On 20th and 21st of May, contributing scientists and enterprises present their work at the IPF conference hall. This program is open to interested researchers; details can be found here.The following third day is reserved for internal discussions between researchers and industry partners, including project results as well as plans for future cooperation, particularly in the frame of EU-funded scientific cooperation.
21st of March 2025
Yesterday, class 6a from the Kreischa Secondary School visited our research group at the Leibniz Institute for Polymer Research Dresden for an exciting day full of discoveries and learning. The students enjoyed a diverse program that included a scientific lecture on plastics and their bio-based alternatives, as well as presentations on career paths and training opportunities in the natural and materials-based engineering sciences.
The second part of the day was hands-on, featuring experiments and exercises that made physics and chemistry much easier to understand. Group work fostered team spirit and increased interaction, which helped keep the participants engaged. For those still looking for fun after the program, molecular LEGO building offered a chance for creative amusement.
Both the students and the scientists had a wonderful time, and the lunch break was spent in the institute's showroom, where everyone could relax and connect. It was truly a special day — full of surprises and inspiration for young and old alike.
"Youth is the hope of the world, and within it lies the power to change everything." – Albert Einstein
A) Finally, fire!; B) Molecular LEGO for relaxation.; C) Dr. C. Zimmerer sparks fascination through hands-on science.; D) Chemistry always has something exciting to offer the eye!
3rd of March – 11th of April 2025
The IPF team was pleased to welcome Fernanda Haga Kobiraki, a PhD student from ICS in Strasbourg, France, where she is conducting her research under the supervision of Prof. Fouzia Boulmedais. Her thesis work, inspired by natural adhesion mechanisms found in mussels and plants, focuses on developing eco-friendly adhesive systems using compounds such as polydopamine and tannic acid. These bio-inspired materials offer strong, versatile adhesion on nearly any surface, thanks to the unique chemistry of catechol, while avoiding the energy-intensive and hazardous substances of traditional approaches.
As part of the M-ERA.Net InsBIOration project, Fernanda Haga Kobiraki recently spent time at IPF Dresden under the guidance of Dr. Cordelia Zimmerer to explore the potential of these bio-inspired coatings for sustainable metallization processes. This research stay provided a valuable opportunity to exchange ideas, deepen experimental approaches, and strengthen collaboration within the project consortium.
We are grateful for the enriching scientific exchange and are looking forward to seeing the promising developments emerging from this work
30rd of October – 1st of November 2024
We were delighted to welcome Prof. Claudiu Filip, Dr. Nicoleta Elena Dina, and Dr. Diana-Speranta Bogdan from INCDTIM, who visited IPF Dresden e.V. and project partners Dr. Cordelia Zimmerer, Elisabet Hauschild and Ronja Bodesheimer. This collaborative meeting allowed for an enriching exchange of project results, enhancing mutual understanding and intensifying cooperation.
During their visit, the Romanian colleagues had the opportunity to deepen their insights into IPF through an in-depth guided tour of our laboratory facilities. This scientific exchange was complemented by a cultural tour through Dresden’s historic city center, offering a taste of local culinary delights.
The InsBIOration team is thrilled about the shared progress and strengthened bonds, looking forward to more fruitful developments on the horizon of EU funded scientific cooperation.
August 2024
Many thanks to the Tantec company! We are expecting 4 intensive weeks of work with the corona system, which was kindly loaned to us by Mr. Madsen for trial runs
26th of June – 12th of July 2024
In June and July 2024, Dr. Cordelia Zimmerer visited the InsBIOration partner INCDTIM in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, to deepen the bilateral collaboration between the IPF and INCDTIM. Dr. Zimmerer was hosted extensively in three groups: by Prof. Jürgen Liebscher and his group, Dr. Claudiu Filip and his group, and Dr. Sanda Nan and her group. During her stay at the INCDTIM, foci were on planning future joint research activities, discussing advancing bioinspired films and their analytical characterization, exchanging insights into the research cultures and methodologies of both institutions and she also conducted Surface-enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS) measurement activities with Dr. Nicoleta Dina.
Sincere thanks to all partners for the productive collaboration and warm hospitality go on their ways. This international exchange is a further vital step on the successive history of the InsBIOration project, fostering a joint innovation and strengthening cross-border scientific cooperation within EU nations.
20th of May - 18th of June
Ronja Bodesheimer has successfully completed her research stay at the Department of Chemistry of the University of Turku (UTU, Finland). She spent a month working on electrospraying and dipcoating experiments with polydopamine in the presence of copper on polymer substrates. As part of the project, the collaboration between the two partners was expanded and intensified. She was hosteded by Dr. Mikko Salomäki, Prof. Jukka Lukkari and Majid Al-waeel.
24th of May 2024
Majid Al-waeel from the University of Turku in Finland was pleased to present the project and its new results with a poster at the university’s graduate school annual internal event.
23rd - 26th of April 2024
Ronja Bodesheimer from IPF Dresden paid a visit to the industrial project partner Hübner-KTB GmbH in Kaufbeuren. She was there to transfer the tests from laboratory scale to production scale. The new tests with bio-inspired PDA adhesion promoter could be carried out with the specially manufactured rack for the sample plates. We would like to thank Martin Groß and Rosemarie Kuzaj for their support.
14th April 2024
A curious encounter took place in Strasbourg on the 14th April 2024! An experience of improvisation and science on biomimetism with the comedian Marie Hattermann and Fouzia Boulmedais. Thanks to Le Curieux Festival!
21th - 22th of November 2023
26th - 28th of October 2023
Ronja Bodesheimer, Sascha Putzke and Dr. Cordelia Zimmerer visited Hübner-KTB Oberflächentechnik GmbH in Kaufbeuren, Germany
The visit focused on discussion about basics and technology aspects of electroplating with special regard to mass production. Understanding the entire electroplating process from the industrial point of view is essential for the transfer of laboratory-scale experiments to industrial-scale application. The new plastic metallization strategy - chromium free and bioinspired - by Dr. Zimmerer and her group was raised from scientific research level to a technical environment. The results are highly promising!
Many thanks to Martin Groß, Rosemarie Kuzaj and managing director Dr. Carsten Brockmann for two very informative and interesting days!
11th - 12th of October 2023
The 2nd Symposium on Polydopamine took place at Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznan, Poland. We were pleased that “InsBIOration” project partners from Romania, Finland and Germany participated. The invited presenters were from non-academic Institute INCDTIM in Romania, from the University of Turku, Finland, and the research group of Dr. Cordelia Zimmerer from IPF Dresden. A conference with interesting lectures, intensive exchange and appealing posters! We are looking forward to the next symposium on Polydopamine.
21th of August – 1st of September 2023
Dr. Alexandrina Nan and Dr. Anca Petran from INCDTIM, Romania, visited IPF Dresden as guest scientists.
The host institution in Romania, INCDTIM, is specialized on the synthesis of Polydopamine analogues and the evaluation of their potential in comparison to polydopamine. Analytical expertise’s from IPF Dresden were bundled under supervision of Dr. Frank Simon and Dr. Cordelia Zimmerer to investigate structural properties and reaction behavior of the Polydopamine analogues. Of particular interest was the investigation of the deposition abilities and parameters on different plastic surfaces. The potential of analogues for metallizing plastics was successfully screened.
30th of June 2023
We were delighted to take part in the Dresden Science Night at the IPF Dresden. Under the motto HappyMetal - from hormone to chrome, we presented the nature concepts for polymer metallization as part of our international scientific project “InsBIOration” under the coordination of Dr. Cordelia Zimmerer.
11th of January 2023
In close cooperation between the Leibniz Institute of Polymer Research e.V. (IPF) and the company Tantec another technological level in the project "InsBioration" could be jumped to! With the advanced VacuTEC2020 - vacuum plasma unit, the researchers at the IPF can break new grounds in surface treatment. With three industrial gas inlets in combination with advanced high-performance components, new standards in the surface treatment of plastics and other materials can be realized. An advantage of plasma treatment is the substitution of environmentally hazardous substances, which are preferred in the current state of the art in plastics pre-treatment for metallisation and surface modification.
VacuTEC2020 with the responsible researchers in the InsBioration project. (From Left to Right: Dr. Frank Simon, Ronja Bodesheimer, Sascha Putzke, Dr. Astrid Drechsler, Moritz Reinhardt, Dr. Cordelia Zimmerer
19th - 26th of October 2022
We would like to thank the Leibniz Institute for Polymer Research Dresden for the opportunity to present our InsBIOration project at K2022 in Düsseldorf.The world's No. 1 trade fair for plastics and rubber takes place every three years and this time was dedicated to current topics such as the circular economy, climate protection and digitalisation.
27th - 28th of September 2022
The kick-off meeting of the M.ERA.net Call 2021 project InsBIOration took place on 27-28 September 2022 in Cluj-Napoca, Romania. Many thanks for the warm welcome by the hosts Dr. Claudiu Filip and Dr. Jürgen Liebscher from the National Institute for R&D of Isotopic and Molecular Technologies and the excellent tour by their team. We would also like to thank all participants, both on-site and online, for the productive exchange through presentations and discussions.
Many thanks to all partners!
September 2022
InsBioration kick-off meeting will be held on 27th - 28th of September 2022 in Cluj-Napoca, Romania. We are looking forward to it!
June 2022
Starting by June 2022, InsBIOration is one out of 151 funded projects in total and of 16 projects on the topic of Innovative surfaces, coatings and interfaces. By June 2021, 493 pre-proposals had been submitted to the M-ERA.NET CALL 2021, requesting 403 Mio EUR funding in total. 174 pre-proposals had passed the evaluation by the M-ERA.NET committee and were recommended for full-proposal submission. 171 full-proposals had finally been submitted in November 2021.
