RT Journal Article
T1 Engineering of green sterilization technology to obtain biocompatible aerogels: Supercritical CO2 versus ethylene oxide and gamma radiation
A1 Carracedo Pérez, María
A1 Boccia, Antonella Caterina
A1 Ardao Palacios, Inés
A1 Passos, Cláudia Pereira
A1 Santos Rosales, Víctor
A1 Santos Torres, Beatriz
A1 Bernardo, Fábio Gabriel Pereira
A1 Blanco Vales, María
A1 Magariños Ferro, Beatriz
A1 García González, Carlos A.
K1 Bioaerogels
K1 Supercritical fluids
K1 Sustainable processing
K1 Sterilization
K1 qNMR spectroscopy
AB The growing relevance of aerogels in biomedicine demands the choice of compatible sterilization techniques with these materials. Conventional methods, such as ethylene oxide (EO) and gamma radiation (γ-rays) sterilization, have significant drawbacks while facing important environmental restrictions. In this study, supercritical CO2 (scCO2) sterilization is tested for polysaccharide (starch and alginate) aerogels as an eco-friendly alternative to conventional procedures. Three post-processing treatments under different CO2 exposure regimes (static, dynamic and combined) and in the presence of H2O2 as additive were developed and assessed to reach sterility assurance levels (SAL) below 10−6. After sterilization, a vacuum treatment was implemented to ensure a low residual presence of H2O2 in the aerogels so that the material biocompatibility was not compromised according to in vitro cell tests with fibroblasts. The residual adsorbed H2O2 was quantified for the first time in aerogels by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. The effects of the supercritical sterilization treatments on the textural and chemical properties of the aerogels were evaluated and compared to those treated with EO and γ-rays. Results highlight the unique efficiency of scCO2 sterilization as a post-processing method that preserves the aerogel structure while offering an eco-sustainable potential for producing sterile and biocompatible materials.
PB Elsevier
YR 2026
FD 2026-01-02
LK https://hdl.handle.net/10347/46926
UL https://hdl.handle.net/10347/46926
LA eng
NO Carracedo-Pérez, M., Boccia, A. C., Ardao, I., Passos, C. P., Santos-Rosales, V., Santos, B., Bernardo, F., Blanco-Vales, M., Magariños, B., & García-González, C. A. (2026). Engineering of green sterilization technology to obtain biocompatible aerogels: Supercritical CO2 versus ethylene oxide and gamma radiation. Biomaterials Advances, 182, 214698. 10.1016/j.bioadv.2025.214698
NO This work was funded by MICIU/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 [grants PID2023-151340OB-I00 and PDC2022-133526-I00], Xunta de Galicia [ED431C2022/2023], GAIN [Vinnovate call, AEROCARE, IN848G 2024/01], ERDF/EU and European Union NextGeneration EU/PRTR. Work carried out in the framework of the ECO-AERoGELS COST Innovators' Grant (ref. IG18125) and funded by the European Commission. Authors are grateful for technical support to: Alberto Giacometti Schieroni for Light Scattering on starch samples. The financial support from PT national funds (FCT/MCTES) of LAQV-REQUIMTE/University of Aveiro (UID/50006 -Laboratório Associado para a Química Verde - Tecnologias e Processos Limpos) research unit is acknowledged. FCT is also thanked for Individual Call to Scientific Employment Stimulus contract CPP (CEECIND/01873/2017; DOI: 10.54499/CEECIND/00813/2017/CP1459/ CT0053).
DS Minerva
RD 21 may 2026