Yflow and Avanzare are using nanotechnology to solve everyday challenges, developing capsules for food products, meshes for human tissue regeneration, anti-stain clothing, and heat-resistant materials.
In the south of Spain, the Yflow headquarters house scientists who excel in nano-scale applications. One of their popular lines includes nanocapsules and nanospheres. These are employed in the food sector: fish oil, for example, has been rapidly gaining in popularity around the world as a dietary supplement, but the oil can have an unpleasant aroma and taste. Nanocapsules can surround the active components, preventing them from being disolved in the mouth and releasing their taste, while still delivering the nutritional benefits. In phamacology, the capsules can be engineered to release a drug at a specific location or time in the body, thus increasing effectiveness and potentially avoiding side-effects.
Yflow began as a result of the research undertaken by professors Antonio Barrero and Ignacio González Loscertales at the Universities of Seville and Malaga in southern Spain. In 2001, these researchers, specialists in fluid mechanics, decided to apply their laboratory results to the business world. Nine years later, the company has established itself as a pioneer in nanotechnology, counting among its clients international companies including Kraft Foods, Philip Morris, Henkel-Toctite and Hewlett-Packard Spain.
The product line is based on a technology of micro- and nano-scale jets of two fluids that cannot be mixed. The jets flow in a way that one fluid covers the other. The rupture of the flow creates a spray of structured drops in which one drop of fluid is surrounded by the second, with diameters that can be varied.
“These properties, combined with the fact that this procedure allows for excellent control over the thickness or diameter of the capsule structure, make this technology very competitive with wide-ranging applications,” says David Galán, head of product engineering.
In 2002, Yflow licensed the technology to the American multinational Kraft Foods for its exclusive use in the food sector. The microencapsulation has also been applied to adhesives and detergents, now in partnership with the mulnational company Henkel. The technology has been used to develop nanoparticles for other fields including textiles, pharmaceuticals, the automotice sector, cosmetics, and biotechology. In addition, Yflow collaborated with Hewlett Packard on a project aimed at preventing the drops in ink-jet printers from coalescing.
Fibers for health and transport
Yflow also manufactures nanofiber meshes that can be utilized for human tissue regeneration, such as in organ implant operations. “These nano-scaffolds resemble certain human tissues,” explains Galán. “So the body tissue cells contained in these meshes grow more quickly.”
Nanofiber meshes have a very small pore size, and can be designed to eliminate solid particles, useful for car diesel filters. Galán explains that by adding a thin layer of nanofibers, about 100 times thinner than the rest of the filter substrate, the quantity of filtered material increases from 94 to 99 percent. This allows a better quality fuel to reach the engine and extends the life of the filter by up to 30 percent.
Solid capsules used in microencapsulation. Source: Yflow ( www.yflow.com) |
How Nanotechnology Works by Kevin Bonsor and Jonathan Strickland
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