Progress in Bionanocomposites: From green plastics to biomedical applications

The term bionanocomposites was introduced several years ago, to define an emerging class of biohybrid materials, resulting from the combination of biopolymers such as polysaccharides, proteins, nucleic acids, etc. with inorganic solids at the nanometric scale [1] and [2]. Such inorganic fraction consists of finely divided solids, spanning from clays to phosphates or carbonates, whose origin can be either natural or synthetic. As in any multiphase material, the most significant challenge in bionanocomposites is to attain materials with superior performance, by the subtle management of the individual properties of its components. Notably, the biocompatible and biodegradable character of biopolymers, alongside with the mechanical and thermal properties of the inorganic counterpart, bridge the gap between functional and structural materials. In one word, it is all about synergy!