Laboratory of process engineering for biorefinery, bio-based materials and functional printing
Cilkoa combines paper and ceramic to replace plastic
The Grenoble start-up is developing an innovative process to make paper- or cardboard-based packaging impervious to oxygen and water vapour.
Created in June 2022, Cilkoa is the winner of the i-Lab 2022 innovation competition and received a Bpifrance French Tech Emergence grant.
Based on the work of two research laboratories, LGP2 and SIMaP, the Grenoble start-up has adapted ALD (Atomic Layer Deposition) technology – commonly used in the semiconductor sector – to cellulosic packaging (paper, cardboard, moulded cellulose).
This innovative process consists of depositing a nanometre layer of alumina on the cellulose. The resulting material, consisting of at least 99% cellulose, has oxygen and water vapour barrier properties similar to those of plastics, while being completely recyclable, compostable and biodegradable. Protected by a patent, the process is suitable for large surfaces and can process paper directly in the form of reels or other pre-forms such as trays stacked on a pallet.
The markets targeted are those of the food industry and cosmetics faced with the total ban on single-use plastics imposed by European regulations by 2040.