Imagine if we could build artificial lungs by copying how fish gills and bird lungs work, which are much more efficient than ours. Instead of using simple tubes, this project creates complex 3D shapes and special materials that let oxygen and CO2 move faster. This means the machines used to help people breathe can be much smaller and safer for the blood.
Current ECMO devices use inefficient hollow fibers that require large blood volumes and large devices, leading to high rates of thrombosis and hemolysis in patients with respiratory failure.
The project is building high-efficiency polyurethane membrane fibers with 3D biomimetic geometries based on fish gills and bird lungs, verified through in-vitro blood tests.
If you are a medical device manufacturer dealing with high morbidity and thrombosis in current ECMO machines — this project developed biomimetic membrane structures that provide a 50% surplus in O2 and CO2 mass transfer. This allows for smaller, more hemocompatible devices that reduce patient complications.
If you are a biotech firm dealing with the inability to create permanent artificial lungs due to device size — this project developed high-efficiency fibers and 3D layouts. These improvements enable the transition from large external machines to eventually implantable devices.
If you are a polymer company dealing with low gas permeability in synthetic fibers — this project developed bi-soft segment polyurethane membranes using phase inversion. This creates a new material standard for high-performance gas exchange applications.
Based on available project data, there is no specific pricing or cost-per-unit information provided; the focus is on research and development of the membrane structure.
The project focuses on developing the fibers and 3D structures using phase inversion and geometric optimization. Based on available project data, the current stage is verification via in-vitro blood tests rather than industrial scaling.
Based on available project data, specific patent or licensing terms are not listed, though the project develops new geometries and polyurethane membrane compositions.
The technology is designed to replace the hollow fiber bundles in current ECMO devices, aiming for a 50% increase in efficiency to allow for smaller device footprints.
The project is active from 2024-01-01 to 2027-06-30.
The consortium is purely academic, consisting of 6 partners from 5 countries (AT, DE, IT, PT, ZA), all of which are universities. With an industry ratio of 0%, the project is heavily focused on fundamental research and proof-of-concept rather than immediate commercialization.
Contact the Technische Universitaet Wien for technical specifications on biomimetic membranes.
Contact SciTransfer to identify industrial partners for scaling these biomimetic membranes.
