Lecture by Dr. Alexandre Nominé: The Materials Behind the Green and Digital Transition

For ages, materials and device design have been governed by a price-performance trade-off, often neglecting sustainability aspects. However, this paradigm is currently shifting globally with the concurrent implementation of Net Zero policies and digital transition, as limiting the challenge of the Green and digital revolutions to the simple cost-performance paradigm would be somehow repeating the mistake of the Oil Age during which resources were considered as infinite and the impacts on environment were neglected.

With the emergence of nanotechnologies, the palette of metals used by Humanity is increasing dramatically, as unprecedented quantities of new materials and metals will soon be required. As a result, sustainability must now be integrated into materials design to address these new demands. Making the twin transition - Green and digital - successful, requires transforming the mindset of innovators (from lower TRL) from a binary trade-off (price-performance) towards multi-criteria decision making.

In this seminar, we will introduce a methodology for sustainable materials by design, aiming to solve the 'material equation' of the green and digital transitions. This approach involves the development of new materials optimised for both performance and environmental impact, considering factors such as ecological footprint, resource solicitation, and supply risk, and showing the important role of end-users' perception on the whole value chain.

By incorporating sustainability into the core of materials science, this methodology aims at influencing long-term demand patterns and, consequently, the supply of raw materials.

Dr. Alexandre Nominé (Université de Lorraine, Nancy, France), an associate professor at the University of Lorraine and head of the School of Mines international office, leads EU-funded projects linking research and education. He heads the HERawS project focusing on raw materials sustainability for green and digital transitions, winning the "Best Business Idea" award from SusCritMat (EIT Raw Materials). His research integrates AI into non-equilibrium nanoparticle synthesis for sustainable materials. Dr. Nominé oversees the GREENANO European Master program in sustainable nanotechnologies. He received the PSE Early Career Award in 2020 and Early-Career Scientist medal of the French Society of Metallurgy and Materials. He has authored 45+ articles with 1500+ citations since 2014.