Ms. Eram will present her Pre-synopsis as per the details below:

Date: 07/07/2025

Time: 1130 - 1230 hrs. 

Venue: TP Room, Monash Academy

Title: Exploring the potential of plant-based bioactive peptides in food and non-food applications

Supervisor: Prof. Amit Arora, Prof. Antonio Patti and Prof. Andrea Robinson

Abstract:

Agricultural and food waste present pressing global environmental, economic, and social challenges. Repurposing plant-based proteins and peptides is highly attractive due to their wide-ranging structural and functional diversity. This thesis explores the extraction and purification of biomolecules from under-utilized legume by-products, primarily lentil and chickpea waste, and exploits sustainable and scalable processes to repurpose them into high-value materials.

A key innovation in this work is the use of functionalized magnetic nanoparticles for the selective purification of peptides under mild and scalable conditions. The remaining protein-rich fractions are subsequently recovered and evaluated through alkaline extraction methods, comparing sodium hydroxide (NaOH) and ammonium hydroxide (NH₄OH), to assess protein quality, solubility, and nutritional attributes. The extracted biomolecules are further applied in high-value domains, including the development of biodegradable protein-based films for food and cosmetic use, and the evaluation of crude extracts and purified peptides as corrosion inhibitors. Finally, all processes are integrated into a biorefinery framework and subjected to techno-economic evaluation to scrutinize the circular utilization of legume-derived waste streams for sustainable material development.