Over 350.000 chemicals and mixtures of chemicals have been registered for production and use worldwide,  and these products and their constituents are found everywhere, including in waste products, soils, water, air, plants, food, animals, and the human body. Furthermore, environmental wastes and pollutants often are the sources of new, sometimes even more toxic, molecules formed as transformation products. There is therefore an urgent need for the design of safer molecules and materials that permit fast and complete environmental mineralization while retaining their desired functions. 

Optimal product design should target the most favourable end-of-life state, avoiding persistence in the environment and breakdown into harmful products. We will showcase safe and environmentally benign organophosphate flame retardants with enhanced biodegradability by bringing together sustainable synthesis and design with a key focus on (eco)toxicology, environmental impact, and implementation along the value chain. Furthermore, we will also generate the environmental health and safety data of our benign and circular organophosphates, which will make them more easily marketable.