Kirtiraj Gaikwad

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Kirtiraj K. Gaikwad PhD
कीर्तीराज के. गायकवाड
Born6 May
Bori Patan, Pandharkawada, Yavatmal, Maharashtra
NationalityIndiaIndian
CitizenshipIndia
Alma materYonsei University, South Korea Michigan State University, USA
Known forResearch in Sustainable Packaging in India
AwardsExcellence in Teaching Award 2025 by IIT Roorkee

APA Young Scientist Award

Young Scientist award by International Life Sciences Institute, India
Scientific career
FieldsPackaging Engineering
InstitutionsDepartment of Paper Technology, IIT Roorkee
WebsiteIITR website

Kirtiraj K. Gaikwad is an Indian packaging scientist and professor, currently serving as the head and associate professor of the Paper and Packaging Technology Department at the Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee in Roorkee, Uttarakhand, India.[1][2]

Gaikwad obtained his M.S. in Packaging Technology from Michigan State University, East Lansing, United States (2013), and his Ph.D. in Packaging Technology from Yonsei University, Seoul, South Korea (2018).[1] He also served for several years as a postdoctoral scientist at École Polytechnique Montreal, Canada, in 2018.[1]

Among his research topics are ⁣⁣active⁣⁣ and ⁣⁣intelligent⁣⁣ ⁣⁣packaging⁣⁣, ⁣⁣sustainable⁣⁣ ⁣⁣packaging materials⁣⁣, ⁣⁣biopolymer⁣⁣ films, and ⁣⁣food safety⁣⁣⁣ in ⁣⁣packaging⁣⁣. He has authored more than one hundred articles.[3]

Innovations and research

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Professor Kirtiraj K. Gaikwad has led and contributed to several applied research projects in sustainable materials and food-packaging technologies at the Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee.

  • Eco-packaging with ethylene scavenger (2025): Gaikwad and his research team developed an eco-friendly packaging system that incorporates a modified clay-based ethylene scavenger to slow ripening and extend the shelf life of fresh produce. Laboratory tests reported high ethylene adsorption efficiency and the approach was offered for licensing as a scalable, non-toxic alternative to conventional synthetic scavengers.[4]
  • Plant-based biodegradable plastic: His group developed a plant-based biodegradable polymer for packaging applications that was reported to degrade within about a week under certain conditions, offering a potential route to reduce persistent plastic waste from disposable packaging.[5]
  • Edible millet products (straws and cups): Under Gaikwad’s supervision, researchers produced nutritious, edible straws made from millet as a sustainable alternative to single-use plastic straws.[6] The team also developed Kodo-millet-based edible cups, demonstrating the potential for locally sourced millets to serve as feedstock for edible and biodegradable disposable tableware.[7]
  • Alternative paper from waste biomass: Gaikwad contributed to work converting pine-needle waste into paper suitable for food-related applications, offering a value-added use for forest residues and a low-cost feedstock for sustainable paper products.[8]
  • Edible ink and food-safe printing materials: His group developed edible inks and explored alternative papers and printing approaches aimed at improving food safety for printed food labels and safe on-food printing applications.[9][10]

Awards and honors

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  • Prof. Gaikwad was awarded the "APA YOUNG SCIENTIST AWARD 2025" by the Asian Polymer Association (APA) India for outstanding contributions in biopolymer research.[11]
  • Prof. Gaikwad was appointed as an "Editorial Board Member" for the Food Bioscience journal by Elsevier (Impact Factor 5.6).[12]
  • Prof. Gaikwad was appointed as Associate Editor for the Journal of Food Measurement and Characterization, published by Springer Nature (Impact Factor 3.5).[13]
  • Prof. Gaikwad was appointed as an "Editorial Board Member" for the Packaging Science and Technology journal by Wiley, USA (Impact Factor 3.7).[14]

Selected publications

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Patents

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  • Patent number KR101935245B1 was granted to You Suk Lee and Kirtiraj K. Gaikwad for their oxygen scavenging film and composition for packaging that contains the same ingredients.
  • Patent number KR101911284B1 was granted to You Suk Lee and Kirtiraj K. Gaikwad for UV activated oxygen absorbing packaging materials and preparation method thereof. The patent was granted in South Korea.
  • Patent Number: 376109-001, India, granted to Kirtiraj K. Gaikwad and Pragya Srivastava for their design of a rigid bottle for use in packaging applications.

References

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  1. ^ a b c Gaikwad, Kirtiraj. "Professor at IIT Rookree". iitr.ac.in.
  2. ^ "Prof. Kirtiraj K. Gaikwad". sites.google.com. Retrieved 2025-04-23.
  3. ^ "ORCID". orcid.org. Retrieved 2025-05-04.
  4. ^ "IIT Roorkee's eco-packaging extends fresh produce shelf life by one week". India Today. 12 March 2025. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  5. ^ "IIT Roorkee team develops eco-friendly plant-based biodegradable plastic, degrades in week". Careers360. 20 June 2023. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  6. ^ "IIT Roorkee innovates nutritious edible millet straws as sustainable alternative to plastic". The Times of India. 17 March 2025. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  7. ^ "In a first, IIT Roorkee develops Kodo millet-based edible cups". The Times of India. 8 November 2023. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  8. ^ "Sustainable food packaging: IIT Roorkee develops paper from pine needle waste". India Today. 17 July 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  9. ^ "IIT Roorkee students develop alternative paper, edible ink". PrintWeek India. 10 November 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  10. ^ "IIT Roorkee develops edible ink for food safety". NuFFooDS Spectrum. 30 December 2022. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  11. ^ "APA 2025: Udaipur — Polymers for Advanced Technology". Asian Polymer Association International Conference on Polymers for Advanced Technology (APA-2025). Udaipur, Rajasthan, India: Asian Polymer Association. 13–15 October 2025. Retrieved 22 September 2025.
  12. ^ "Food Bioscience – Editorial Board". ScienceDirect. Elsevier. Retrieved 22 September 2025.
  13. ^ "Journal of Food Measurement and Characterization – Editorial Board". SpringerLink. Springer Nature. Retrieved 22 September 2025.
  14. ^ "Packaging Science and Technology – Editorial Board". Wiley Online Library. Wiley. Retrieved 22 September 2025.
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