Moloi, Mbuyiselwa SLehutso, Raisibe FMotaung, LTTErasmus, MOberholster, PJThwala, M2025-07-292025-07-292025-071388-07641572-896Xhttps://doi.org/10.1007/s11051-025-06395-yhttp://hdl.handle.net/10204/14332Environmental exposure and impact of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) have the potential to induce various undesirable effects. To mitigate these effects, the safer-by-design (SbD) approach for ENMs synthesis and formulation of nano-enabled products (NEPs) has been proposed. The current study investigated the application of SbD (to reduce the ENMs’ release from the product matrix) in the formulation of skin moisturisers, focusing on reducing ENMs concentrations in the NEPs. Specifically, industrial cosmetic titania (nT-Avo) was incorporated into skin moisturisers at different concentrations [1.5, 5, and 10% (w/v)] to assess the effects of T-Avo reduction on the potential for ENMs environmental exposure. The incorporated needle-like (31.45 × 9.499 nm) nT-Avo particles coated with a silicon (Si) layer were negatively charged and in the rutile phase. The incorporation into skin moisturisers did not affect their physicochemical properties; nT-Avo maintained their morphology (needle-like shape, 28.68–32.53 × 10.50–11.24 nm), negative zeta potential (− 44.04 to − 76.67 mV) and Si coating. The reduction of T-Avo from 10 to 5% reduced nT-Avo release by 30%, indicating the effectiveness of reducing ENMs in the NEPs to reduce their environmental exposure. ENMs concentration reduction from 10 to 5% did not affect the functional efficiency; the moisturiser met the required UV protection standards (SPF = 21). However, reduction from 5 to 1.5% indicated the loss of functional efficiency (SPF 21.01 vs 2.72). The current findings illustrate that it is possible for manufacturers to minimise nanopollution at the product formulation stage whilst retaining envisaged nanofunctionality. The study demonstrated SbD application for commercial products. For products that exhibit a high likelihood to emit ENMs, manufacturers are encouraged to investigate the optimisation of environmental safety-informed design of their products.FulltextenSafer-by-design nanomaterialsSmart nano-enabled productsUV protectionENMs environmental exposureArticlen/a