Gema Casado Hidalgo has developed her doctoral thesis in the consolidated group in Analytical Chemistry Applied to the Environment, Food and Drugs at the Rey Juan Carlos University (GQAA-MAF) for which she has received the URJC Social Council Award for Young Researchers and Innovators, in the Science category. The thesis entitled “Development of advanced analytical methods based on novel sample preparation steps and analysis by chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry for the determination of opiate alkaloids in foods” has been directed by Doctors Isabel Sierra and Sonia Morante of the Department of Chemical and Environmental Technology, within the framework of the EVALKALIM and EVALAKALIM-II projects (RTI2018-094558-B-100 and PID2022-137278OB-I00) funded by the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities and the State Research Agency.
The aim of this PhD thesis was to develop advanced analytical methods based on the principles of green chemistry to improve the control of opiate alkaloid content in foods, in a more efficient and sustainable way, providing important data for the European Food Safety Agency (EFSA). To this end, novel miniaturized sample preparation stages were developed by applying new magnetic adsorbent materials and mesostructured silicas, to improve extraction and/or purification on the one hand and the use of micro-extractive techniques on the other, followed by analysis by chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry. The worryingly high concentrations found in some foods such as poppy seeds and bakery products highlighted the need to improve current legislation for the control of this family of toxins in foods.
The result of her work over these years has been 9 scientific publications in JCR journals (8 in Q1 and 1 in Q2), a scientific-technical work in the journal Alimentaria, an application note for the Australian analytical sample preparation company ePrep Pty Ltd, 17 conference communications (8 oral and 9 poster), and 3 awards (best oral communication, best poster communication and best thesis in 3 minutes), in addition to an international stay at the Madeira Chemistry Research Centre (CQM). On the other hand, together with the rest of the GQAA-MAF researchers, she has received the first prize in the 2023th edition of the URJC Scientific Dissemination Awards for the activity entitled "ConCiencia Activa" developed in XNUMX.
Isaac Lorero Gómez has developed his doctoral thesis, entitled “New adaptable covalent networks for the development of multifunctional and sustainable materials”, which has received the URJC Social Council Award for Young Researchers and Innovators, in the engineering and architecture category. The research has been carried out in the “Smart and Sustainable Polymers and Composites” (SSPC) research group belonging to the high-performance group in Materials Science and Engineering at the Rey Juan Carlos University, under the direction of doctors Mónica Campo Gómez and Silvia González Prolongo, within the lines of research proposed in the projects financed by the State Research Agency (TED2021-131102B-C21 and PID2022-138496OB-I00).
The doctoral thesis addresses the manufacture of reversible bond epoxy resins, as well as their characterization, recycling and use in different applications. As a result, a new method of synthesis of epoxy resins with Diels-Alder bonds has been achieved, registered as an international patent (ES2957986B2 / WO2024003434), which has received a positive evaluation from the State of the Art Report in all the claims made, both in manufacturing methodology, obtainable materials and their use. The developed method avoids the use of solvents and the handling of high viscosity intermediate products, allowing not only the production of these resins in a more sustainable and economically competitive way, but also the manufacture of nanocomposites, composite materials and foams according to conventional methodologies in the industry, something that had not been achieved to date. The materials produced have thermal and mechanical properties similar to conventional epoxy resins and, unlike the latter, are recyclable and have the ability to close cracks, as well as to change and recover shape efficiently. In the case of nano-reinforced materials, this is also combined with the ability to perform structural diagnosis and autonomous heating.
The results obtained, in short, open the door to the development of new intelligent and sustainable thermosetting material parts. As a result of the doctoral thesis, an international stay has been carried out in the polymer engineering group of the University of Bayreuth and, to date, 5 scientific articles have been published in JCR (Q1) journals, the previously mentioned patent, awarded in the 2024 edition of the Smart Energy Campus - URJC competition, and 11 contributions to conferences.