Keynote speakers

Career:

Alvaro is a scientist at Johnson Matthey (United Kingdom). Álvaro graduated in Chemistry from the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU) in Spain, and has a PhD in Catalysis from Manchester University, when he was sponsored by British Petroleum.

He has over 20 years’ experience in industrial catalysis and researching advanced materials, delivering low-carbon technologies and sustainable innovation for Johnson Matthey. The research areas of Álvaro and his team include hydrogen production and storage technologies for applications regarding fuel cells, natural gas purification, carbon capture and the quality control of air inside vehicles. The technology fields applied to his work include advanced catalysers and adsorbents, synthesis gas technology, metallic hydrides and complexes, and functionalization with covalent bond of the material surface. Álvaro set up and maintained a research partner network in industrial and academic circles in the US and Europe; while at the same time ensuring over €3 million invested as research grants, where he coordinated and led those projects. Álvaro has been involved in evolving and demonstrating sustainable technology in TRL 5-7, working with large companies such as Jaguar-Land Rover, Total and Acelor Mittal.

Presentation tittle:

• Una visión industrial: 25 años preparándonos para la descarbonización de procesos.

Career:

Aida Gutiérrez Alejandre graduated as a Chemical Engineer from Veracruzana University. She has a Master’s Degree in Chemical Engineering-Processes and a PhD in Chemical Sciences, both from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), an institution where she is a tenured Full Career Professor; she is currently the Head of the Chemical Engineering Department there. She has completed multiple research stages abroad; published 83 articles in international indexed journals and two book chapters; has two patents granted (one national and another international); and has supervised 56 post- and undergraduate theses. Aida has played a very active role at the Mexico Catalysis Academy; she was the president from 2020 to 2021 and was in charge of organising XXVII CICAT 2020. She has been recognised with the Medal for Academic Merit by the UNAM, and Level II of the National Researchers System of Mexico’s National Council of Humanities, Sciences and Technologies.

Aida’s research interests focus on developing catalytic materials to produce liquid fuels from biomass and the design of metal-organic structures as greenhouse gas and H2S absorbers. Her scientific contributions have been published in numerous articles in specialist journals, and she has worked with other researchers on international and national projects addressing current environmental and energy problems.

Presentation tittle:

• Catalizadores y procesos para la producción de diésel verde.

Career:

Chemical Engineer (1992) from the National University of Colombia at Medellín, Master’s Degree in Chemical Sciences (1997) from Antioquia University, and a PhD in Biological Sciences from Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (2000).

Aida is currently a full professor of the Department of Chemical Engineering at Antioquia University (Colombia). She is a Senior Researcher, as per the most recent Minciencias (Colombia’s Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation) classification. Aida is the co-author of over 110 international publications and 12 book chapters; she has been the lead researcher in 17 projects and co-researchers in 12. Her research areas are related to essential oil conversion, kinetics, CO2 capture, life cycle assessment, and recovery and use of agri-industrial and mining waste.

Presentation tittle:

• Conversión de biomasa y valorización de residuos mediante catálisis para mejorar el ambiente 

Career:

Salvador Ordóñez (1972) has been a Full Professor at the Environmental Technology and Chemical Engineering Department at Oviedo University since 2012. He received the Young Researcher Award from FISOCAT in 2010 in recognition of his research career.

Salvador’s research work has been carried out at Oviedo University and during time spent at other universities such as the Delft University of Technology and the University of Berkeley. His interests are focused on the application of heterogeneous catalysis and chemical reactor technology to the development of processes based on renewable or sustainable raw materials (obtaining chemical products using waste and biomass pyrolysis and hydrolysis streams, membrane reactors for hydrogen production, catalytic valorisation of synthesis gas from waste gasification, harnessing the methane contained in mine ventilation gases), along with solving different environmental problems As a result of removing contaminants from the air and water.

Salvador has recently been actively involved in developping hydrogen chemical storage processes. He is the author or coauthor of more than 230 scientific articles published in indexed international journals and the majority in leading magazines in the field. Salvador has taken part in 37 research projects financed by European, national and regional authorities. Since 2011, he has been the Coordinator of the Catalysis, Reactor and Control (CRC) Research Group at Oviedo University. During his career, he has been particularly interested in research applied to the industrial environment. His research has led to five patents being obtained. Salvador currently coordinates the Company Learning Centre on sustainable chemical processes, sponsored by the company Química del Nalón.

Presentation tittle:

• Procesos catalíticos para la utilización de los aceites de pirólisis como fuente de carbono sostenible: un nuevo paradigma de la circularidad