(3al) Design of Heterogeneous Catalysts for the Conversion of Biomass Into Fuels and Chemicals

There has been
an increasing interest in renewable sources of carbon for the production of transportation
fuels and chemicals due to the diminishing petroleum resources. Cellulose and
hemicellulose, components of biomass, can be depolymerized into the monossacharides
glucose and xylose, which yields a variety of important platform molecules for
the production of fuels and chemicals. For the economical viability and sustainability
of biomass conversion processes, development of selective and stable solid
catalysts is necessary. My research interest is in the design of novel functional
heterogeneous catalysts with appropriate structural and surface properties for
the production of biomass-derived compounds. I obtained my undergraduate and
Master's degree in Chemistry at the State University of Campinas (Brazil) under the supervision of Prof. Ulf Schuchardt working on the preparation of
catalysts for olefin epoxidation. As a graduate student, under the supervision
of Prof. Leonardo Marchese at the University of Eastern Piedmont (Italy) and Prof Heloise O. Pastore at the State University of Campinas (Brazil), I studied the surface
properties of solid acid catalysts and also developed new electrocatalysts for Methanol
Fuel Cell. My post-doctoral research, under the guidance of Prof. James A. Dumesic
and Prof. Manos Mavrikakis involves preparing hydrothermally stable solid
catalysts and studying methods to improve their selectivities for the
conversion of monosaccharides into 5-hydroxymethylfurfural, an important platform
chemical. My aim is to create a strong research group focusing on materials
science and catalysis, combining the experience I have acquired over the years
in various research groups.