Separation Processes and Materials Preparation following Green chemistry principles using supercritical fluids- Group 910632 at UCM

The research group "Preparation and activity of multifunctional materials and physicochemical processes in Sustainable Chemistry"" number 910632 at UCM investigates the use of supercritical fluids in the preparation/modification of materials as an alternative to the more common contaminant solvents within the Green Chemistry framework.

Supercritical CO2 is used in most cases because it has moderate critical parameters (Tc=31 ºC and Pc=7.4 MPa), it is cheap, non-toxic, non-flammable and can be recycled. Supercritical CO2 has densities intermediate between those of liquids and gases, but transport properties (diffusivity and viscosity) similar to gases. All these properties can be exploited in many different processes.

The group is currently led by Prof. Albertina Cabañas and Concepción Pando in the Physical Chemistry Dep. I and Prof. Lourdes Calvo in the Chemical Engineering Dep.. We offer the possibility to work in a multidisciplinary team, with projects focused on many different areas ranging from Material Science, Physical Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology.

We offer different technologies to companies through the OTRI web page: https://www.ucm.es/otri/complutransfer

We investigate the use of supercritical fluids in different processes:

1) Deposition of metal nanoparticles within porous supports using supercritical CO2 for catalytic and biomedical applications. [Sánchez-Miguel et al., Green preparation of PtRu and PtCu/SBA-15 catalysts using supercritical CO2, J CO2 Utilization 22, 382"391 (2017)]

2) Surface modification of materials for CO2 capture and metal absorption. [Sanchez-Vicente et al., A new sustainable route in supercritical CO2 to functionalize silica SBA-15 with 3-aminopropyltrimethoxysilane as material for carbon capture, Chem. Eng. J. 2015, 264, 886-898; M.J. Tenorio et al., Thiol group functionalization of mesoporous SiO2 SBA-15 using supercritical CO2, Microporous and Mesoporous Materials, 256,147-154 (2018)]

3) Micronization of pharmaceutical and nutraceuticals and composite materials by the Supercritical Antisolvent Technique (SAS).[Cuadra et al., Pharmaceutical co-crystals of the anti-inflammatory drug diflunisal and nicotinamide obtained using supercritical CO2 as an antisolvent. J. CO2 Utilization 2016, 13, 29-37.]

4) Encapsulation of pharmaceutical and nutraceuticals by Supercritical Fluid Extraction of Emulsions (SFEE).[Prieto and Calvo, Supercritical fluid extraction of emulsions to nanoencapsulate vitamin E in polycaprolactone, Journal of Supercritical Fluids 119 (2017) 274-282]

5) Sterilization of sensitive materials using Supercritical Fluids. [Calvo and Casas, Method for sterilization with CO2 and water, ES 2533537 A1, 2014.]

6) Thermodynamic properties of mixtures with supercritical fluids: a) Experimental determination of the phase behavior, solubilities and calorimetric properties and b) Modeling of the data with equations of state and semiempirical methods.[Morere et al, Solubility of two meta

Applicants should submit a letter of motivation and Curriculum Vitae.