Mario Nicolás Miranda Pinzón, a graduate student of the Master’s Degree in Engineering Production and Characterization of Materials, has obtained one of the grants for pre-doctoral contracts for the training of doctors, which is part of the aid program of the Vice-Rectorate for Research of the Polytechnic University of Valencia (PAID-01-24).
Thanks to this grant, Mario will be able to carry out his doctoral thesis entitled, “Synthesis of polylactide by reactive extrusion and plasticization with esters derived from natural resources”, which will be directed by Dr. Rafael Balart and Dr. Xavier Marset. Mario’s research will focus on the development of new sustainable processes to obtain polylactic acid (PLA), a biodegradable biopolymer with a wide application potential to replace conventional plastics. Through the use of reactive extrusion, he will seek to optimize PLA synthesis, while plasticization with esters derived from natural resources will improve its processing properties and mechanical performance.
This work is part of the commitment to research in advanced and sustainable materials, contributing to the progress towards a circular economy and the reduction of the environmental impact of plastic materials.
We congratulate Mario for this important achievement and wish him great success in this new academic and scientific stage.
