Maria Fernández-Espada Pastor

Ingénieur de Recherche at IFP Energies nouvelles

Solaize, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, France

About

During the completion of my PhD and subsequent postdoc I gained expertise in organic and organometallic synthesis, and in homogeneous catalysis. The development of the research projects that I managed required not only the strategic design and synthesis of new organic ligands and substrates, but also the manipulation of very sensitive organometallic compounds, from their synthesis to the final purification and characterization. After a long period working in fundamental research, in the second part of my professional career I moved to a more industrially focused type of research, seeking for more practical and concrete challenges. My actual company, IFPEnergies nouvelles, is a French and world leader in research and development in the field of energies. Since I started working in this company I have been involved in several renewable and recycling projects (biomass, plastic, and textile recycling), going from laboratory-scale development up to pilot-scale optimization of new chemical processes. Working in the Separation Department gave me broad experience and specialization in the unitary operations required for the purification and separation of the species contained in a reactional mixture, until delivering a product of the appropriated degree of purity. On top of my scientific background and technical skills, I have also acquired broad experience in team-work and project management, working in multidisciplinary teams and managing small teams of technicians and students. This experience made me cooperative and reliable as well as a very enthusiastic and flexible person, quick to pick up new ideas and skills. I am always seeking for new challenges, I am interested in the field of biochemistry, medicinal chemistry, as well as environmental projects that goes after solving some of the very serious problems that our society is facing at the moment.

Experience

  • Ingénieur de Recherche at IFP Energies nouvelles
    Feb 2018 - Present · 8 yrs 5 mos

    Main projects: - Biomass Valorisation - Plastic Recycling - Textile Recycling - Synthesis of Supported Organometallic Catalysts for Application in Olefin Oligomerization

  • Voluntariado at Career Break
    Jan 2024 - Jul 2024 · 7 mos

    Volunteering work for sustainable development in armed conflict areas, in collaboration with local NGO's (ACVC-RAN) with 28 years of experience in the area, for the human rights and sustainable development of the local economy. The project aimed the production of citronella essential oil, as a boost for the local economy of the rural areas (south of Santander, south of Bolivar and north of Antioquia), and the introduction of the citronella as an economically competitive alternative to illegal crops. Particularly, my role in the project was mainly focused on the installation, optimization and launching of a distillation unit for the vapor-solid extraction of the citronella essential oil. The unit was placed in an isolated small village, named Puerto Matilde.

  • Postdoctoral Researcher at CNRS - Centre national de la recherche scientifique
    Oct 2016 - Feb 2018 · 1 yr 5 mos

    Dinitrogen Activation and Functionalization Mediated by Mo and Fe Centers.

  • PhD/Postdoc at Universidad de Sevilla
    Sep 2011 - Nov 2015 · 4 yrs 3 mos

  • Visiting PHD Student at Monash University
    Aug 2013 - Nov 2013 · 4 mos

    Synthesis of Low Oxidation State/Low Coordination Number First Row Transition Metal Complexes and their Application to Small Molecule Activations.