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  3. Jesús Tapiador
Jesús Tapiador Cebrián studied Chemistry in the Universidad Complutense de Madrid, where also studied the master Ciencias y Tecnologías Químicas. In the research field, he carried out the final Project of degree “Polinuclear complexes (M and M’: Transition metals) with bicompartmental Schiff Bases ligands, by different synthesis method” in the Nanoparticles from molecular precurses group. In this group also realized the final project of master “incorporation of homo- and heterometallic complexes with Schiff Base ligands as extended network tectons”.
After his graduation, he focused his research in the synthesis and characterization of new polinuclear molecular species with different Schif Bases ligands, studying the magnetic, electronic, catalytic and luminescence properties, as well as the structural determination of these organometallic compounds through the monocristal X ray diffraction technique.
Currently, he is developing his doctoral thesis in the Ingeniería Química y Ambiental group of the Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, where he carries out the design of MOFs COFs hybrid materials for the CO2 capture and conversion in added value chemical compounds.
  • Hybrid MOF catalysts development for glycerol valorization

    Funding : Universidad Rey Juan Carlos ()
    Start / End Years : 2023 - 2023
    Principal Investigator : Orcajo Rincón, Gisela
    Research Team : - Calleja Pardo, Guillermo - García Rojas, Elena - Leo Llorente, Pedro - Martos Sánchez, Carmen - Orcajo Rincón, Gisela - Paredes Martínez, Beatriz - Tapiador Cebrián, Jesús 

      Show summary: In the current energy-demanding world and emissions-restrictive scenario, biofuels also play an important role in decarbonization, mainly in transportation, buildings and industry. The global production of biodiesel is still growing, generating a massive amount of glycerol as by-product at a rate of 10-12% of biodiesel and a purity of about 50-55%. The global glycerol market size was valued at USD 2.4 billion in 2020 and is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.4% in terms of revenue from 2021 to 2027. Alternatives are especially interesting if the use of crude glycerol is enabled without the need of further purification, so new chemical conversion routes need to be explored. Among these alternatives, acetalization reactions stand out as a process that can adhere to the principles of Green Chemistry and can be catalyzed by a heterogeneous catalyst. Acetals are traditionally produced from aldehydes and alcohols in the presence of typical acid catalysts such as dry HCl, H2SO4, trifluoroacetic acid, and p-toluenesulfonic acid. Recently, successful, and efficient acetalization reactions have also been reported using heterogeneous catalysts such as Amberlyst-15 and Amberlyst-36, silica-supported heteropoly acids, mesoporous silicates containing arylsulfonate groups and zeolites. However, none of these catalysts can simultaneously contain structural Lewis and Brønsted acid sites, which is a suitable catalytic feature for acetalization reactions. The main objective of this project is to find an efficient system to transform glycerol into high-value products by using advanced catalysts that improves the state of the art about acetalization of glycerol, using heterogeneous, active and selective novel catalysts. These advanced catalysts will be hybrid materials based on MOFs and mesoporous silica that would enhance the physical and chemical properties of the MOF phase, decreasing the economic costs of the catalyst production.

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