Gloria Rodríguez

Gloria Rodríguez Donoso, PhD in Chemical Sciences from the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM), is currently Professor of Materials Science and Engineering at the School of Industrial Engineering of Ciudad Real (University of Castilla-La Mancha, UCLM). As co-director of the Continuum Mechanics, Structures and Materials Engineering research group at the UCLM, Dr. Rodríguez Donoso leads research on sustainable processing methodologies of metallic materials with concentrated solar energy and on characterization, properties, and behaviour in service of metallic materials processed by additive manufacturing. Dr. Rodríguez Donoso also coordinates two science outreach projects: "Ingenious Women" and "Welcome to Materland”, which receive funding from the Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology (FECYT).

Dr. Rodríguez Donoso is an integral member of the executive team at the Spanish Society of Materials (SOCIEMAT) and has served on the Advisory Board for Science in Castilla-La Mancha since 2022, where she presides over the Women and Science Committee. Her contributions to academia and society have been acknowledged with various honors, including the Recognition for Teaching Innovation by the UCLM Social Council (2019), the Empowerment and Leadership Award 2021 from the City Council of Ciudad Real, and the Woman Researcher Award at the Castilla-La Mancha Research and Innovation Awards (2022).

Irene García Cano

Researcher ID: H-5090-2015
Código Orcid: 0000-0003-4947-5675

Industrial Engineer (1998 from the University of Zaragoza), PhD in Sciences from the Autonomous University of Madrid (2002) and currently Full Professor of the Department of Materials Science at the Universitat de Barcelona. Since the beginning of her scientific activity, she has published more than 100 scientific works, has led 9 doctoral theses and participated in projects of the Spanish National Plan and the European Union Program, having developed three patents and various industrial transfer agreements (14 trade secrets). She has designed and executed innovative lines of research linked with European priority lines, achieving a great deal of experience and international and national research connections. She has focused her research work on topics from raw materials and the structure-property relationship of metallic and ceramic materials up to coatings and their different fields of application. Since 2017, she leads the Thermal Spray Center (CPT), a group dedicated surface modification by thermal spray technology. The CPT is accredited as a consolidated SGR group (research) and TECNIO group (transferred knowledge) . Her teaching career is linked to the Universitat de Barcelona where she has participated in the degrees of Materials Engineering, Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, as well as in the Master of Materials Applied Chemistry. Since the beginning of 2021, she is Vice Dean of Transfer&Research of the Faculty of Chemistry.

RELEVANT MERITS (sorted by typology)

  • Publications: In the last 5 years, I have published 50 papers
  • Research projects: 10 competitive projects have been active during the last 5 years
  • Contracts, technological or transfer merits: From 2018, my research group has invoiced 900.000€ in transfer contracts and transferred 4 PhD to different companies.
  • Patents: In the last 10 years I have presented 4 patents and 12 industrial secrets

Ms. Anna Muesmann

After having obtained her degree at the University Anna Muesmann has been working in companies in  the  scientific-technological sector. For the last 17 years she has worked in SOCIEMAT as Executive Secretary.

Daniel Sola

Daniel Sola is Senior Researcher in the Aragonese Foundation for Research & Development (ARAID) at the Engineering Faculty of the University of Zaragoza. He was previously postdoctoral researcher in the Laboratorio de Optica of the University of Murcia (Spain), Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellow at the Technische Universität Dresden (Germany), and JAE-CSIC postdoctoral researcher at the Materials Physics Centre in San Sebastian (Spain).

His research field is currently related to the modification of ophthalmic polymers and ocular tissues by short and ultra-short laser radiation, and in materials characterization by Raman and laser spectroscopy. He has published more than 45 paper in SCI journals, and is co-author of 17 patents, 16 licensed by the German multinational Bosch und Siemens Hausgeräte (BSH). He has participated in 24 R&D projects, 6 as PI. He has presented his research in more than 50 conferences. He is author of 1 scholarly book, 1 edited book, 2 book chapters, and 3 journal covers in SCI Journals. In 2011 he was awarded the Extraordinary Doctoral Award of the University of Zaragoza and in 2017 the Seal of Excellence by the European Commission. He has been coordinator of the Erasmus+ Program with the University of Bordeaux and with the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences. He has given lectures in the University of Zaragoza, University of Vasque Country, University of Murcia and University of Bordeaux. Since 2017 he is member of the Executive Board of the Spanish Society of Materials, SOCIEMAT. 

Website: https://araid.es/en/users/dsola#profile-investigador

Teresa Guraya

Researcher ID: CTX-8722-2022
ORCID: 0000-0002-5025-8304
Website: emerg.es

Professor Teresa Guraya received her BE (Chemistry) degree from University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU) and completed her ME in 1990 and PhD research in 1995 at the University of Navarra, both in Metallugy. She then spent few years in CAF S.A. conducting research in the field of engineering materials for railroad stock. During that period, she worked in the areas of design, manufacturing and testing of a composite-based prototype body tram. On her return to university in 1998, Professor Guraya joined the Department of Mining and Metallurgical Engineering and Materials Science at UPV/EHU. Since then, she has been teaching courses in engineering materials, manufacturing technologies, welding and failure analysis. She has supervised several PhD thesis projects and tens of final year Degree and Master Projects of engineering students. At UPV/EHU, together with her PhD students and colleagues/collaborators, Professor Guraya conducts research studying structures of materials and examining behavior of materials during processing/manufacturing and under various (service) loading conditions. For the last 10 years, she has examined how the complex melting dynamics and thermal conditions affect the microdefect and microstructure formation during LPBF. Extensive studies have been carried out to reveal the grain formation and growth mechanisms under the conditions of very high cooling rates and very high thermal gradients during LPBF. She has also studied extensively the basic metallurgy of difficult to weld alloys. More recently, she started a new line on High Entropy Alloys, focused on alloys design, manufacturing process and physical and mechanical characterization. Professor Guraya leads eMERG (emerg.es), a small research group on materials engineering located at the School of Engineering of Bilbao (UPV/EHU). The group actively collaborates with other members of the “Basque Network for Research an Innovation (RVCTI)” and works very linked to the local metallurgical industry. eMERG funds their research work through regional and national calls, applying mostly for low TRL collaborative research projects. As PI, Professor Guraya has succeeded more than 25 research projects proposals, capturing more than 1.300.000 euros. She is coauthor in 5 patents, more than 50 research publications and tens of contributions to international and national conferences.

Paloma Fernández Sánchez

Dept. Física de Materiales, Fac. Ciencias Físicas, Universidad Complutense

I joined the Department of Materials Physics in 1986 as an assistant professor and since 2007 I am full professor in the  area of Materials Science and Metallurgical Engineering.

Along my career I have worked in different materials, although during the last years I am focused on oxides for optoelectronics, photocatalysis and sensing. I have published around 170 papers, more than 160 indexed. Of these, around 80% belong to Q1 of the corresponding area, and more than 90% to T1. My current index h is 27, with i10 of 86, and circa 3000 cites. I have made more than 160 contributions to national and international Congresses. Of the contributions made more than 50 have been oral communications and more than 20 guests or plenary.

I have actively participate in scientific societies, being member of Real Sociedad Española de Física, Sociedad de Microscopia Española y Sociedad Española de Materiales  where I have been President during the period January 2007-December 2016

I have also been Vice-president (2016-2017) and President ) (2018-2019) of the Federation of European Materials Societies (FEMS)

I have served as chair of several international conferences (EUROMAT 2009, 2013 and 2021; FIMPART 2018; NANO2022).

As main academic appointments I have been academic secretary of the department Física de Materiales, January 1993 to June 2010 and Representative of Departamento Física de Materiales in the Academic Commission (Facultad de Ciencias Físicas),  November 2018 to July 2010. Since 2011 I am responsible for the Physics and Chemistry Section (Máster de Formación de Profesorado de E.S.O. y Bachillerato, Formación Profesional y Enseñanzas de Idiomas de la Universidad Complutense

As one of my main interests are in the outreach and education field I have occupied several positions in different national and international committees an panels

  • Member of the Permanent Commission of the Projects ENCIENDE and ACIERTAS for the promotion of Science at School -Confederación de Sociedades Científicas de España (COSCE) since 2011.
  • Responsible for Materials Education symposia in FEMS-EUROMAT editions since 2015
  • Member of Advisory Board of International Materials Education Symposium (Granta & Cambridge University)

http://piloto.fis.ucm.es/paloma/

Email: arana@ucm.es

Juan José de Damborenea

Juan José de Damborenea González (Bilbao, 1958). Degree in Chemical Sciences by the Universidad Complutense Madrid (UCM, 1980), with a diploma thesis in the field of Metallurgy (1982). Doctorate in Chemistry by the UCM (1985) and BSc in Welding (Ministry of Education and Science, Madrid 1985). At 1982 he joined at the Corrosion and Protection Department of the National Centre for Metallurgical Research (CENIM-CSIC) where he has developed his scientific career. Research Fellow (1988) and Academic Visitor at Imperial Collage London and at the Universities of Campinas (Brazil) and Oriente (Santiago de Cuba). In 2008 he was appointed Deputy Vice-President for Scientific-Technical Areas of the CSIC, a position he held until 2012. He has been Executive Officer of the Federation of European Materials Societies (2009-2014) and is currently President of the Spanish Materials Society (SOCIEMAT).

Since 1982 his scientific activity has been focused on the field of Corrosion and Protection of metallic materials. He has directed and participated in numerous national and European research projects, always related to corrosion phenomena and surface modification techniques of materials to improve their resistance in aggressive environments. He is also co-author of more than one hundred and fifty research papers and numerous presentations at national and international conferences, always in the field of corrosion and protection. In 2022 he was recognised as an Honorary Fellow of the European Federation of Corrosion.

Anna Zervaki

Dr. Anna Zervaki is an Assistant Professor in the area of Metallic Materials and Welding Technology at the School of Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, Greece. Her research activities include: modern welding processes and simulation of the microstructural evolution of alloys during solidification, homogenization, aging, and welding; behavior of metallic materials in hydrogen rich environments; Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM); computational alloy thermodynamics and kinetics; simulation of heat treatment processes of alloys; friction stir welding of light alloys; corrosion behavior of alloys in harsh environments. She has extensive experience in the investigation of  failure mechanisms of mechanical components and structures. Her research has received support from the EU, the Greek Secretariat for Research and Technology (GSRT), and direct funding from industry. She is a co-author of over 90 papers published in international journals and conference proceedings, and has contributed to over 400 failure analysis reports, which were funded directly by industry. Additionally, she has participated in 20 European and national research projects, and has served as the Scientific Responsible in 7 of them.  She currently serves as the Immediate Past President of the Federation of European Materials Societies (FEMS).

Rodrigo Moreno

Rodrigo Moreno is Research Professor at Institute of Ceramics & Glass (Madrid, Spain). He is coauthor of more than 400 papers, 2 books and 10 book chapters, with about 11000 cites in Google Academy, h-index 49 and i10 index de 273. He has led and participated in more than 50 research projects and oriented 20 PhDs. He has participated in the Scientific Committee and Organizing Committee of more than 70 Congresses where he has given 60 invited and plenary talks. He was in the board of the JECS Trust and is now Vice-President of SOCIEMAT and board member of FEMS. He is Editor of the journal Material-ES, edited by SOCIEMAT, Senior Editor of the Journal of the European Ceramic Society and belongs to the board of other journals, such as Frontiers, Materials and the European Journal of Materials, the journal launched by FEMS. He is Fellow of ECERS and ACERS, Honorary Member of SOCIEMAT, member of the World Academy of Ceramics, and has been awarded with the Best Career in Materials by SOCIEMAT and the JECS Trust Award.

Prof. Dr. Antonio Salinas Sánchez (ES)

Director of the Research Group on Intelligent Biomaterials of the Complutense University of Madrid integrated in the CIBER-BBN and the IIS of the Hospital 12 de Octubre. He researches on the design and characterisation of nanostructured biomaterials based on bioceramics that promote bone tissue regeneration. Visiting Professor at the RMS Foundation in Switzerland and at the Universities of Modena, Paris, Florida and Aveiro. He is the author of more than 130 articles, 3 books, 12 book chapters and more than 140 communications. He has been cited more than 6,300 times, with an h-index of 45. He has delivered more than 40 keynote and invited lectures. He has participated in 33 research projects, in 15 as PI. Supervised 10 doctoral theses. Co-inventor of 2 patents. Organizer of symposia on biomaterials at the congresses of the European Federation of Materials Societies. Member of the editorial board of Biomolecules, Materials and guest editor of special issues of Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology, Chemistry Engineering Journal and Materials. Awarded the prize for the Rapid Fire at the World Congress on Biomaterials 2012 and since March 2024 he is a Full Member of the Royal National Academy of Pharmacy, Medal Number 13.

Dr. Faith Nightingale (UK)

Faith Nightingale is Director of Education at Queen Mary Engineering School, Xi’an, China where she also lectures in Professional Skills for Engineers. She is an award-winning educator, winning awards for her work in the development of professional skills in higher education. She has published works in the area of engineering education on topics including developing skills through an escape room challenge and using an engineering logbook as a record of professional development.

Faith has 14 years’ experience in higher education in transnational education contexts having worked in the Middle East and China. She is actively involved in scholarship activities in the areas of professional skills/graduate attributes, using technology in the classroom including virtual reality, and interdisciplinary education. She has presented at many conferences and events and has been an invited speaker at professional development events.

Faith is actively involved in several committees including the Engineering Professors Council, IOM3’s Scholarly Publications Committee and is the employability lead for the Centre for Research in Engineering and Materials Education at QMUL where she aims to enhance engineering education and professional skills in higher education.

Prof. Dr. Christof Sommitsch (AU)

Dr. Christof Sommitsch is a University Professor at Graz University of Technology in Austria. The focus of his research is on materials development of high strength, high-temperature as well as hydrogen-resistant steels, wire- and powder-based metal additive manufacturing of structural and functional materials, joining and forming of metals and materials modelling. He has co-authored close to 650 publications on these topics. He graduated at the Montanuniversität Leoben (1995) and earned his PhD degree in Materials Science from Graz University of Technology (1999) in Austria respectively. He has been with steel industry, i.e., Böhler Special Steels from 1999-2004 and served as the deputy head of Chair of Metal Forming at the Montanuniversität Leoben until 2009. He has been Head of the Institute of Materials Science, Joining and Forming at Graz University of Technology since 2009 and served as the Dean of Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Economic Sciences (2012-2015). He is member of several Boards of Directors in industry, research centers and universities. Dr. Sommitsch is Fellow of the School of Engineering at the University of Tokyo. His research has been supported by both, industry and national as well as European Research programs.

Dr.-Ing. Dirk Lehmhus (DE)

Dirk Lehmhus received his mechanical engineering diploma working on galvanic corrosion of magnesium alloys at Volkswagen’s central laboratory in Wolfsburg, Germany, in 1998. He joined Fraunhofer IFAM, the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Technology and Advanced Materials, the same year, studying metallic foams and structures based on these. He obtained a PhD at Bremen University for studies on optimization of aluminium foam production processes and properties. In May 2009, he changed to the University of Bremen to become managing director of its Scientific Centre ISIS (Integrated Solutions in Sensorial Structure Engineering) dedicated to the development of sensorial materials and sensor-equipped structures, the foundation of which he helped organise, while maintaining his association to Fraunhofer IFAM. Topics covered in this period include integration of sensors in cast as well as additively manufactured components. In January 2018, he returned to Fraunhofer IFAM as senior scientist in the department of casting technology and lightweight construction. Since 2009, he has regularly been involved in topic and symposium coordination at the Euromat and the MS&T conference series, with a special focus on materials for transport applications, additive manufacturing and metal casting. Besides, he helped initiate the International Conference on System-Integrated Intelligence (SysInt), and hosted it in Bremen in 2014 and 2020. Furthermore, he is a member of the Scientific Committee of the International Conference on Engineering Against Failure (ICEAF) conference series. Dirk Lehmhus is member of TMS and DGM, the German materials science association. He is furthermore member of the Editorial Board of the OpenAccess journals “Metals” and “Materials” and has so far published more than 70 scientific papers. His present research interests beyond metal casting and material-integrated intelligent systems include cellular metals and metallic foams, specifically metal matrix syntactic foams, powder metallurgical materials including composites and those produced by additive manufacturing techniques. Within the area of metal casting technology, besides sensor integration, his focus is on low and high pressure die casting (LPDC, HPDC), compound casting, integrated computational materials engineering (ICME) and digitalization aspects. At Fraunhofer IFAM, he is coordinating or participating in several public and industry funded research projects with a focus on casting of light alloys for surface transport applications.

Prof. Dr. Sandra Carvalho (PT)

Sandra Carvalho is Full Professor at University of Coimbra (UC). She obtained her PhD in Physics in 2004, with a work carried out in Portugal, France, Netherlands and Germany, in the field of hard PVD coatings.

After PhD her scientific activity has been focused on the development of coatings or thin films, as well as surface treatment to enhance the performance of various components. In this regard, she leads a Surface Modification and Functionalization group

Sandra is the scientific coordinator at UC of three Mobilizing Agendas for Business Innovation within the scope of the PRR – Portuguese Recovery and Resilience Facility launched by European Commission, involving more than 100 members (88 companies and 15 R&D institutions and 5 associations) and an investment for UC of €7 million. Sandra assumed is member from European Joint Committee on Plasma and Ion Surface Engineering and member from Executive Committee of Advanced Surface Engineering Division of the American Vacuum Society (AVS). She is President of Portuguese Materials Society (SPM) since 2023. Sandra serves as vice-director of the FCTUC, with responsibilities in Research, Innovation, and Knowledge Transfer.

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Thomas Niendorf (DE)

Dr.-Ing. Thomas Niendorf is Full Professor at the Institute of Materials Engineering at University of Kassel (Germany) since October 2015. Dr. Niendorf studied Mechanical Engineering at University of Paderborn (Germany). In 2010 he did his doctorate.

Dr. Niendorf’s research interests are in the interrelationships of process, microstructure, mechanical properties and reliability of metallic materials. Analysis of residual stresses, microstructure evolution and fatigue performance are key aspects of his research projects. Materials in focus are steels, aluminum alloys, high-temperature materials, shape memory alloys (SMAs) as well as hybrid materials.

Research activities in the field of additive manufacturing (AM) comprise powder bed techniques (L-PBF and E-PBF) as well as laser metal deposition. Realization of microstructurally graded samples for improved functionality as well as thorough characterization of integrity and reliability of AM components are Dr. Niendorf’s actual fields of research in AM and 4D-printing, respectively.

Dr. Niendorf published more than 300 peer-reviewed papers in renowned journals. Furthermore, he holds several patents and has been invited speaker in many conferences. For his young career achievements he received several distinguished awards, e.g. the Heinz Maier-Leibnitz-Award by German Research Foundation.

Prof. Dr. Joanna Wojewoda-Budka (PO)

Ph.D. D.Sc. Joanna Wojewoda-Budka
Institute of Metallurgy and Materials Science,
Polish Academy of Sciences
Director of the Institute
Head of the Multilayers Department
25 Reymonta St.,
30-059 Krakow, Poland

e-mail: j.wojewoda@imim.pl
phone: +48 784 057 095

Joanna Wojewoda-Budka is an Associate Professor at the Institute of Metallurgy and Materials Science and since 2019 she is also a Director of the Institute. She is General Secretary of the Polish Society for Materials Science 2021-2024 and a Member of the Committee on Materials Engineering and Metallurgy of the Polish Academy of Sciences.

Her scientific activities were dedicated to the diffusion phenomena at the interconnections dedicated to electronics, the metal-ceramic composites formed due to the metal-oxide high temperature reactivity, joining technologies such as diffusion soldering, explosive welding, as well as new coatings materials.

She is co-author of about 90 journal articles (>75 indexed in ISI) and several book chapters. She has a strong links with industry as a researcher and principal investigator of about 30 national and international research projects.

She was awarded by NATO scholarship, "Start" Scholarship for Young Scientists of the Foundation for Polish Science, Scientific scholarship from the Ministry of Science and Higher Education for outstanding young scientists. The President of Poland awarded her with the Silver Cross of Merit for scientific activity in the development of science in 2017 and Knight's Cross of Polonia Restituta Order for all the scientific achievements in 2023.

Prof. Dr. Greg Haidemenopoulos (GR)

Gregory N. Haidemenopoulos, is Professor of Physical Metallurgy and Director of the Laboratory of Materials (LoM) at the Department of Mechanical Engineering of the University of Thessaly, Greece since 1992. He received his PhD in Metallurgy, MSc in Metallurgy, and MSc in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering from MIT (USA).

His research is concerned with the application of computational alloy  thermodynamics and kinetics (CALPHAD Approach) for alloy design with applications in the design of extrudable aluminum alloys and the design of medium-Mn steels. He has also been active in the area of hydrogen trapping and embrittlement of high-strength aluminum alloys.

In addition to teaching and research, he has provided consulting services to industry in the fields of process design, failure analysis, and materials selection. He has served, for several years, as an expert for the European Commission’s  RFCS and HORIZON  research programs.

He has supervised several PhD students and has earned the University of Thessaly's Mechanical Engineering Departmental Best Teaching Award for the years 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2014, 2015, 2022 and 2023.

He is Member of Editorial Board of European Journal of Materials (T&F-FEMS), Welding International (T&F),  Materials (MDPI).

He has published a textbook entitled “Physical Metallurgy: Principles and Design” (T&F - CRC Press), translated also in chinese, 10 book chapters, 100 papers in refereed journals, and presented many keynote and invited lectures worldwide.

Prof. Dr. Francesco Baldi (IT)

F. Baldi is Associate Professor in Materials Science and Technology at the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering of the University of Brescia. Graduated in Chemical Engineering in 1998, he worked in R&D department of an Italian company (Turin, I) that produces instruments for the mechanical and rheological characterization of polymeric materials. In 2002 he moved to the University of Brescia.

His research activity is mainly experimental, and concerns: 1) Mechanics of polymeric materials: fracture mechanics testing methodologies for the determination of fracture resistance parameters; large deformation behaviour; structure-property relationships in micro- and nano-composites. 2) Rheology of polymeric materials: capillary rheometry; rheological behaviour of polymer melts filled with rigid particles; instability phenomena. 3) Polymer processing: relationships between processing conditions, structure and mechanical properties in components manufactured by innovative techniques.

Member of the Technical Committee 4 “Polymers, Polymer Composites and Adhesives” of the European Structural Integrity Society, ESIS (coordinator of the “Jc testing” work-area). Member of the working group “Fracture and fatigue behaviour”, WG7, of the subcommittee “Mechanical behaviour”, SC2, of the technical committee “Plastics” of ISO. Associate of the Institute of Intelligent Industrial Technologies and Systems for Advanced Manufacturing of the National Research Council of Italy.

Prof. Dr. Donatella Giuranno (IT)

She is Senior researcher at National Research Council of Italy-Institute of Condensed Matter Chemistry and Energy Technologies. Ph.D. in Chemical Process Engineering and Degree in Chemical Engineering. She is Leader of the R&D activities related to the "Design of metal systems and composite materials for high temperature applications". By a H2020 MSCA-Cofund project, she spent one year abroad with the scope to optimize composites fabrication for highly demanding applications. She is expert on studying on thermophysical properties of liquid metal systems, interfaces of dissimilar materials and related interaction phenomena, such as adhesion and reactivity at solid and liquid state, corrosion by liquid metals, optimization of liquid assisted processes, such as soldering, infiltration, coatings, liquid phase sintering, etc. Currently she is mainly focused on the design of metal-based PCM materials for developing Thermal Energy Storage and Thermal Energy Management, in the framework of a HE EIC Pathfinder Challenges Project and in parallel on developing ISRU for successfully fabricate building materials on the Lunar Surface. Based on such competencies, she collaborates actively both with European Space Agency (ESA) and Italian Space Agency (ASI) even by partecipating at several projects focused on studying liquid metals under microgravity conditions.

Dr. David Mercier (FR)

Dr. David MERCIER completed his PhD in material science and engineering at the University of Grenoble (France) in 2012, specializing in the design of thin films tailored for applications in microelectronics. His journey then led him to enriching experiences through impactful postdoctoral research projects conducted in Germany (MPIE) and Belgium (CRM Group) between 2013 and 2018. During this period, his focus shifted to the realm of metallurgy, where he dedicated his efforts to multiscale modeling and the characterization of mechanical properties using cutting-edge techniques like nanoindentation. Notably, David played an active role in advancing nanoindentation data processing routines, showcasing his contributions on his GitHub page (https://github.com/DavidMercier). In 2018, David joined the UK company Granta Design, where he spearheaded collaborative initiatives with academics on materials education. After the acquisition of Granta Design by Ansys Inc., David transitioned into a pivotal role at the Office of the CTO as a Senior Collaborative R&D Project Manager. He has been at the forefront of leading European-funded projects, focusing on the development of innovative software solutions, particularly in the field of Integrated Computational Materials Engineering (ICME) and Material Informatics.

Prof. Dr. Gesa Beck (DE)

Prof. Dr. Gesa Beck is a chemist with a PhD in natural science. Her work focusses on the development of sustainable recycling solutions for difficult waste types (e.g. electronic waste or composites) as well as sustainability and criticality assessments. Currently, she is the Vice-President for Sustainable Development as well as the Director of the Institute of Applied Resource Strategies (IARS) and Professor for Environmental Engineering at SRH Berlin University of Applied Sciences (Berlin, Germany). Furthermore, she is the managing director and co-funder of the Berlin based startup ABCircular GmbH where sustainable recycling solutions for electronic waste are installed and sustainability trainings and consulting are offered. From 2015 till 2022 she was also the head of the Fraunhofer Applied Center for “Resource efficiency “ARess” at the Fraunhofer Research Institute for Materials Recycling and Resource Strategies IWKS and between 2015 and 2019 Professor for „Resource-efficient construction“ at the Technical University of Aschaffenburg and between 2013 and 2015 Professor for „Chemistry of Materials and Resources“ at the Chair of Resource Strategies at the University of Augsburg.

Prof. dr. ir. Annabel Braem (BE)

Annabel Braem is associate professor (since 2023) at the KU Leuven Department of Materials Engineering, Belgium, as part of the research group on Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering. She has been appointed as post-doctoral researcher (in 2012) and assistant professor (in 2017) at the same department. Annabel obtained her PhD in Engineering Science from KU Leuven, Belgium, in 2012 for which she received the 2014 EPMA Powder Metallurgy Best PhD Dissertation Award. She teaches courses on biomaterials in the master programmes of Materials Engineering and Biomedical Engineering at KU Leuven.

Annabel Braem’s research is situated at the tangent of materials engineering and biomedical sciences aiming to develop hybrid organic/inorganic biomaterials that are able to deliver bioactive substances at the implant surface across multiple time and length scales. The focus is on ceramic additive manufacturing and surface modification techniques that enable controlled release or immobilization of biomolecules. Annabel authored over 60 papers with an h-index of 20 (WoS). She is currently (co-)supervising 9 PhDs (in addition to 2 defended PhDs). Annabel serves as president-elect of the Belgian Ceramic Society and chair-elect of the American Ceramic Society Bioceramics Division. She is a member of the Advisory Editorial Board of Applied Surface Science. 

Prof. Dr. Theodora Kyratsi (CY)

Dr. Theodora Kyratsi is Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering at the University of Cyprus (UCY). She holds a first degree in Physics, M.Sc. in Physics of Materials and Ph.D. in Physics and Materials Science from the Department of Physics at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece. Before she joined UCY, she was researcher at the Department of Chemistry in Michigan State University, USA. She is the head of the Powder Technology Laboratory since 2004. Today, her research activities include synthesis of energy-related materials, thermoelectric materials, materials for CO2 storage, nanomaterials and nanocomposites, powder technology – ball milling, consolidation techniques, and additive manufacturing of metals. She has been the principal investigator in projects funded by the Cyprus Research Promotion Foundation and the EU focusing on the development/optimization of thermoelectric materials (i.e. silicides, half Heusler, chalcogenides) as well as 3D printing of metallic powder via SLM. Furthermore, she has been participant in the ICARUS and THERMOMAG projects funded from EU as well as several COST Actions.

Prof. Dr. Arnaldo Moreno (ES)

He is Full Professor at the University Jaume I of Castellón. His professional career is linked to the Institute of Ceramic Technology, which he joined in January 1987, an entity recognized as a model of collaboration between a Research Center and the ceramic industry. His trajectory has focused on Ceramic Technology, and has been developed through participation in numerous R&D projects funded by private companies and by regional, Spanish, and European administrations. Among the topics of his research work, it is worth highlighting: raw materials, ceramic compositions, stages of the manufacturing process of ceramic products, heat transfer mechanisms in dryers and kilns, frits, glaze properties, glaze application process, melting and sintering, new decoration and shaping processes of ceramic products, and functional coatings of ceramic tiles.

He has participated in two R&D networks funded by the European Commission (Network of Excellence “Knowledge-based Multicomponent Materials for Durable and Safe Performance”) and by the Department of Business, University and Science of the Valencia Government (Network for the application of nanotechnologies in materials and products for construction and habitat. He is Technical Director of the “European virtual institute on knowledge-based multifunctional materials” and the Chair of the Spain Chapter of the American Ceramic Society.

Prof. Dr. Francisca G. Caballero (ES)

Prof. Ms. Francisca G. Caballero is Research Professor at the Spanish National Centre for Metals Research (CENIM-CSIC) since 2018. She obtained her Ph.D. in Physics from the Complutense University of Madrid in 1999 for studying solid-solid phase transformations in steels during reheating. From 1997 to 2000, she worked as a research associate at the University of Cambridge in UK on the design of carbide-free bainitic steels. She has held a visiting scientist position at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Oak Ridge-TN-USA since 2004. Additionally, between 2013 and 2014 she has been the Deputy Director of Science at CENIM, and Vice-Rector for Postgraduate Studies and Research at Menendez Pelayo International University between 2014 and 2018. From 2018 to 2021 she has worked for Elsevier Inc as Editor-in-Chief of the Encyclopedia of Materials: Metals and Alloys published in 2021. Prof. Caballero’s current research objective is to understand the relationship among the steel processing, its structure and its mechanical properties. In this regard, she investigates the transformation mechanisms, characterize the structure of the material from the micro to the nano-scale describing the physics and chemistry that govern the processes of transformation of steel and its properties under real conditions of use.

H. MATERIALS FOR CIRCULARITY AND SUSTAINABILITY

Area

H. MATERIALS FOR CIRCULARITY AND SUSTAINABILITY

Area CoordinatorS


  • Prof. Dr. Arnaldo Moreno
    Instituto Universitario de Tecnología Cerámica (IUTC) (ES)

  • Prof. Dr. Gesa Beck
    Berlin University of Applied Sciences (DE)

H1 – Recycling of critical materials from WEEE including battery recycling

Description

Due to increasing population and rising usage of electrical and electronic products, secondary resources draw attention both from economic and environmental perspectives. Waste of Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) is a complex type of waste containing different materials such as ceramics, glass, ferrous and nonferrous metals and polymers.

The symposium will deal with all aspects of WEEE recycling and recovery of critical, strategical and precious materials. The detoxification of waste streams, as well as the improvement of yields and qualities of the recycling processes, shall be addressed. Furthermore, the symposium will cover recycling of batteries including sorting, mechanical and thermal pretreatment, hydro and pyrometallurgical approaches.

The potential of modern, fully automated multisensor systems in combination with artificial intelligence, material, and product databases will be addressed as well as alternative approaches such as thermal and chemical recycling that also can be solutions to separate complex composite materials. It includes mitigation of energy use and reduction of emissions (CO2) and all measures to optimize the material circularity index and environmental impact.

Targeted topics

  • Recovery of Cu and precious metals from WEEE
  • Recovery of critical and strategical metals from WEEE
  • Environmentally friendly recycling technologies
  • Pyrolysis of batteries
  • Life cycle assessment
  • New sorting technologies
  • Zero waste approaches
  • Recycling of REE-bearing materials
  • Molten Salt Electrolysis of REEs

OrganizerS


  • Prof. Gesa Beck
    SRH Berlin University of Applied Sciences Ansys (DE)

  • Dr. Mertol Gökelma
    Izmir Institute of Technology (TR)

  • Prof. Jordi Payá Bernabeu
    Universidad Politécnica de Valencia (ES)

  • Dr. Artur Braun
    Empa (CH)

H2 – Circular economy in the construction and ceramic industry

Abstract

This session explores the growing fields of structural element re-use as well as the use of sustainable raw materials within the context of sustainable construction. Challenges and opportunities associated with re-using elements from existing buildings, focusing on best practices in design, quality assurance, and material performance will be discussed. Attendees will gain insight into how re-use can reduce environmental impact, improve cost-efficiency, and drive innovation in structural engineering. On the other hand, key aspects related to the benefits of using secondary raw materials in the construction sector such as reduction of environmental impact, energy efficiency, waste minimization, energy consumption reduction or economic sustainability, will also be addressed. The session will highlight real-world applications and future trends, appealing to engineers, architects, and sustainability professionals

Scope

The session aims to provide an interdisciplinary overview of structural element re-use and secondary raw materials use in building design and construction. Key topics will include the technical and regulatory challenges involved in re-using elements and secondary raw materials, how to integrate these materials into new designs, and strategies for ensuring safety and quality. Benefits of extending the life cycle of materials, while also discussing the broader environmental and economic impacts will be explored too. The session will serve as a platform for collaboration between researchers, industry experts, and practitioners.

Description

Structural element re-use and secondary raw materials use are emerging practices in the construction industry, offering both environmental and economic benefits. This session will delve into the technical, regulatory, and design considerations that arise when incorporating previously used elements into new structures. Discussion will be focused, on one hand, on how to effectively integrate re-used materials into the design process, ensuring that they meet modern performance standards and align with building codes, and, on the other hand, on how secondary raw materials can be introduced as components of construction materials meeting performance standards and assuring quality and safety levels.

In this respect, a major focus will be on quality assurance processes, which are critical for ensuring the structural integrity and durability of construction materials and re-used elements. The session will address methods for testing and certifying materials, as well as guidelines for inspecting their condition.

In addition to technical aspects, the broader context of sustainability, examining how re-using structural elements and using secondary raw materials contributes to reducing construction waste, conserving resources, and minimizing carbon footprints, will be explored. The session will feature case studies that demonstrate the successful implementation of re-used materials in both small and large-scale projects, highlighting the potential for innovation in this field.

Targeted topics

  • Recycling of ceramic waste in the construction sector
  • Construction and demolition waste
  • Eco-Friendly manufacturing processes
  • Benefits of re-using structural elements in construction
  • Design integration and regulatory considerations for re-used materials upstream and downstream
  • Quality assurance, testing, and certification processes
  • Life cycle analysis and environmental impact of re-used elements and secondary raw materials
  • Case studies and challenges in structural re-use
  • Role of re-use in sustainable design and the circular economy
  • Cost-efficiency and economic implications of material re-use Digital tools and innovation in structural element re-use

OrganizerS


  • Prof. Arnaldo Moreno Berto
    IUTC ((ES)

  • Prof. Patrick Teuffel
    SRH Berlin University of Applied Sciences Ansys (DE)

  • Prof. Cristina Siligardi
    Università degli studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia (IT)

H3 – Carbon-Capture technologies, polymeric and bio-based materials in circular economyion control

Scope

The scope of this symposium is to present updates on the use of waste streams of our society (CO2, plastic, biomass) as a renewable source of raw materials. Reusing polymers or biopolymers, retrieving building blocks from CO2 or biomass and recycling are all new solutions that our society needs to implement in order to reduce its environmental impact. This call for abstracts aims at collecting the most recent updates on the enabling technologies that are needed for this transition.

Description

We are currently facing the effects of climate change and inappropriate use of natural resources through increasing global warming, flooding and environmental pollution (air and water). CO2 is strongly contributing to this general trend and reducing the carbon emissions and footprint is the challenging issue worldwide. Besides, waste management, bio-sourcing, and green processes will promote the circularity of production and consumption (by using waste as a renewable source of raw materials) while reaching the net zero CO2 emissions.  The present symposium wishes to highlight approaches which can be used to limit carbon emissions or contribute to carbon sequestration. Indeed, innovations and recent works on recycling and green productions of polymers (for example plastics), valorization of waste into composite of building blocks and composites (eco-materials) will be encouraged. Another issue is to promote close international collaboration between scientists, industry, and relevant authorities and agencies.

Targeted topics

List of topics and subtopics (no more than 15)

  • Green bio-sourced additives for eco-materials processing
  • Novel approaches for carbon capture and storage
  • Sustainable waste valorization and circular economy framework
  • Recycling of plastics and plastic-based-products
  • Recycling of synthetic and bio-based composites
  • Advanced characterization techniques for recycled materials and recyclability
  • Life Cycle Assessments and scalability of new bio-based materials.
  • Building blocks from waste (CO2, biomass)
  • Biorefinery approaches at valorization
  • New solvent system for waste valorization (DES, IL)
  • Materials Designed for Recycling
  • Green Chemistry methods for Carbon Capture
  • Green Chemistry methods for Plastic Recycling and Waste Valorization

OrganizerS


  • Dr. Gisèle Lecomte
    ENSIL – ENSCI Université de Limoges (FR)

  • Prof. Satyanarayana Narra
    University of Rostock (DE)

  • Dr. Giovanni Perotto
    Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (IT)

H4 – Sustainable Production and Processing of Metals

Scope

This symposium focuses on fundamental research in sustainable metallurgy, particularly in the production and processing of ferrous and non-ferrous metals, to drive a paradigm shift in the metal industry and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Description

Metals are the backbone of modern society, essential for various applications, such as infrastructure, construction, automotive, and aerospace, etc. Additionally, they are necessary for the emerging global transition toward green and clean energy. The metal industry, despite its crucial role, faces significant sustainability challenges, particularly due to the energy- and CO2-intensive production processes, often connected to the usage of fossil energy carriers. To achieve the transition toward sustainable metal industry, metals must be produced in cleaner ways and circular economy principles need to be implemented by exploiting different R-strategies (recycling, re-use, re-manufacturing, etc.). To address this paradigm shift, it is imperative to urgently investigate and understand the fundamental phenomena of sustainable metallurgy processes. For this matter, this symposium addresses various aspects along the metal production and processing chain.

Targeted topics

  • Sustainable metallurgy approaches of ferrous and nonferrous metals using renewable energy resources, e.g., renewable hydrogen, electricity, and biomass, etc.
  • Novel alloy design strategies, which enable the circularity of metals through recycling, re-use, and re-manufacturing (R-strategies)
  • Fundamental understanding of physical, chemical, and mechanical phenomena in sustainable metallurgical processes
  • Theory-based computational prediction and optimization of sustainable metallurgical processes

Applications of life cycle assessment as a tool for sustainable metal design, production, and processing

OrganizerS


  • Dr. Alexander Gramlich
    RWTH Aachen University (DE)

  • Dr. Yan Ma
    Delft University of Technology (NL)

  • Dr. Hesham Ahmed
    Luleå University of Technology, Sweden

  • Dr. Laurine Choisez
    UC Louvain, Belgium

H5 – Digitalization for Circularity

Scope

The European Union has prioritised the Circular Economy (CE) as a key driver of sustainable growth, aiming to decouple economic progress from the consumption of finite resources. In this context, digital technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT), blockchain, and big data are increasingly recognised as crucial tools in enabling the transformation to a circular economy. These technologies offer innovative solutions for optimizing resource use, improving transparency, and enabling circular material flows across industries. This symposium will provide a platform for researchers, industry leaders, and policymakers to explore how digital technologies can support the goals of the Circular Economy Action Plan, fostering collaboration between academia and industry.

Description

Digital technologies are set to be pivotal in advancing the Circular Economy by reshaping how materials are produced, consumed, and recovered. By facilitating innovations such as lean and closed-loop manufacturing, smart factories, and the implementation of R strategies (reduce, reuse, recycle), digitalisation offers significant opportunities to achieve resource efficiency and sustainability. This symposium will focus on the current opportunities and challenges presented by the digital transformation, exploring its role as a foundational enabler of the Circular Economy. Participants will engage in discussions on how digital tools and technologies can be leveraged to design, monitor, and implement Circular Economy strategies across sectors.

Targeted Topics:

  1. AI-Driven Material Innovation for Circularity
  2. Digital Platforms for Circular Supply Chain Management
  3. Predictive Maintenance and Sustainability through Digital Twins
  4. Circular Sustainable Business Models Enabled by Digital Tools
  5. Enhancing Waste Valorisation and Material Recovery using IoT and AI
  6. Sustainability Metrics and Circularity Indicators through Big Data
  7. AI for Sustainable Product Design and Manufacturing
  8. Smart Packaging Solutions for Sustainability and Materials Circularity
  9. Blockchain for Circular Product Lifecycle Management

OrganizerS


  • Prof. Emanuel Ionescu
    Fraunhofer IWKS (DE)

  • Dr. Moritz to Baben
    GTT Technologies (DE)

  • Dr. Luís Pérez Villarejo
    Universidad de Jaén (ES)

  • Dr. Kiran Gulian
    Uni Wolverhampton (UK)

H6 – Materials Circularity for Sustainability

Scope

The European Union has prioritised the Circular Economy (CE) as a key driver of sustainable growth, aiming to decouple economic progress from the consumption of finite resources. In this context, digital technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT), blockchain, and big data are increasingly recognised as crucial tools in enabling the transformation to a circular economy. These technologies offer innovative solutions for optimizing resource use, improving transparency, and enabling circular material flows across industries. This symposium will provide a platform for researchers, industry leaders, and policymakers to explore how digital technologies can support the goals of the Circular Economy Action Plan, fostering collaboration between academia and industry.

Description

Digital technologies are set to be pivotal in advancing the Circular Economy by reshaping how materials are produced, consumed, and recovered. By facilitating innovations such as lean and closed-loop manufacturing, smart factories, and the implementation of R strategies (reduce, reuse, recycle), digitalisation offers significant opportunities to achieve resource efficiency and sustainability. This symposium will focus on the current opportunities and challenges presented by the digital transformation, exploring its role as a foundational enabler of the Circular Economy. Participants will engage in discussions on how digital tools and technologies can be leveraged to design, monitor, and implement Circular Economy strategies across sectors.

Targeted Topics:

  1. AI-Driven Material Innovation for Circularity
  2. Digital Platforms for Circular Supply Chain Management
  3. Predictive Maintenance and Sustainability through Digital Twins
  4. Circular Sustainable Business Models Enabled by Digital Tools
  5. Enhancing Waste Valorisation and Material Recovery using IoT and AI
  6. Sustainability Metrics and Circularity Indicators through Big Data
  7. AI for Sustainable Product Design and Manufacturing
  8. Smart Packaging Solutions for Sustainability and Materials Circularity
  9. Blockchain for Circular Product Lifecycle Management

OrganizerS


  • Prof. José Monzó Balbuena
    Universidad Politécnica de Valencia (ES)

  • Prof. Monica Ferraris
    Politecnico di Torino (IT)

  • Prof. Giovanni Dotelli
    Politecnico di Milano Italy