Distinguished seminar: “Preparation of adsorbents using waste biomass and analysis of their surface properties in environmental and energy applications”

On March 5th, Adrian Bonilla-Petriciolet, Research Professor at the Instituto Tecnológico de Aguascalientes (Mexico), will visit IMDEA Energía to give the seminar “Preparation of adsorbents using residual biomass and analysis of their surface properties in environmental and energy applications”.

This presentation will describe the application of residual biomasses in the preparation of new adsorbents, which can be used in the removal of environmental pollutants and storage and purification of energy. Three case studies will be discussed: a) the development of a new route for the activation of lanthanum-modified carbon surfaces using carbon dioxide at room temperature and its impact on the removal of arsenic in water, b) the preparation of adsorbents obtained from lignocellulosic biomasses and modified with lithium for hydrogen storage, c) the purification of biodiesel contaminated with metallic species using an adsorbent prepared with bovine bone residues. For the three case studies, the strategy used to identify and improve the adsorbent preparation conditions, the evaluation of its separation/purification performance and the characterization of its main physicochemical properties will be described.

About the speaker

Adrián Bonilla Petriciolet is a Doctor of Science in Chemical Engineering attached to the Chemical Engineering Department of the Instituto Tecnológico de Aguascalientes, Mexico and a regular member of the Mexican Academy of Sciences. His research interests include Phase Equilibrium Thermodynamics, Adsorption Processes for water treatment and compound separation, Global and multi-objective process optimization and Process Systems Engineering for biofuels. His scientific production includes 285 articles in indexed scientific journals (JCR), 24 book chapters and the co-edition of 5 books. He is Academic Editor of the journals “Adsorption Science and Technology” and “International Journal of Chemical Engineering”, and regular referee for > 200 international scientific journals. He has carried out research stays in different institutions and universities in America, Europe and Asia. He has graduated 12 Doctors of Science, 35 Masters of Science and 4 Engineering students, and has supervised 9 postdoctoral stays.

He has been director and collaborator in more than 30 research projects with funding from the European Union (Horizon Program), Organization of Iberoamerican States, and funds from public organizations in Mexico. He has been project evaluator for Agence Nationale de la Recherche (France) and Agencia Nacional de Promoción Científica y Tecnológica (Argentina), Swiss National Science Foundation (Switzerland), Consejo Nacional de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación Tecnológica (Peru), Department of Energy (USA), Dutch Research Council (Netherlands) and several CONACYT programs (Mexico). He has been external reviewer of master’s and doctoral theses at Universidad de la Sabana (Colombia), Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (India), Anna University (India), Periyar University (India), Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (Spain), as well as Mexican universities. He has been an evaluator for the Council for Quality Assurance in Higher Education of Ecuador, the Mexican Academy of Sciences and the Council for Accreditation of Engineering Education in Mexico. He is coordinator of the Iberoamerican Network for the valorization and sustainable use of biomass (IBERBIOMASA), which is recognized and financed by the Organization of Iberoamerican States.