The ISGS PhD Thesis Award, first launched in 2018, was created to distinguish PhD theses representing outstanding contributions to scientific and/or technological knowledge in the field of sol-gel chemistry and related fields.
The Award Committee for the 2023 competition was composed of Professor Sara Aldabe Bilmes, Dr. Raghavan Subasri, and Dr. Xavier Cattoën.
Five nominations were received for the ISGS PhD Thesis Award 2023. According to the members of the Award Committee, the five theses are of very high quality and reflect the degree of maturity of materials synthesis by sol-gel methods, even though many synthetic unknowns remain to be solved. It was very difficult for the Committee to rank the subtle differences between the first three theses selected for the award, which were by Virginia Venezia, Gabriel Toshiyaki Tayama, and Samantha L. Flores López. The Committee emphasized all three are excellent: they address new synthesis routes, introduce improvements in characterization techniques, and demonstrate the applicability of the new materials in different areas. However, based on certain criteria, the Committee arrived at a consensus after detailed discussions.
The overall ranking obtained placed Dr. Virginia Venezia top of the list. Dr. Gabriel Toshiaki Tayama placed second and Dr. Samantha L. Flores López placed third.
Virginia Venezia did her PhD at the University of Naples Federico II, Italy, under the guidance of Prof Giuseppina Luciani, Prof. Giuseppe Vitiello, and Prof Brigida Silvestri. The thesis combines scientific contributions concerning the chemistry of humic acids (HA) and their interactions with organic or inorganic components with technological applications in food-packaging, biomedical as well as automotive fields. The PhD work resulted in publication of 22 scientific articles (12 as first author) and 17 presentations at conferences (13 oral and 4 poster)
Gabriel Toshiaki Tayama carried out his PhD in Physics and Chemistry under the Cotutelle program between Université Laval, Centre d’Optique, Photonique et Laser, Canada, and Universidade Estadual Paulista, Institute of Chemistry of Araraquara, Brazil, under the guidance of Prof. Younes Messaddeq and Prof. Tigran Galstian.
The objective of the thesis was to synthesize a new class of highly transparent photopolymerizable aluminum-phosphate and silicate-aluminum-phosphate hybrid sol-gel materials using a solventless route for additive manufacturing (3D printing) via vat polymerization (VPP).
Samantha L. Flores López did her PhD at the University of Oviedo, Spain, under the guidance of Dr. Ana Arenillas. The aim of her thesis was to develop organic, inorganic, and hybrid materials using the sol-gel process assisted by microwave heating for technological applications, such as chromatography, catalysis, batteries or thermal insulation.
As Gold Medal, Silver Medal, and Bronze Medal winners of the PhD Thesis Award 2023, Virginia Venezia, Gabriel Toshiyaki Tayama, and Samantha L. Flores López will receive a diploma and a 2-year ISGS membership.
Thanks to Springer sponsoring, they will receive books in the value of US$500, US$400, and US$300, respectively.
Moreover, they will be invited to contribute with a paper to the Journal of Sol-Gel Science and Technology, the official journal of ISGS.
They will also be invited to present an online lecture at the ISGS eMasterClass Series
The Board of Directors of the ISGS and the ISGS PhD Thesis Award Committee wish to warmly congratulate the three young awardees.
