top of page
Team
Salvador Montilla Verdú
PhD candidate
Salvador (“Salva”) earned a Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry from the University of Alicante (2019), and he further complemented it with two Master’s degrees in “Environmental Chemistry and Sustainability” and in “Electrochemistry”. During his previous research he explored thermocatalytic routes for environmental depollution, specializing on the design of perovskites for biogas revaluation (via dry reforming of methane) and diesel soot removal. Currently, he is a PhD candidate within the RELICS project focusing on the discovery of new routes to trigger lignin valorization using sunlight as well as on deciphering the catalytic mechanism involved in the process.
Salva is also a fooball player! Playing for Peña Madridista de Ibi.
Elio Alfonso Rico Vargas
PhD candidate
Elio obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry followed by a Master’s degree in Science-Chemistry at the National University of Colombia. During his Master's thesis he got hands-on expertise on the synthesis as well as on the characterization of the electrical and optoelectronic properties of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), focusing on their application as sensors for the detection of ammonium nitrate fuel oil (ANFO)-type explosives. Currently, he has joined the ASSET lab to work on the RELICS project and pursue a PhD. Elio’s work targets not only the discovery of new photoactive systems for lignin valorization, but specially, decoding the kinetics of the processes and the catalytic principles that govern the transformation of lignin.
Elio is passionate about cycling and outdoor sports!
Research Collaborator
Ana Caravaca Morales
Ana completed a Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry at the University of Cordoba (Spain, 2019) followed by a Master’s degree in Electrochemistry (2020). Prior to joining the University of Alicante, Ana was awarded with a Galileo’s Scholarship, which aims at establishing bridges between the research at universities and the industry. In this framework, previous research efforts of Ana focused on the design and optimization of innovative electropolishing treatments for jewelry, targeting to reduce the toxicity of the current procedures. Currently, Ana is a Research Collaborator within the GFES group and she closely collaborates with the ASSET lab developing novel photoactive materials for carbon dioxide valorization.
Ana enjoys practicing yoga to recharge her body and mind!!!
Postdoctoral Researcher
Xavier Marset
Xavier (“Xavi”) is postdoctoral researcher with a strong background in organic chemistry. Xavi earned a BSc and MSc in Chemistry and Medicinal Chemistry, respectively, at the University of Alicante (2014,2015). Xavi obtained his PhD in 2019 (University of Alicante), specializing in the field of Deep Eutectic Solvents. During this period, he worked at Imperial College London (2017) as a research visitor. Xavi has received several awards, such as the Extraordinary PhD Award (University of Alicante) and the best thesis in Chemistry award (RSEQ-Alicante). Prior to joining the ASSET Lab, Xavi worked as a postdoctoral researcher at Georg-August Universität Göttingen, and the University of Alicante (Institute of Organic Chemistry). So far, he has co-authors > 18 publications garnering ca. 400 citations (03/2023). With the incorporation of Xavi to the ASSET labs, the group has strengthened its expertise in the processing and characterization of organic substrates, while expanding its line of action into the photoredox systems. Xavi works in the ERC StG RELICS project exploring new strategies to harvest sunlight, funneling it to perform solar driven chemistry.
Javier Fernandez Catalá
Postdoctoral Researcher
Javier (“Javi”) earned his B.Sc. in Chemistry from the University of Alicante in 2015 and completed a master’s degree in Material Science there in 2016. He then pursued a PhD in the group of Prof. D. Cazorla-Amorós at the same university, specializing in designing and manufacturing nanostructured catalysts for hydrocarbon oxidation and hydrogen production, which he completed in 2020. During his PhD, Javi pioneered various nano-heterostructures for photocatalytic applications and flow photoreactors. Following his PhD, Javi was awarded the “Margarita Salas Grant” and joined Prof. Wei Cai's group at the University of Oulu in Finland as a postdoctoral researcher. There, he actively explored designing a new generation of multinary oxides for photocatalytic applications. To date, he has co-authored over 25 publications and a book chapter, amassing around 400 citations as of February 2025.
With Javi's incorporation into the team, the group's capabilities in materials’ synthesis, engineering, and characterization are reinforced and expanded. Javi has joined the ERC StG RELICS project, where his unique background will contribute to developing novel materials to advance lignin valorization.
Alumni
- Qingjie Wang (visiting researcher from 02/2023-03/2024) - Currently PhD candidate at Nankai University (Luo's Group)
- Raquel Montes Bujalance (PhD candidate within VALIGRA's project) - Currently PhD candidate at the University of Cordoba (Spain)
bottom of page