Luis Gutiérrez, PhD student under the supervision of Prof. Julio Lloret-Fillol (ICIQ), has defended his PhD thesis entitled “Metal-Organic Frameworks and Covalent Organic Frameworks as Single-Site Catalysts for Organic Transformations” (assigned to the Inorganic and Physical Chemistry Department of the Universitat Rovira i Virgili) publicly on January 20th.
The members of the evaluation committee were Prof. José Alemán Lara (Universidad Autónoma de Madrid), Prof. Daniel Maspoch Comamala (Institut Català de Nanociència i Nanotecnologia) and Prof. Marta Iglesias (Instituto de Ciencia de Materiales de Madrid, CSIC).
Dr. Gutiérrez with his thesis supervisor and the members of the evaluation committee.
Dr. Gutiérrez is from Logroño, where he did his bachelor studies in chemistry. Then he did a master in nanoscience in Valencia. His hobbies are reading, running, playing the piano and hiking.
Why did you become a scientist?
I’ve always liked science and enjoyed the process of learning and discovering new things.
What do you want to achieve as a scientist?
I want to keep learning and discover useful applications in chemistry.
What is your thesis about?
My thesis is about employing a special type of polymers (MOFs and COFs) as catalyst for organic reactions.
What triggered your interest for the subject of your thesis?
I like how the field is relatively new and is full of potential applications.
What applications can your thesis have in the future?
MOF and COF catalyst could be employed in some industrial chemical reactions to achieve more efficient processes.
The thing that I like most about my thesis is…
The variety of techniques and fields of chemistry involved.
From the lessons learnt (or skills developed) at ICIQ, which one do you value the most?
I value the ability to persevere on results that are difficult to make sense of.
What ICIQ moment you´ll never forget?
The calçotadas with the group.
What will you miss the most from ICIQ?
I’ll miss all the members of my research group that I’ve met through the years.
What advice do you have for someone who’s starting their PhD now?
Read more papers your PhD topic.
Who/What has been your biggest influence/motivation?
I’m motivated by the desire to learn more.
Where are you going next? What will you do there?
I’ll be looking to transition to industry where I could apply the skills that I’ve obtained.
Chemistry/Science is fun because…
You can make sense of the world using reasoning and experimenting.
What is your favourite molecule?
Perylene.
If you were a piece of lab equipment, what would you be?
A Schlenk tube.
