PIF2025 - Design and Exploration of Hybrid Glasses: A New Generation of Functional Materials for Sustainable Applications - (PID2024-158269NA-I00)

This project is focused in the design of new hybrid materials using crystalline coordination polymers able to melt. After melting, these materials have the ability to form glasses. Glasses are defined as frozen liquids and they lack of grain borders despite they lack of periodicity. This allows to exhibit improved mechanical and optical properties than their crystalline counterparts. Therefore, during this contract the candidate will learn synthetic approaches for the preparation of the crystalline materials and their structural and thermal characterisation by the use of X-ray diffraction techniques (powder and single crystal) and thermogravimetric analysis and differential scanning calorimetry, among others. Glassy materials will be prepared by thermal and mechanochemical treatments and will be further characterised using solid state nuclear magnetic resonance, X-ray total scattering and X-ray adsorption spectroscopy. Fabricated glasses will be employed as material for sustainable applications as water remediation and oxygen reduction reaction. Most promising glasses will be also post-funtionalysed to improve their electrochemical activity.