Personal statement

On September 2025, Sara joined the department of Chemical and Process Engineering as a Sustainable Materials Chancellor´s Fellow. Her research will focus on the development of bioinspired and bio based polymeric materials to address societal applications and biodegradable polymers for real-world applications avoiding microplastic pollution, and engineering smart, tailored materials to address societal problems, starting with pest control and widening to other agricultural and societal applications. Her research will focus on addressing the UN sustainable goals of Zero Hunger, Clean water and Sanitation, Responsible consumption and production, climate action, life below water and life on land. 

She developed her Postdoctoral research at the University of Twente, Netherlands (2023-2025) with a collaboration with the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research (MPI-P) Germany during the first year of postdoc she focused on the use of lignin for agricultural applications, specially focusing on interdisciplinary research with the use chemistry and biology for developing the next generation of plant protection through the use of spores and layer-by-layer encapsulation and emulsification. During which she was awarded several recognitions such as the American Chemical Society (ACS) CAS Future leaders and ACS Centennial Future Leader in polymer science and engineering. She acquired her first independent research grant of € 50, 000  for her research on the use of lignin for agricultural applications. She completed an international and interdisciplinary PhD in pure and applied chemistry at the University of Strathclyde (2018-2022), with research stays at the Adolph Merkle Institute and ETH Zurich in Switzerland and University of Darmstadt in Germany. Her PhD research focused on the use of bioinspiration, focusing mostly on mimicking the mechanical properties of spider silk through the use of a hierarchical level of reinforcement, through the use of peptides and cellulose nanocrystals.

She is also passionate about scientific outreach at different academic levels and an advocate in promoting diversity in academia. She was board member of the Woman’s Academic Network Twente (2023-2025), during her postdoc and the TAPPINano student committee chair (2020-2022). From her work on outreach and promoting diversity in academia, she has also gained recognitions such as a Lindau Nobel Laureate participant in 2025 and Falling walls Female science talent in 2024.