Polymer Synthesis and Processing in Supercritical Carbon Dioxide

source: RTP

15.02.2012

Dr. Vasco Bonifacio was interviewed by Vasco Trigo in the portuguese TV show COM CIENCIA (RTP 2). In this programme he talks about the paper he published in the Journal of Chemical Education: QR-Coded Audio Periodic Table of the Elements: A Mobile-Learning Tool.

31.12.2012

Dr. Vasco Bonifacio published a new version of the Periodic Table in the Journal of Chemical Education: QR-Coded Audio Periodic Table of the Elements: A Mobile-Learning Tool. A quick response coded audio periodic table of the elements (QR-APTE) was developed using free online resources. The potential of QR-APTE was tested using a smart phone and is envisaged to become a truly powerful tool to teach chemistry to blind and visually impaired students under a mobile-learning environment.

January 2012

Our lab was highlighted in the press. The scientific magazine "Super Interessante" published the article "Quimica Verde - Novo Paradigma Industrial, which is totally dedicated to the advances in green chemistry in Portugal. In the article, Dr. Vasco Bonifácio talks about the advantages of using supercritical carbon dioxide as an alternative solvent and his project Just in Time Dendrimers.

21.12.2012

Dr. Teresa Casimiro and collaborators Dr. Mara Silva, Raquel Viveiros and Prof. Ana Aguiar Ricardo received the Hovione SHIC'11 Award for the project "Molecularly Imprinted Devices for purification of APIs".

In the media: Jornal Expresso, Saúde Hoje, Ciencia Hoje, Ciência PT, Universia, AICEP Portugal Global, COTEC Notícias, NETFarma, Blogue Revista Saúde Hoje, rcm pharma, Portal Ordem Farmacêuticos.

December 2011

Dr. Teresa Casimiro was elected for the Editorial Board of "Molecular Imprinting", a journal devoted exclusively to Molecular Imprinting. The journal covers a wide range of interdisciplinary work including all experimental and theoretical aspects of MI applied to a broad range of applications.

5 December 2011

Eunice Costa defended her PhD Thesis entitled "Bioactive Beads for Local Sensing of Proteases in 3D Engineered Tissues". Eunice Costa is the first PhD from the Bio-E MIT Portugal Doctoral Program. She developed her PhD work at REQUIMTE/Chemistry Department of FCT/UNL (Portugal) and MIT (USA), under supervision of Prof. Ana Aguiar-Ricardo, and co-supervision of Prof. Paula Hammond.

31 October 2011

Our group participated in "Noite da Química" at IST/UTL.

source: SIC source: RTP

3 October 2011

Mara Silva defended her PhD Thesis in Sustainable Chemistry entitled "Development of molecularly imprinted polymers using supercritical fluid technology", under supervision of Dr. Teresa Casimiro and co-supervision of Prof. Ana Aguiar-Ricardo.

October 2011

Márcio Temtem was awarded with the Best Thesis Award da International Society for Advancement of Supercritical Fluids (ISASF PhD award) with the thesis Development of biocompatible and “smart” porous structures using CO2-assisted processes. Márcio developed his PhD work at REQUIMTE, Departamento de Química, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia da Universidade Nova de Lisboa, under the supervision of Prof. Ana Aguiar-Ricardo.

5-7 Sep 2011

Our group participated in the 11^th International Chemical and Biological Engineering Conference CHEMPOR 2011, organized by the Department of Chemistry of the Faculty of Sciences and Technology at NOVA (Universidade Nova de Lisboa), and Ordem dos Engenheiros. Eunice Costa was awarded with the best oral communication prize for the keynote lecture "Towards the development of a local microgel-based protease sensor". See some of the pictures taken at the conference Gala Dinner at Castelo de Palmela.

August 2011

Back cover in Macromolecular Bioscience.

Our article on Oxazoline-based antimicrobial oligomers: synthesis by CROP using supercritical CO₂, has been featured in the back cover of issue 8 (August 11, 2011) of Macromolecular Bioscience.

04-08 Julho 2011

Ciência Viva no Laboratório - Ocupação Científica de Jovens nas Férias.

Dois alunos do ensino secundário participaram no estágio "Polímeros Inteligentes" sob a supervisão da Prof. Ana Aguiar-Ricardo.

Sabes que há materiais que conseguem ter grandes alterações de conformação só porque variam as condições do meio ambiente em que se encontram? Por exemplo, passam de solúveis a insolúveis por uma pequena mudança de temperatura? Ou absorvem enormes quantidades de água a uma dada temperatura ou pH e, pelo contrário, expelem completamente a água noutras condições? Por terem estas propriedades, estes materiais são muitas vezes designados por polímeros inteligentes, com eles podemos criar novos produtos para diferentes aplicações como separação e purificação de proteínas, libertação controlada de fármacos, etc. Vem aprender a sintetizar estes materiais, a caracterizá-los e a perceber como funcionam.

30.06.2011

Prof. Ana Aguiar-Ricardo was interviewed by the portuguese newpaper "Público". Read the article "Soluções Sustentáveis na Indústria Química" that was published in "Anuário da Sustentabilidade 2011 - Amanhã Sustentável".

Article references: C&EN, Fev 21, pag 11, 2011 - C&EN, Mar 14, pag 26, 2011

30.06.2011

Our group participated in the E3 Forum - Education, Emplooyment and Entrepreneurship organized by the MIT Portugal students. The event was held at FCT/UNL and Pavilion of Knowledge - Ciencia Viva. Eunice Costa chaired the session PhD@Bio and the industrial world – “Opportunities, Positioning and Careers”. More pictures available in the E3 Forum facebook page.

19.06.2011

Telma Barroso won the best poster prize at the 19th Biennial Meeting - Affinity 2011 with the work Affinity porous structures for antibody purification.

01.02.2011

Prof. Ana Aguiar-Ricardo received her 'Habilitation' in Sustainable Chemistry. In this ocasion our group received the visit of Prof. Steve Howdle and Prof. Martyn Poliakoff (University of Nottingham, UK).

30.11.2010

Telma Barroso was awarded with the prize "Estimulo à Investigação 2010" from the Caloust Gulbenkian Foundation with the project "Selective immunoaffinity devices: a new alternative to blood treatment". The ceremony took place at the Caloust Gulbenkian Foundation in 21.02.2011.

23.11.2010

Dr. Vasco Bonifácio was awarded with the "Biodiv FCT" prize, an art competition promoted by FCT/UNL. The work entitled "Plano B" shows pictures of trees of different species taken in the campus. The United Nations proclaimed 2010 to be the International Year of Biodiversity, and the aim of the competition was to highlight the biodiversity in the Caparica campus.

12.09.2010

Eunice Costa was interviewed by "The Chronicle of Higher Education".

August 2010

Prof. Ana Aguiar-Ricardo was awarded with a project funded by FCT-MCTES: Smart porous particles for pulmonary drug and vaccine delivery.

5-9 April 2010

Our group participated in the II Iberoamerican Conference on supercritical Fluids - Prosciba 2010, held in Natal, Brazil.

30.11.2009

Prof. Ana Aguiar-Ricardo participated in the MRS Fall Meeting 2009 held in Boston were she presented the lecture "Development of Switchable Smart Biomaterials using an Environmental Friendly Technology".

source: RTP

25.11.2009

Our group was present in the ceremony of the attribution of the honoris causa Doctor of Science degree to Susan Hockfield, president of the Massachusetts Institute of Technologyof (MIT), by three portuguese universities (Universidade do Porto, Universidade Técnica de Lisboa and Universidade Nova de Lisboa). This special event, were for the first time in the portuguese History three universities attributed such degree simultaneously, took place in the nobel room of the Sciences Academy of Lisbon. More details here.

07.11.2009

Prof. Ana Aguiar-Ricardo was invited to participate in the iMED Congress, were she presented the communication "Fármacos inteligentes para inalação pulmonar".

30.08.2009

Two investigators of our group were awarded with projects funded by FCT-MCTES; Dr. Teresa Casimiro with the project Development of molecular recognition-based materials using supercritical fluid technology. Application to chromatography, catalysis and extraction and Dr. Vasco Bonifácio with the project Just in time dendrimers, focused in the synthesis of biodegradable and biocompatible dendrimers in supercritical carbon dioxide.

29.07.2009

Prof. Ana Aguiar-Ricardo was invited to participate in the "Ciencia 2009" Meeting held at Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, were she presented the communication "Partículas inteligentes para libertação controlada".

07.07.2009

Our group participated in the MIT Portugal Program’s 1st Annual Conference, “Engineering for Better Jobs,” held at the Centro Cultural de Belém in Lisbon July 7, 2009, were the poster exhibitions depicting the broad range of research being conducted by 110 of the Program’s doctoral students and 30 of its researchers.

01.04.2009

Prof. Ana Aguiar-Ricardo was one of the 14 Principal Investigators awarded with a project funded by FCT-MCTES to collaborate with MIT Portugal Program researchers. The project is untitled Smart Small-Scale Devices: Systems for Controlled Delivery of Bioactive Molecules, Cell Expansion and for Sensing Cell Environment. An informative ‘kick-off’ meeting was held at FCT (Lisbon) where the presentations of these outstanding projects from consortia of Portuguese research institutions and partners from industry were made to the program’s Portuguese focus area leads.

07.01.2009

Prof. Paula Hammond (MIT) visited our group and openned the 35^th DQ Conference Cycle organized by Prof. Ana Aguiar-Ricardo.

December 2008

The delivery of the Hovione prize 2008 was highlighted in several magazines: Hovionews, Solvay, Entretanto, Ingenium and Inhalation.

12.12.2008

The national television RTP visited our laboratory and interviewed Prof. Ana Aguiar-Ricardo for the science TV show "2010". Click here for the reportage (in portuguese).

17.11.2008

Prof. Ana Aguiar-Ricardo and collaborators Dr. Teresa Casimiro, Eunice Costa, Telma Barroso and Márcio Temtem received the Hovione SHIC'08 Award for the project "Intelligent Porous Particles: a new alternative for controlled release in lungs".