Professor
Canada Excellence Research Chair in Bioproducts | Scientific Director, Bioproducts Institute
Office: CHBE 259
Email: orlando.rojas@ubc.ca
Website: https://rojas.chbe.ubc.ca/
Research Summary
Biobased Colloids and Surfaces, Soft Matter, Multiphase Systems, Renewable Nanoparticles, Sustainable and Advanced Materials
Education
Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), Sweden, 2003, Postdoctoral Associate
Auburn University, USA, 1998, Ph.D.
Universitat Politecnica Catalunya, Spain, 1986, M.Sc.
Universidad de Los Andes, Venezuela, 1985, B.Sc.
Research interests + projects
Renewable nano- and microparticles properties, synthesis, and applications in fields ranging from nanocomposites to biomedical materials.
Development of bio-based materials derived from renewable resources including cellulose, lignin, hemicelluloses, polyphenols and other biomass components.
Self-assembly and functional materials by surface modification and incorporation of molecules or nanoparticles to tailor properties (sensing, catalysis, and controlled release systems).
Green chemistry and sustainable processing for the production of materials, including the utilization of environmentally friendly solvents, energy-efficient processes, and waste minimization strategies.
Biomimetics and bioinspired materials with enhanced properties, mimicking biological structures and processes to create innovative solutions for various applications.
Design and utilization of green multiphase systems (emulsions, foams and dispersions), colloids and gels (hydrogels, organogels, cryogels and aerogels)
Awards and honours
Top 1% worldwide author by citations (Clarivate, Web-of-Science), 2022, 2023.
Anselme Payen Award, 2018
Elected member of the Finnish Academy of Science and Letters , 2017
Elected Fellow of the American Chemical Society, 2013
NC State Faculty Scholar, 2013
European Commission ERC Advanced Grant, 2018
PI of the FinnCERES Finnish Bioeconomy Flagship, 2018
Co-director, Academy of Finland Centre of Excellence on “Molecular Engineering of Biosynthetic Hybrid Materials Research”, 2014
Act of the Year, Aalto University, Finland, 2018
Chair, Materials Platform of Aalto University, 2017
Weaver Distinguished Lecturer of Auburn University, 2017.
Adjunct or visitor professor in Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, NC State University, USA; Bioproducts and Biosystems, Aalto University, Finland; University of Natural Resources & Life Sciences, Vienna; Mid-Sweden University; Universiti Putra Malaysia, Malaysia.
Scholarly and professional activities + affiliations
Canadian Society for Chemical Engineering
Canadian Society for Chemistry
Technical Association of the Pulp and Paper Industry
Selected publications + presentations
Li et al., Developing fibrillated cellulose as a sustainable technological material, Nature, 590, 47–56 (2021). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-020-03167-7
Lu et al., Multiphase under-liquid biofabrication with living soft matter: A route to customize functional architectures with microbial nanocellulose, Advanced Materials, 2400311 (2024). DOI: 10.1002/adma.202400311
Beaumont et al., Assembling Native Elementary Cellulose Nanofibrils via a Reversible and Regioselective Surface Functionalization, Journal of the American Chemical Society, 41, 17040–17046 (2021). DOI: 10.1021/jacs.1c06502
Ding et al., Hybrid Cellulose-Based Systems for Triboelectrification in Aerosol Filtration, Ammonia Abatement and Respiration Monitoring. Advanced Functional Materials, 2313790 (2024). DOI: 10.1002/adfm.202313790
Cao et al., Biobased and biodegradable films exhibiting circularly polarized room temperature phosphorescence, Nature Communications, 15, 2375 (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-45844-5
Tao et al., Thermodynamically Controlled Multiphase Separation of Heterogeneous Liquid Crystal Colloids, Nature Communications, 14, 5277 (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-41054-7
Niu et al., Structured Emulgels by Interfacial Assembly of Terpenes and Nanochitin, ACS Nano, 17, 25542–25551 (2023). DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.3c09533
Zhao B., Shi X., Khakalo S., Meng Y., Miettinen A., Turpeinen T., Mi S., Sun Z., Khakalo A., Rojas O.J., Mattos B.D., Wood-based Superblack, Nature Communications, 14, 7875 (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-43594-4
Bai et al., Nanochitin: Chemistry, Structure, Assembly, and Applications, Chemical Reviews, 122, 11604-11674 (2022). DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.2c00125
Otoni et al., The Food-Materials Nexus: Next Generation Bioplastics and Advanced Materials from Agri-Food Residues, Advanced Materials, 2102520 (2021). DOI: 10.1002/adma.202102520