Prof. Javier LLorca’s recognition as the recipient of the 2025 Miguel Catalán Award consolidates his position as one of the leading figures in the fields of engineering and materials science.

Scientific Director of the IMDEA Materials Institute, leader of the Bio/Chemo/Mechanics of Materials research group, and Professor at the Technical University of Madrid (UPM), Prof. LLorca adds this award to other distinctions, such as the Leonardo Torres Quevedo National Research Award in 2023.

However, the Miguel Catalán Award, presented annually by the Community of Madrid, is not just another accolade for this “madrileño”, born and educated in the capital.

“I do feel proud because there are a lot of good scientists in Madrid, and a large part of the best science in this country is done in Madrid,” said Prof. LLorca.

“Also, it has been here in Madrid where I have developed most of my scientific career. Therefore, receiving this recognition from the Community is something that truly makes me happy.”

A UPM graduate in Civil Engineering (1983) and PhD in Materials Science (1986), also from UPM, Prof. LLorca has built a scientific career spanning more than 40 years.

It is a trajectory that began in a very different context from today. Prof. LLorca recalls a time when research was a pursuit reserved for only a few.

“When I started my doctoral thesis, research in engineering was very limited,” he said. “Over the years, more and better research has begun to take place. That is, while the overall level of research in the Community of Madrid has always been good, it has improved significantly in recent decades.”

One of the most important milestones in this evolution was the creation of the Madrid Institutes for Advanced Studies (the IMDEA Institutes) in 2007. According to Prof. LLorca, these institutes were conceived to overcome the two structural limitations that hinder research in Spain from reaching its full potential: an insular academic culture and a lack of governance.

There are currently seven IMDEA institutes in the Community of Madrid, each dedicated to a strategic area for scientific development and technology transfer: Water, Energy, Nanoscience, Networks, Nutrition, Software and Materials.

“I believe the founding of the IMDEA Institutes was indeed a very important moment,” he said. “Since then, these institutes have clearly demonstrated that, when the right conditions are provided, research excellence at the highest national and international level can be achieved.”

However, despite all the progress he has witnessed over the past decades, the scientist also identifies structural challenges that must be addressed for Spanish research to continue moving forward, highlighting in particular “excessive bureaucratisation.” “Another pending issue is that all research institutions should be able to set strategic objectives with budgets planned four or five years ahead,” he said. “And not simply live year by year, as many do today.”

Regarding his own research, Prof. LLorca acknowledges that he has always been a “very restless” researcher and that he continues to develop new research lines.

These include fundamental questions in physical metallurgy, the hydrogen economy, and the application of materials science to health through the development of scaffolds for tissue growth.

“These are areas that lie at the intersection of materials mechanics, chemistry and biology,” concludes Prof. LLorca.

“And I believe that this multidisciplinary research is where breakthroughs or new knowledge can truly emerge today to advance science for society.”