Sustainable metallurgy
Dr. Teresa PÉREZ-PRADO, Senior Scientist, heads since 2008 the Sustainable Metallurgy group at IMDEA Materials Institute. Teresa was Division Leader between 2014 and 2017 and Deputy Director between 2017 and 2021. From 2018 to 2022 she coordinated the programme on Structural Materials at the Spanish National Science Foundation. Dr. Pérez-Prado got a PhD in Physics at the Complutense University in Madrid in 1998 and an MBA at INSEAD, France, in 2008. After a 2 year postdoctoral stay at the University of California in San Diego, USA, she joined the National Center for Metals Research (Madrid, Spain) in 2001, where she worked as a tenure-track fellow until she was granted a Tenured Scientist position in 2004. Dr. Pérez-Prado has coauthored 160 papers (h 55, ≈10500 citations (Google Scholar)), 1 book (Elsevier, 2004) and 4 patents. Teresa has been a member of the Scientific Council of the Nomaten Center of Excellence (Poland), the IRT Jules Verne (France), the Henry Royce Institute (UK), and the European Space Agency (ESA).
Research Interests
Dr. Pérez-Prado’s expertise consists on linking the composition, processing, microstructure, and properties of metals to optimize alloy design for advanced manufacturing, sustainable transport, energy and biomedical applications.
Academic and Professional Career
- 2008-Present: Senior Scientist and Head, Sustainable Metallurgy group, IMDEA Materials Institute.
- 2018-2022: Manager, Structural Materials Programme, Spanish National Science Foundation
- 2017-2021: Deputy Director, IMDEA Materials Institute.
- 2014-2017: Department Head, IMDEA Materials Institute.
- 2004-2007: Visiting Research Assistant Professor, University of Southern California, LA, USA
- 2004-2007: Tenured Scientist, Ramón y Cajal fellow, Spanish Center for Metals Research (CENIM)
- 2001-2004: Tenure-track, Ramón y Cajal fellow, Spanish Center for Metals Research (CENIM)
- 1998-2000: Research Associate, University of California, San Diego, USA
Honours and Awards
- 2022-2024: Yo Dona (El Mundo) list of “500 most influential women”
- 2021-2024: Stanford list of 2% world’s best scientists (‘Career’ and ‘Annual’ categories)
- 2023: Outstanding Achievement Award in Nanoscience, American Chemical Society 2023 Spring Meeting, Colloidal nanoparticle synthesis and assembly symposium, EE.UU
- 2020: Brahm Prakash Chair Professorship, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India
- 2015: Member, TMS Light Metals Division, The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society, United States
- 2009: PI3 fellowship (€130K) of the Madrid Regional Government, Spain
- 2008: Lister-Vickery Trophy, 1st Prize winner of the 16th INSEAD Comitel Business Venture Competition (Solitonik), France
- 2007: Caja Madrid fellowship (€62K/1 year) of the Caja Madrid Foundation, Spain
- 2006: Visiting scholar (Marina Bueno grant, CSIC) at the Max Planck Institute, Stuttgart, Germany
- 2001-2004: Ramón y Cajal Fellowship from the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science
- 1996-1998: Visiting scholar, Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, California, USA
- 1994: FPI PhD fellowship, Spanish Ministry of Education and Science (4-year grant)
- 1994: Visiting scholar (IAESTE fellowship), University of Chemnitz, Germany
- 1993: “Introduction to research” fellowship, Spanish Ministry of Education and Science
- 1992: Award for academic excellence, Faculty of Physics, Complutense University, Madrid, Spain
Committees and Professional Activities
- 2021-ongoing: Member of the International Advisory Board, Henry Royce Institute, UK
- 2019-ongoing: Member of the Scientific Council, Fundación Gadea Ciencia, Spain
- 2020-2024: Member of the International Advisory Board, European Space Agency
- 2018-2024: Member of the Scientific Board of IRT Jules Verne, France
- 2018-2023: Member of the Scientific Board of NOMATEN Center of Excellence, Poland
- 2018-2022: Program Manager of Structural Materials, Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, Spain
- 2017-2021: Board member of SOCIEMAT (Spanish Society for Materials)