I initiated my research career in 2000 when I was awarded publicly funded Collaboration and Intercampus fellowships from the Spanish Government. I graduated in Chemistry (University of Granada, Spain) in 2001 and earned my PhD in Catalysis and Materials Science (University of Alicante, Spain) in 2006. In 2007, I moved to Madrid for a post-doc position at the Spanish National Council of Research (CSIC, Institute of Physical Chemistry Rocasolano). In 2008, I was awarded a two-year Fulbright-MEC fellowship to conduct studies on catalytic biomass conversion to fuels and chemicals in Professor James Dumesic’s research group at the University of Wisconsin-Madison (USA). In 2011, I obtained a postdoctoral position at the University of Córdoba to lead the biomass conversion unit within the “Nanoscale Chemistry and Biomass Waste Valorization Group”. In October 2012, I was offered a Senior Researcher position at Abengoa Research, the R&D division of the multinational company Abengoa. During this period, I developed technologies for the production of advanced biofuels via catalytic conversion of biomass, thermochemical energy storage for CSP plants, and hydrogen-related devices for the Bioenergy, Solar and Hydrogen business units (some of them were patented) and participated in a good number of FP7 and H2020 projects. In 2017, I was awarded a Ramón and Cajal fellowship (ranked number 2 in Chemical Technology) from the Spanish Government to develop my own research at the Universidad Loyola Andalucía (Spain) where I currently work as a Full Professor and lead the Materials and Sustainability Research Group. Since I am at the University Loyola, I have secured for my host institution more than 2.0 M euros in public funding as a PI. The Materials and Sustainability Research Group as a whole has secured more than 3 M euros in public funding since its creation in 2017. In 2022, 2023 and 2024, I was included in the ‘World´s Top 2% Scientists Ranking’ issued by the prestigious Stanford University. I was Fulbright Visiting Professor at the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering of the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2025. I have been recognized three six-year research merits by CNEAI. I am co-author of more than 80 papers in SCI journals including one in Science (considered one of the 30 biggest chemical breakthroughs of the year according to Chemistry World), 5 book chapters, and a good number of high-impact reviews on catalytic biomass conversion (Energy and Environmental Science, Chemical Society Reviews, Annual Reviews). One of the reviews was selected as a key scientific article by Renewable Energy Global Innovations, the World's leading source of renewable energy research news. I have a cover paper in Green Chemistry, 3 hot papers in this prestigious journal, one of the most cited papers in Applied Catalysis B within 2010-2011, and 4 patents (one of them dealing with catalytic conversion of cellulose into diesel and gasoline which is licensed). I am only editor of three books on biomass conversion and biorefineries and regular reviewer of international scientific journals on Biofuels, Catalysis, and Green Chemistry. I have an h index of 44 and accumulates more than 9000 citations. I am member of the Editorial Board of several journals. I currently serve as a Horizon Europe expert evaluator for the European Commission and expert evaluator for the Spanish Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI). I have also served as an expert evaluator for the Italian Ministry for Education, University and Research (MIUR), the Polish National Research System and the Dutch Research Council (NWO).
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Metal-Support Interactions in Single-Atom Catalysts for Electrochemical CO2 Reduction MANSILLA ROUX, ALEXANDRA, LARA ANGULO, MAYRA ANABEL, SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS 13/01/2026 Review |
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Selective Deoxygenation of Biomass Polyols into Diols SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS 30/08/2025 Review |
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Efficient CeO2 and CeO2-Al2O3 supports for Ru as 3rd generation ammonia synthesis catalysts: enhanced kinetic mechanism over commercial Ru/CeO2 Arroyo-Caire, Javier , Duran-Uribe, Edgar S. , LARA ANGULO, MAYRA ANABEL, DIAZ PEREZ, MANUEL ANTONIO, Sepulveda-Escribano, Antonio , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS 19/05/2025 Article |
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CeNix Alloys as Catalysts for Ammonia Synthesis: Insights on Ni-CeN Surface Layer Formation and Its Impact ARROYO CAIRE, JAVIER, Jiang Y. , DIAZ PEREZ, MANUEL ANTONIO, LARA ANGULO, MAYRA ANABEL, Miyazaki M. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Kitano M. , Hosono H. 21/11/2023 Article |
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Post-synthetic ligand exchange as a route to improve the affinity of ZIF-67 towards CO2 Villalgordo-Hernandez, David , DIAZ PEREZ, MANUEL ANTONIO, BALLOI, VALENTINA, LARA ANGULO, MAYRA ANABEL, Narciso, Javier , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Ramos-Fernandez, Enrique V. 15/11/2023 Article |
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A Conceptual Approach for the Design of New Catalysts for Ammonia Synthesis: A Metal—Support Interactions Review ARROYO CAIRE, JAVIER, DIAZ PEREZ, MANUEL ANTONIO, LARA ANGULO, MAYRA ANABEL, SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS 08/11/2023 Review |
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Metal-Organic Frameworks as Formose Reaction Catalysts with Enhanced Selectivity BALLOI, VALENTINA, DIAZ PEREZ, MANUEL ANTONIO, LARA ANGULO, MAYRA ANABEL, Villalgordo-Hernandez, David , Narciso, Javier , Ramos-Fernandez, Enrique V. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS 01/08/2023 Article |
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Facile Synthesis of Heterogeneous Indium Nanoparticles for Formate Production via CO2 Electroreduction PEREZ SEQUERA, ANA CRISTINA, DIAZ PEREZ, MANUEL ANTONIO, LARA ANGULO, MAYRA ANABEL, Holgado J.P. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS 01/04/2023 Article |
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Thermomechanical Performance Analysis of Novel Cement-Based Building Envelopes with Enhanced Passive Insulation Properties MARÍN MONTÍN, JORGE JULIO, ROQUE RODRÍGUEZ, EDUARDO, Xu, Yading , Savija, Branko , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, MONTERO CHACÓN, FRANCISCO DE PAULA 01/07/2022 Article |
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Mixed-Valence Ce/Zr Metal-Organic Frameworks: Controlling the Oxidation State of Cerium in One-Pot Synthesis Approach Ronda-Lloret, Maria , Pellicer-Carreno, Isaac , Grau-Atienza, Aida , Boada, Roberto , Diaz-Moreno, Sofia , Narciso-Romero, Javier , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Sepulveda-Escribano, Antonio , Ramos-Fernandez, Enrique V. 01/07/2021 Article |
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Membrane-less ethanol electrooxidation over pd-m (M: Sn, mo and re) bimetallic catalysts Ruiz-López E. , DIAZ PEREZ, MANUEL ANTONIO, de Lucas-Consuegra A. , Dorado F. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS 01/01/2021 Article |
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Improved Thermochemical Energy Storage Behavior of Manganese Oxide by Molybdenum Doping MOYA, JAVIER , MARUGAN, JAVIER , ORFILA, MARÍA , DIAZ PEREZ, MANUEL ANTONIO, SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS 01/01/2021 Article |
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Hydrogenation of 4-nitrochlorobenzene catalysed by cobalt nanoparticles supported on nitrogen-doped activated carbon Villora-Pico, J. J. , Campello-Gomez, I. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Pastor-Blas, M. M. , Sepulveda-Escribano, A. , Ramos-Fernandez, E. V. 01/01/2021 Article |
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Recent advances in the electroreduction of CO2 over heteroatom-doped carbon materials PEREZ SEQUERA, ANA CRISTINA, DIAZ PEREZ, MANUEL ANTONIO, SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS 01/10/2020 Article |
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Electrochemical Reduction of CO2: Overcoming Chemical Inertness at Ambient Conditions PEREZ SEQUERA, ANA CRISTINA, DIAZ PEREZ, MANUEL ANTONIO, SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS 13/03/2020 Article |
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Catalytic Production of Jet Fuels from Biomass DIAZ PEREZ, MANUEL ANTONIO, SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS 12/02/2020 Article |
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Gas-phase electrocatalytic conversion of CO2 to chemicals on sputtered Cu and Cu-C catalysts electrodes Gutierrez-Guerra, N. , Gonzalez, J. A. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Lopez-Fernandez, E. , Valverde, J. L. , de Lucas-Consuegra, A. 01/04/2019 Article |
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Interplay of Support Chemistry and Reaction Conditions on Copper Catalyzed Methanol Steam Reforming DIAZ PEREZ, MANUEL ANTONIO, Moya, Javier , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Faria, Jimmy 14/11/2018 Article |
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Low-Temperature Electrocatalytic Conversion of CO2 to Liquid Fuels: Effect of the Cu Particle Size de Lucas-Consuegra, Antonio , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Gutierrez-Guerra, Nuria , Luis Valverde, Jose 01/08/2018 Article |
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Electrocatalytic conversion of CO2 to added-value chemicals in a high-temperature proton-exchange membrane reactor Gutierrez-Guerra, N. , Valverde, J. L. , Romero, A. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, de Lucas-Consuegra, A. 01/08/2017 Article |
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Gas phase electrocatalytic conversion of CO2 to syn-fuels on Cu based catalysts-electrodes Gutierrez-Guerra, N. , Moreno-Lopez, L. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Valverde, J. L. , de Lucas-Consuegra, A. 05/07/2016 Article |
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Electrochemical Activation of Ni Catalysts with Potassium Ionic Conductors for CO2 Hydrogenation Gutierrez-Guerra, N. , Gonzalez-Cobos, J. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Valverde, J. L. , de Lucas-Consuegra, A. 01/11/2015 Article |
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Direct production of flexible H-2/CO synthesis gas in a solid electrolyte membrane reactor de Lucas-Consuegra, A. , Gutierrez-Guerra, N. , Endrino, J. L. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Valverde, J. L. 01/10/2015 Article |
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Electrochemical reforming vs. catalytic reforming of ethanol: A process energy analysis for hydrogen production Gutierrez-Guerra, N. , Jimenez-Vazquez, M. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Valverde, J. L. , de Lucas-Consuegra, A. 01/09/2015 Article |
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Coupling catalysis and electrocatalysis for hydrogen production in a solid electrolyte membrane reactor de Lucas-Consuegra, A. , Gutierrez-Guerra, N. , Caravaca, A. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Valverde, J. L. 05/08/2014 Article |
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Catalytic transformations of biomass-derived acids into advanced biofuels SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Pineda, Antonio , Mariana Balu, Alina , Luque, Rafael , Manuel Campelo, Juan , Angel Romero, Antonio , Manuel Ramos-Fernandez, Jose 15/11/2012 Article |
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Microwave-assisted mild-temperature preparation of neodymium-doped titania for the improved photodegradation of water contaminants Gomez, Virginia , Balu, Alina Mariana , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Irusta, Silvia , Dionysiou, Dionysios D. , Luque, Rafael , Santamaria, Jesus 28/10/2012 Article |
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Helical Al- and Ce-MCM-41 materials as novel catalyst for acid and redox processes Carrillo, Adela I. , Serrano, Elena , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Luque, Rafael , Garcia-Martinez, Javier 05/09/2012 Article |
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Efficient Room-Temperature O-Silylation of Alcohols Using a SBA-15-Supported Cobalt(II) Nanocatalyst Rajabi, Fatemeh , Luque, Rafael , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS 01/09/2012 Article |
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High alkylation activities of ball-milled synthesized low-load supported iron oxide nanoparticles on mesoporous aluminosilicates Pineda, Antonio , Balu, Alina M. , Manuel Campelo, Juan , Luque, Rafael , Angel Romero, Antonio , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS 30/06/2012 Article |
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Carbonaceous residues from biomass gasification as catalysts for biodiesel production Luque, Rafael , Pineda, Antonio , Colmenares, Juan C. , Campelo, Juan M. , Romero, Antonio A. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Cabeza, Luisa F. , Cot-Gores, Jaime 01/05/2012 Article |
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Highly dispersed ceria on activated carbon for the catalyzed ozonation of organic pollutants Goncalves, Alexandra , Silvestre-Albero, Joaquin , Ramos-Fernandez, Enrique V. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Orfao, Jose J. M. , Sepulveda-Escribano, Antonio , Pereira, Manuel Fernando R. 22/02/2012 Article |
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From biodiesel and bioethanol to liquid hydrocarbon fuels: new hydrotreating and advanced microbial technologies SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Ramos-Fernandez, Enrique V. , Sepulveda-Escribano, Antonio 01/02/2012 Article |
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Efficient microwave-assisted production of furfural from C-5 sugars in aqueous media catalysed by Bronsted acidic ionic liquids SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Campelo, Juan M. , Francavilla, Matteo , Romero, Antonio A. , Luque, Rafael , Menendez-Vazquez, Carmen , Garcia, Ana B. , Garcia-Suarez, Eduardo J. 01/01/2012 Article |
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Tailor-made biopolymers from leather waste valorisation Catalina, Mercedes , Cot, Jaume , Mariana Balu, Alina , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Luque, Rafael 01/01/2012 Article |
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Catalytic applications of mesoporous silica-based materials Luque, Rafael , Mariana Balu, Alina , Manuel Campelo, Juan , Dolores Gracia, Maria , Losada, Elia , Pineda, Antonio , Angel Romero, Antonio , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS 01/01/2012 Article |
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Ce promoted Pd-Nb catalysts for gamma-valerolactone ring-opening and hydrogenation Buitrago-Sierra, R. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Rodriguez-Reinoso, F. , Sepulveda-Escribano, A. , Dumesic, J. A. 01/01/2012 Article |
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Effect of the support, Al2O3 or SiO2, on the catalytic behaviour of Cr-ZnO promoted Pt catalysts in the selective hydrogenation of cinnamaldehyde Ramos-Fernandez, E. V. , Ruiz-Martinez, J. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Silvestre-Albero, J. , Sepulveda-Escribano, A. , Rodriguez-Reinoso, F. 31/07/2011 Article |
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Site Energy Distribution Function for the Sips Isotherm by the Condensation Approximation Method and Its Application to Characterization of Porous Materials Kumar, K. Vasanth , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Souza, Hileia K. S. , Maria Silvestre-Albero, Ana , Gupta, Vinod Kumar 01/05/2011 Article |
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Techno-economic analysis of dimethylfuran (DMF) and hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) production from pure fructose in catalytic processes Kazi, Feroz Kabir , Patel, Akshay D. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Dumesic, James A. , Anex, Robert P. 01/05/2011 Article |
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Improved hydrothermal stability of niobia-supported Pd catalysts Pharn, Hien N. , Pagan-Torres, Yomaira J. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Wang, Dong , Dumesic, James A. , Datye, Abhaya K. 30/04/2011 Article |
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Catalytic routes for the conversion of biomass into liquid hydrocarbon transportation fuels SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Dumesic, James A. 01/01/2011 Article |
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Transformations of biomass-derived platform molecules: from high added-value chemicals to fuels via aqueous-phase processing SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Luque, Rafael , Sepulveda-Escribano, Antonio 01/01/2011 Review |
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Heterogeneously catalysed Strecker-type reactions using supported Co(II) catalysts: microwave vs. conventional heating Rajabi, Fatemeh , Nourian, Saghar , Ghiassian, Sara , Balu, Alina M. , Saidi, Mohammad Reza , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Luque, Rafael 01/01/2011 Article |
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Conversion of cellulose to hydrocarbon fuels by progressive removal of oxygen SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Braden, Drew J. , West, Ryan M. , Dumesic, James A. 11/10/2010 Article |
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Ketonization Reactions of Carboxylic Acids and Esters over Ceria-Zirconia as Biomass-Upgrading Processes Gaertner, Christian A. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Braden, Drew J. , Dumesic, James A. 07/07/2010 Article |
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Techno-economic analysis of 5-nonanone production from levulinic acid Patel, Akshay D. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Dumesic, James A. , Anex, Robert P. 15/05/2010 Article |
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Catalytic upgrading of levulinic acid to 5-nonanone SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Wang, Dong , Dumesic, James A. 01/04/2010 Article |
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Catalytic Conversion of Renewable Biomass Resources to Fuels and Chemicals SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, West, Ryan M. , Durnesic, James A. 01/01/2010 Review |
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Production of liquid hydrocarbon transportation fuels by oligomerization of biomass-derived C-9 alkenes Alonso, David Martin , Bond, Jesse Q. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Dumesic, James A. 01/01/2010 Article |
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Catalytic coupling of carboxylic acids by ketonization as a processing step in biomass conversion Gaertner, Christian A. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Braden, Drew J. , Dumesic, James A. 15/08/2009 Article |
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Catalytic Processing of Lactic Acid over Pt/Nb2O5 SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Dumesic, James A. 01/01/2009 Article |
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Catalytic Upgrading of Bio-Oils by Ketonization Gaertner, Christian A. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Braden, Drew J. , Dumesic, James A. 01/01/2009 Article |
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Catalytic upgrading of lactic acid to fuels and chemicals by dehydration/hydrogenation and C-C coupling reactions SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Dumesic, James A. 01/01/2009 Article |
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Zn-modified MCM-41 as support for Pt catalysts Silvestre-Albero, J. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Sepulveda-Escribano, A. , Rodriguez-Reinoso, F. 15/12/2008 Article |
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Catalytic conversion of biomass to monofunctional hydrocarbons and targeted liquid-fuel classes Kunkes, Edward L. , Simonetti, Dante A. , West, Ryan M. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Gartner, Christian A. , Dumesic, James A. 17/10/2008 Article |
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Preparation and characterization of CeO2 highly dispersed on activated carbon SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Ramos-Fernandez, E. V. , Silvestre-Albero, J. , Sepulveda-Escribano, A. , Rodriguez-Reinoso, F. 01/07/2008 Article |
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The effect of the cerium precursor and the carbon surface chemistry on the dispersion of ceria on activated carbon Ramos-Fernandez, Enrique V. , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Silvestre-Albero, Joaquin , Sepulveda-Escribano, Antonio , Rodriguez-Reinoso, Francisco 01/03/2008 Article |
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Hydrogenation of alpha, beta unsaturated aldehydes over polycrystalline, (111) and (100) preferentially oriented Pt nanoparticles supported on carbon SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Lopez-Cudero, A. , Solla-Gullon, J. , Sepulveda-Escribano, A. , Aldaz, A. , Rodriguez-Reinoso, F. 01/01/2008 Article |
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Pt-Sn catalysts supported on highly-dispersed ceria on carbon - Application to citral hydrogenation SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Sepulveda-Escribano, A. , Rodriguez-Reinoso, F. , Duprez, D. 01/05/2007 Article |
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Bimetallic PtSn/C catalysts promoted by ceria: Application in the nonoxidative dehydrogenation of isobutane SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Sepulveda-Escribano, A. , Rodriguez-Reinoso, F. 15/02/2007 Article |
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Effect of Sn addition to Pt/CeO2-Al2O3 and Pt/Al2O3 catalysts: An XPS, Sn-119 Mossbauer and microcalorimetry study SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Huber, G. W. , Sanchez-Castillo, M. A. , Dumesic, J. A. , Rodriguez-Reinoso, F. , Sepulveda-Escribano, A. 25/07/2006 Article |
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Effect of the support composition on the vapor-phase hydrogenation of crotonaldehyde over Pt/CexZr1-xO2 catalysts SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Luettich, J. , Sepulveda-Escribano, A. , Rodriguez-Reinoso, F. 01/07/2006 Article |
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Modification of the catalytic behaviour of platinum by zinc in crotonaldehyde hydrogenation and iso-butane dehydrogenation Silvestre-Albero, J , SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, Sepulveda-Escribano, A , Rodriguez-Reinoso, F 18/09/2005 Article |
| Congresses |
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Techno-economic assessment of Oxy-Biomass Combustion and Power-to-Methane as an integrated system GARCÍA LUNA, SEBASTIAN, ORTIZ DOMÍNGUEZ, CARLOS, SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, BREY SÁNCHEZ, JOSÉ JAVIER, CHACARTEGUI, RICARDO 05/09/2022 - 08/12/2022 Abstract de un Congreso |
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Facile synthesis method for the production of indium nanoparticles as a catalyst for CO2 electroreduction reaction PEREZ SEQUERA, ANA CRISTINA, SERRANO RUIZ, JUAN CARLOS, DIAZ PEREZ, MANUEL ANTONIO 20/03/2022 - 24/03/2022 Ponencia del Congreso |
| Book chapters and books |
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Electrocatalytic Conversion of CO2 to Syngas 05/03/2021 Capítulo de un Libro |
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MOF-from material chemistry to catalytic applications 11/09/2020 Capítulo de un Libro |
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Low-Temperature Electrocatalytic Conversion to Liquid Fuels: Effect of the Cu Particle Size of CO2. 01/06/2020 Capítulo de un Libro |
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Metal Organic Frameworks: From Material Chemistry to Catalytic Applications 01/01/2020 Capítulo de un Libro |
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Electrocatalytic reduction of CO2 to syngas 01/01/2019 Capítulo de un Libro |
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Biomass Conversion Technologies 01/01/2017 Capítulo de un Libro |
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Biomass conversion technologies: Catalytic conversion technologies 01/01/2017 Capítulo de un Libro |
| External Projects |
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catalytic desoxigenation of biomass liquids derived from biomass liquefaction Project start date: 01/01/2011 |
| Directed theses |
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Obtención de azúcares a partir de formaldehido: estudio de la reacción de la formosa Defended on 13/09/2024 |
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Electroreducción de CO2 para la generación de productos químicos de valor Defended on 15/12/2023 |