An undergraduate student from USP’s Lorena School of Engineering stood out at the TAPPI Nano Conference 2025 with research on sustainable alternatives for producing cellulose nanocrystals, aimed at developing materials with a wide range of applications
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Laura Lis, an undergraduate student in Biochemical Engineering at USP’s Lorena School of Engineering (EEL), won first place in the scientific poster competition at the TAPPI Nano Conference 2025 – International Conference on Nanotechnology for Renewable Materials, the largest international conference in the field of cellulose nanotechnology, held in Girona, Spain. Lis was the only woman on the podium and the only undergraduate among the awardees, competing with graduate students and professionals from various countries. In addition to academic recognition, the award included a cash prize of US$ 1,500.
Laura’s poster is related to her scientific initiation research titled Mechanical pretreatment as a determinant step in enzymatic cellulose nanosphere production, supervised by Professor Valdeir Arantes from the Applied Bionanotechnology Laboratory of EEL’s Department of Biotechnology, with technical-scientific support from PhD candidate Isabella Dias, and funded by the São Paulo Research Foundation (Fapesp). Her research involves producing cellulose nanocrystals using a technological route aimed at finding a sustainable alternative with customized properties for producing materials with different applications.
“It was a very interesting and important project in the field of nanocellulose production. The study more than tripled the productivity of cellulose nanosphere (CNS) production by evaluating the influence of four factors: degree of defibrillation, hydrolysis time, enzyme load, and solids content,” Lis explained to Agência FAPESP. “This allowed us to optimize the CNS production process. In the lab, we use a green route for CNS production: enzymatic hydrolysis.”
Currently, the EEL student is conducting research at the Henry Royce Institute (United Kingdom), with a Fapesp scholarship. “Upon returning to Brazil, I will continue developing my research at the Applied Bionanotechnology Laboratory,” she said.
Laura believes the achievement highlights the impact of internationalization made possible by research funding agencies and can inspire other undergraduate research students to believe in their potential. “I also think it is important to emphasize the relevance of women’s presence in engineering and science, a cause I always carry with me,” Lis noted.
From Agência Fapesp
English version: Nexus Traduções, edited by Denis Pacheco
