Salutation

dr

First Name

Rafael

Last Name

Araújo

Nationality

Portugal

Age

33

Gender

male

Country of Residence

Mexico

University / Organization

Autonomous University of Coahuila

Biological Sciences

biochemistry

Sustainable bioprocesses

University / Institution

Minho University

Academic Level

Bachelor's degree

Discipline

Biochemistry

Start Date

2009-09-14

End Date / Graduation

2012-07-26

University / Institution

Minho University

Academic Level

Master

Discipline

Bioengineering

Start Date

2012-09-10

End Date / Graduation

2014-11-26

University / Institution

Autonomous University of Coahuila

Academic Level

PhD

Discipline

Food Science and Technology

Start Date

2016-08-08

End Date / Graduation

2019-10-21

Country

Research Grant in the BiValBi project - Biotechnologies to enhance regional biodiversity in Latin America (PIRSES-GA-2013-611493)

Organisation

Autonomous University of Coahuila

Description

The overall objective of BiValBi was to identify and characterize local varieties of traditional foods produced on a large scale in Latin America to valorize the large quantities of non-conforming materials and processing waste by producing high-value-added products using customized combinations of established traditional biotechnologies. In Mexico, the project focused on the recovery, characterization, purification, biotransformation, and encapsulation of high-value biomolecules from avocado waste and explored their application in the development of new functional foods and bioactive compounds with additional nutritional properties.

Job Position / Title

Mexico

From (Date)

2015-04-01

To (Date)

2016-03-31

Country

Postdoc

Organisation

Institute of Technology and Higher Studies of Monterrey

Description

Postdoctoral researcher at the Institute of Advanced Materials for Sustainable Manufacturing of Tecnológico de Monterrey, focused on the development and research of various national, international, and private projects focused on bioprocesses for the valorization of natural resources, the production of value-added bioproducts, and biotechnologies for the removal of emerging contaminants in wastewater. He initially led a project with CSIC-Spain for the removal of emerging contaminants in wastewater. Rafael subsequently won the projects "Development of an intelligent edible coating for the preservation of red fruits" in 2022 and "Development of a sustainable shrimp feed formulation based on bioprocessed Sargassum biomass to enhance its nutritional and health parameters" in 2023, funded with 8 and 6 MXN, respectively. In parallel, she collaborated on various projects to valorize sargassum for the extraction of biopolymers such as alginate and fucoidan, which were the thesis of various students. In another project, she developed shrimp feed that was the basis for the second funded project. She also collaborated on projects with industry such as the Comercial Oxxo chain in 2021 and led a 5 MXN project with the Femsa Foundation in 2023 to transform organic waste from the food distribution chain into high-value materials and products.

Job Position / Title

Mexico

From (Date)

2021-06-01

To (Date)

2024-01-31

Country

Researcher Professor

Organisation

Autonomous University of Coahuila

Description

Job Position / Title

Mexico

From (Date)

2024-02-02

To (Date)

Ongoing