Christian Blanco has been awarded a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Postdoctoral Fellowship under the 2025 call. Christian is working in the the group of Prof. Rubén Martín at ICIQ and will develop the project NOVa [Nitrogen(IV) Oxide Valorisation] – Radical NO₂: Unlocking Nitrogen and Oxygen Transfer via Nickel Catalysis.
MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships are funded by the European Union’s Horizon Europe programme to support experienced researchers through advanced training, international mobility, and the development of independent research ideas. The programme is among the most competitive European funding schemes for early-career scientists.
About the project
NOVa explores the use of nitrogen dioxide (NO2), a pollutant generated by combustion processes, as a synthetic reagent for forging C–N and C–O bonds under mild conditions via Ni-catalysis. The project will begin by investigating the factors that enable selective NO2 radical capture and stabilise high-valent nickel. The broader goal is to translate these insights into catalytic strategies for selective nitration, with a view towards late-stage functionalisation of medicinally relevant scaffolds. NOVa will also investigate the capability of Ni–NO2 species in oxygen-transfer reactions, with the aim of developing a safer alternatives to ozonolysis.
Through his project, and in synergy with the group of Prof. Rubén Martín, Christian will generate new insights in the fields of chemistry of persistent radicals, organometallic chemistry of nickel, and catalysis aligned with green chemistry principles, while working in a diverse and collaborative research milieu.
MSCA fellowships help attract international researchers to ICIQ and support the institute’s participation in European research programmes, while contributing to ongoing research into the three pillars covering sustainable catalysis, renewable energies and molecular medicine.
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation program under grant agreement 101271815.
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