Two research teams from the University Institute of Advanced Materials at Universitat Jaume I de Castelló, led by Iván Mora Seró and Beatriu Escuder, and by Vicent Moliner and Macarena Poyatos, will develop two Prometeo projects aimed at obtaining new chiral materials for energy and catalysis and a new generation of catalysts that mimic the behaviour of enzymes. The Generalitat Valenciana has awarded each team a grant of more than €500,000.
The Prometeo programme is the Generalitat Valenciana’s most scientifically demanding funding scheme. It is aimed at groups with an established research track record that are capable of conducting frontier research, attracting talent and successfully participating in major national and European competitive programmes such as Horizon Europe and the European Research Council (ERC).
The CHIRAL-Solutions project (Chiral Materials Solutions for Energy and Catalysis), led by Iván Mora Seró and Beatriu Escuder, aims to harness the chirality of materials — the geometric property whereby a structure cannot be superimposed on its mirror image, as with hands — to tune chemical reactivity and selectivity, optical activity, mechanical properties and charge dynamics. These properties could be exploited in a wide range of photoelectrochemical systems and optoelectronic devices, as well as in asymmetric catalysis.
The proposal, which also involves researchers Sofia Masi, Eva M. Barea, Rosario Vidal, Beatriz Julián and Eva Falomir, includes the synthesis and preparation of halide perovskites, as well as molecular and supramolecular chiral systems, and extends to their implementation in energy and biomimetic materials. This includes the characterisation, understanding and modelling of solar cells, LEDs, solar-fuel generation systems and stereoselective catalytic processes, all based on elements with a low environmental impact.
The expected results have significant potential for technology transfer to key industrial sectors, including the energy sector, through more efficient and durable optoelectronic devices; the chemical industry, through more selective and sustainable catalysts; and, particularly, the pharmaceutical industry, which relies heavily on the synthesis of chiral drugs and could benefit from advances made through the project.
The BIOSWITCH project, meanwhile, proposes a combined theoretical and experimental approach to the rational design of multifunctional bio-inspired catalysts. Led by Vicent Moliner and Macarena Poyatos, the project aims to create a new generation of versatile and switchable bio-inspired catalysts capable of carrying out complex chemical transformations and modulating their activity and selectivity in response to external stimuli such as light, the presence of certain ions or redox changes — in other words, mimicking the behaviour of enzymes.
Through the design of SMART ligands (switchable, multifunctional, adaptable and tuneable) and the incorporation of supramolecular principles, the research team — which also includes Eduardo Peris, Iñaki Tuñón, Katarzyna Swiderek, Sergio Martí, Sergio Gonell and J. J. Ruiz-Pernía — aims to develop nanocarriers and catalysts that can operate in both chemical and biological environments. These systems will enable more efficient and controllable chemical transformations, with potential applications in sustainable synthesis, drug delivery and photodynamic therapy.
Using a multidisciplinary approach that combines computational modelling with experimental synthesis and characterisation, the team aims to develop, by the end of the project, a platform technology for responsive catalysis that could transform the way catalysts are designed, optimised and applied both in chemical manufacturing and in biomedicine.
PROMETEO 2026
The 2026 Prometeo call for applications for outstanding research groups provides research teams with a stable four-year funding framework, supporting continuity in their research and scientific planning while reducing the uncertainty associated with annual funding calls. It also contributes to consolidating the most competitive research groups and strengthening the position of the Valencian R&D&I system at national and international level.
The programme enables teams to recruit research staff, acquire scientific equipment and establish national and international collaborations with greater planning capacity. It also funds research aimed at addressing some of today's major challenges, including climate change adaptation, the energy transition, the development of new materials, sustainable agriculture, industrial digitalisation, cultural heritage protection, improvements to education systems, mental health and the effects of technological change.