Gabriel is an adventurous student from the University of Puerto Rico Mayaguez Campus that is determined to impact the community by showing how amazing learning about science can be. Learn more about Gabriel and everything he has achieved!
Gabriel Sánchez is a fifth-year Chemical Engineering student, born in San Juan Puerto Rico. Gabriel is searching to foster a more diverse and inclusive scientific community. His goal is to breach the gap between the scientific community and society as a whole by actively participating in outreach activities.
Gabriel’s hobbies include traveling and uncovering everything the wonders of nature have to offer. “I’d do anything for an adventure, from diving to hiking”- Gabriel. He also enjoys going to museums and learning about different cultures and countries.
Gabriel is the captain of the Coki Racing – Team, an interdisciplinary group that competes at the AICHE Chem E car competition. The goal of the team is to design, manufacture and calibrate a shoebox-sized car to run and stop autonomously via a chemical reaction.
Gabriel has been part of PREM for almost a year, working for Dr. Claribel Acevedo under the mentorship of Luca Capre Maso. His research with Dr. Acevedo looks to better understand the mechanism involved in the self-assembly of akanethiol monolayers encapsulating gold nanoparticles. By understanding this, they can proceed to tailor the surface nanostructure and composition to actively stabilize oil in water nanoemulsions. Which can lead to novel enhaced oil recovery techniques and more effective oil spill recovery.
He was also fortunate enough to participate at the University of Madison’s (UW) MRSEC REU working under Dr. David M. Lynn, what of the professor involved in PREM. His research with Dr.David Lynn looked to generate Slippery Liquid Infused Porosu Surfaces (SLIPS) by employing a novel autonomous technique. The slips would then be infused with water in oil nanoemulsions for the controlled drug release of quorum sensing inhibitors (QSI). Which could open the door to multiple applications in not only the medical field but also in the aviation and naval industry.
At UW, Gabriel participated at the monthly Saturday Science program held at the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery. where he gave demonstrations to over 60 children between the ages of 6-12 on surfactant science.
“I joined PREM to continue my promise of committing to outreach and influence young people to enter STEM-related fields. My goal with this partnership is to allow students from Puerto Rico to obtain positions in competitive universities and fields if they decide to continue with graduate studies.” – Gabriel Sánchez
For additional Information about Gabriel, search: OUTRACH & The COKI RACING TEAM
