Recent Submissions

Engineering zirconia surfaces with cell instructive and antibacterial properties 

García de Albéniz López de Aberasturi, Nerea (Date of defense: 2025-10-13)

(English) Tetragonal zirconia polycrystals stabilized with 3 mol% yttria (3Y-TZP) has gained growing interest as an alternative to titanium for dental implants, owing to its excellent biocompatibility, high mechanical ...

Computational constitutive modeling of WC-Co hardmetals: from small to large specimen scale 

Sousa Machado, Pedro Vinícius (Date of defense: 2025-09-05)

(English) In this thesis, the mechanical behavior of tungsten carbide-cobalt (WC-Co) hardmetal, a multiphase composite, is thoroughly investigated through computational modeling techniques. First, the thesis focusses on ...

Additive manufacturing of WC-CO cemented carbides: microstructural, lenght-scale and layer assemblage orientation effects on hardness, sliding contact response and fracture behaviour 

Cabezas i Peñalva, Laura (Date of defense: 2025-07-28)

(English) This PhD thesis explores the microstructure–mechanical property relationships of WC-Co cemented carbides (hardmetals) produced using two sinter-based additive manufacturing (AM) techniques: Binder Jetting Technology ...

Dry-electropolishing of WC-Co cemented carbides: chemical, microstructural and mechanical characterization 

Riu Perdrix, Guiomar (Date of defense: 2025-06-19)

(English) WC-Co cemented carbides are widely used in industry, particularly for cutting tools, due to its exceptional combination of mechanical properties. They are composites consisting of tungsten carbide (WC) particles ...

Environmentally friendly phosphorus flame retardant systems for acrylonitrilebutadiene-styrene (ABS): strategies to enhance mechanical properties and development of novel phosphorus/cork powder hybid solutions 

Ghonjizadehsamani, Farnaz (Date of defense: 2024-07-11)

(English) Acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) is one of the most widely used and versatile thermoplastic due to its toughness, chemical resistance and processability. These characteristics make it suitable for various ...

Study on the forming limit on shear spinning process 

Elizalde Huitrón, Sergio Alberto (Date of defense: 2024-04-16)

(English) Shear spinning is an incremental sheet metal forming process where a flat metal blank or pre-form is usually converted into an axisymmetric hollow part. Several ductile metals and alloys can be shear formed either ...

Multifunctional eco-friendly aerogel composites for thermal insulation and fire resistant applications 

Cruz Jesús, Lucía Guadalupe de la (Date of defense: 2024-11-22)

(English) Replacing petroleum-based polymers with natural alternatives requires overcoming the limitations of their thermal and mechanical properties, as well as the inherently low fire resistance of the biomass from which ...

Escenarios hacia una economía circular de los plásticos: caracterización del sector del envasado y evaluación de la idoneidad del reciclado open loop de la fracción mezclada de los residuos de envase 

López Aguilar, José Fernando (Date of defense: 2024-01-11)

(English) This thesis aims to deepen in the understanding of the circular economy of plastics through a scientific and design approach. It has focused on packaging waste as it is the sector with the highest priority and ...

Afino microestructural de chapa de acero calidad DDQ mediante procesos de doblado - enderezado 

Macías García, Ana Isabel (Date of defense: 2022-11-08)

(English) In this thesis, the ability to refine the grain size of a low carbon steel (deep drawing quality, DDQ) was studied by means of two different techniques of Severe Plastic Deformation (SPD). Firstly, the Repetitive ...

Modelo sistémico del proceso proyectual para una ingeniería que diseña mediante materiales avanzados 

Fernández Cano, Jessica (Date of defense: 2022-03-18)

(English) The engineering design process uses a systemic model that stands out for a common pattern that has evolved from Archer (1968), through French (1985), Nigel Cross (2000) and Michael F. Ashby (2009). Although in ...

Desarrollo de sistemas de dispersión coloidal y granulación de partículas metálicas finas 

Lorente Soteras, Itzel (Date of defense: 2023-09-14)

(English) One of the main goals of the powder metallurgical (PM) industry has been to develop powders that have favourable handling, geometrical and optimal metallurgical properties. Currently, there are two main methods ...

3D-printed biomimetic bone grafts: clinical validation and improvement strategies 

Johansson, Linh Ha Huong Lovisa (Date of defense: 2024-05-06)

(English) Bone defects pose a major clinical and socio-economic burden and there is a clear need for new bone grafting strategies that take into account the physical-chemical properties of the native bone, to help treat ...

Mechanical integrity of coated PcBN systems: mechanics and mechanisms involved under service-like conditions 

Gordon Pozuelo, Sandra (Date of defense: 2024-05-10)

(English) Polycrystalline cubic boron nitride (PcBN) is a composite competitive cutting tool material that excels performance when machining difficult-to-cut materials (e.g. hardened steels, superalloys, etc) due to its ...

A damage-based fatigue life prediction method for metallic alloys and composites 

Parareda Oriol, Sergi (Date of defense: 2023-12-04)

(English) Fatigue failures in materials have been studied for centuries, with early pioneers like August Wöhler noting that repeated loading, even below the static strength of the material, could lead to structural ...

Novel multifunctional biomimetic peptides for bone tissue engineering 

Oliver Cervelló, Lluís (Date of defense: 2022-11-03)

(English) Mimicking bone extracellular matrix (ECM) is essential to improve cell-material interactions. In this regard, the functionalization of materials with biomolecules derived from the bone ECM is a promising approach. ...

Effects of cold atmospheric plasmas on biomaterials: hydrogels and composites with calcium phosphates 

Solé Martí, Xavier (Date of defense: 2023-07-13)

(English) This PhD thesis is framed in the European Research Council starting grant project "Atmospheric Pressure plasma meets biomaterials far bone Cancer HEaling (APACHE)". The APACHE project is focused on the design of ...

Integration of sensors on 3D-printed zirconia ceramics to be used in structural applications 

Zhang, Junhui (Date of defense: 2023-06-22)

(English) Zirconia-based ceramics present unique combination of mechanical, thermal and chemical properties, making them a preferred choice in automotive, aerospace, heavy machinery, defence and healthcare sectors. However, ...

Development of a resorbable and bioactive personalized 3D-printed implant for guided bone regeneration 

Rey Viñoles, Sergi (Date of defense: 2023-11-03)

(English) The restoration of the functionality of lost teeth is mainly accomplished placing dental implants. However, in the case of alveolar bone atrophies, this treatment might not be possible. Various treatments have ...

Blends of modified PLA and biopolyamides for additive manufacturing 

García Masabet, Violeta del Valle (Date of defense: 2023-11-24)

(English) The main objective of this work is to counteract the limitations of polylactic acid (PLA) and propose a sustainable manufacturing approach using bioblends of a rheologically modified PLA by reactive extrusion ...

Micromechanics of quaternary AICrSiN coatings on hard substrates 

Liang, Jing (Date of defense: 2023-10-27)

(English) AlCrSiN quaternary coatings are extensively utilized in the tool industry due to their outstanding mechanical performance as protective coatings. These coatings are formed by introducing elements of Al and Si to ...