ICMM gets two CSIC projects to study antimicrobial resistance and clean energy alongside private companies

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Two projects from the Materials Science Institute of Madrid (ICMM-CSIC) have received support from the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) to collaborate with private companies in addressing current challenges. Specifically, the group led by Daniel Ramos will work on issues related to antimicrobial resistance, while Paco del Monte is collaborating with CNIM and INCAR on a challenge in the petrochemical industry to achieve clean energy.

The Optomechanics Laboratory of ICMM-CSIC has partnered with Nanological SL to develop an antibiogram (a test on the susceptibility of bacteria to an antibiotic) through their optomechanical devices. "If we can perform these tests quickly and sensitively, we can determine the appropriate antibiotic for a specific infection, avoiding the use of broad-spectrum antibiotics that lead to resistance," says Ramos.

On the other hand, Del Monte is involved in another project, this time coordinated by the National Center for Metallurgical Research (CENIM) and in collaboration with Repsol, to address challenges related to clean and sustainable energy. They will study the removal and subsequent recovery of metals in aqueous streams from the petrochemical sector. "The removal of multiple metals in aqueous solution is a complex problem, so the project will apply various technological solutions to achieve it," says the researcher, who is already working with the TECNOECO group at CENIM and the Biocarbon, Circular Economy, and Sustainability Group at the National Carbon Institute (INCAR).

Both projects have been selected by the COCREA open innovation initiative, launched by CSIC to address global challenges through partnerships between private companies and CSIC. In the initial phase of the call, the 'matching of interests,' companies presented their challenges in the mentioned areas, and then CSIC researchers responded to these business challenges with their solution ideas. One month later, the CSIC-Company teams presented their joint project ideas, and five projects were selected for each area to be developed over the next two years with a budget of 100,000 euros, half provided by CSIC and the other half by the collaborating company for each project.