Rodrigo Jiménez Sandoval, Ph.D.

Alumni

Now CEO of Polymeron

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Biography

Dr. Sandoval pursued his Ph.D. at KAUST under the supervision of Professor Pascal Saikaly, where his research focused on utilizing electricity-producing bacteria to develop eco-friendly catalysts for hydrogen production.

Rodrigo is the CEO of Polymeron, a company dedicated to manufacturing biodegradable and sustainable materials. Polymeron won the TAQADAM Startup Accelerator Program in 2021 and the prestigious $1 million Omnipreneurship Award in 2022. The company specializes in transforming date waste into bioplastic single-use products, such as spoons, cups, and plates, contributing to a more sustainable future.

Selected Publications

  • Jimenez-Sandoval, R., Pedireddy, S., Katuri, K. P., & Saikaly, P. E. (2023). Facile Biological-Based Synthesis of Size-Controlled Palladium Nanoclusters Anchored on the Surface of Geobacter sulfurreducens and Their Application in Electrocatalysis. ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering, 11(3), 1100-1109. DOI: 10.1021/acssuschemeng.2c05478
  • Pedireddy, S., Jimenez-Sandoval, R. J., Ravva, M. K., Nayak, C., Anjum, D. H., Jha, S. N., Katuri, K. P., & Saikaly, P. E. (2021). Harnessing the extracellular electron transfer capability of Geobacter sulfurreducens for ambient synthesis of stable bifunctional single-atom electrocatalyst for water splitting. Advanced Functional Materials, 31(22), 2170161. DOI: 10.1002/adfm.202010916
  • Pedireddy, S., Jimenez-Sandoval, R. J., Ravva, M. K., Nayak, C., Anjum, D. H., & Saikaly, P. E. (2021). Harnessing the Extracellular Electron Transfer Capability of Geobacter sulfurreducens for Ambient Synthesis of Stable Bifunctional Single‐Atom Electrocatalyst for Hydrogen Evolution. Advanced Functional Materials, 31(22), 2010916. DOI: 10.1002/adfm.2021010916
  • Amy, G., Katuri, K., Werner, C. M., Saikaly, P. E., Jimenez-Sandoval, R., Lai, Z., Chen, W., & Logan, B. E. (2018). Anaerobic electrochemical membrane bioreactor and process for wastewater treatment. US Patent 10,059,609.
  • Katuri, K. P., Werner, C. M., Jimenez-Sandoval, R., Chen, W., Jeon, S., Logan, B. E., & Saikaly, P. E. (2014). A novel anaerobic electrochemical membrane bioreactor (AnEMBR) with conductive hollow-fiber membrane for treatment of low-organic strength solutions. Environmental Science & Technology, 48(21), 12833-12841. DOI: 10.1021/es503646e
  • Katuri, K., Werner, C. M., Jimenez-Sandoval, R., Chen, W., Jeon, S., Lai, Z., Amy, G., & Saikaly, P. E. (2014). Anaerobic Electrochemical Membrane Bioreactor (AnEMBR) for Low-Strength Wastewater Treatment with Resource Recovery. Electrochemical Society Meeting Abstracts, 226, 2289-2289.

Education

  • Ph.D., Environmental Science and Engineering, KAUST (King Abdullah University of Science and Technology), 2023
  • M.S., Environmental Science and Engineering, KAUST (King Abdullah University of Science and Technology), 2013
  • B.S., Biology, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, 2012