Laura was a PhD researcher in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering  at The University of Sheffield, UK. She was co-supervised by Dr Brant Walkley, and was a member of both the Cements@Sheffield (MSE, led by Professor John L. Provis) and Sustainable Materials at Sheffield (CBE) research teams.

Laura joined the University of Sheffield in May 2019 to start her PhD project on the Design of alkali-activated material with maximised recycle content (URBCON, NWE Interreg). Previously, she completed a Bachelor’s Degree in Chemical Engineering at Politecnico di Milano, Italy (2015), followed by two Master’s Degrees at Universitat Politècnica de València, Spain, in Sustainable Chemistry (MSc, 2017) and in Environmental and Industrial Safety (MEng, 2018). During those years in Valencia Laura joined the ITQ (Instituto de Tecnología Química) Research Centre to develop projects in the field of the Green and Sustainable Chemistry and mainly focused on heterogeneous catalysis and on the removal of contaminants from the environment.

The focus of Laura’s PhD project was the study of chemical and engineering properties of alkali-activated binders and mortars, with a particular interest on early-age behaviour. The aim was waste valorisation and the control of CO2 emissions by alkali-activation of industrial by-products to maximise the replacement of raw materials and cement, in agreement with a sustainable development in the construction and environmental sector. As of September 2019, Laura has been part of the training programme at the Grantham Centre for Sustainable Futures. She has also worked in the Diamond as a Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA) in the Material and Analytic Laboratories.