While earning a bachelor's degree in materials engineering from the Federal University of São Carlos in Brazil, Luiza Gouvêa Santos held internships at the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Technology and Advanced Materials in Germany and at Celanese Corp. in continuous improvement, failure analysis and polymer characterization.
She received her master's degree in materials science and engineering with an emphasis on biodegradable polymeric films from the Federal University of São Carlos and joined Unipac/Jacto Group as a materials development senior analyst.
"I had the opportunity to work with many plastic processing technics, such as injection molding, extrusion, rotomolding, blow molding, sheet extrusion and thermoforming," she said. "It was truly a school for me: I worked with different resins, pigments and additives and had contact with suppliers and customers.
"Since university, I was very passionate about plastics because it is a lightweight material, strong, impact-resistant, it can be transparent or opaque, it can be molded in different shapes with productive technics, it can be recycled, and it is versatile for many applications. I believe that plastic is the future, and we need it to achieve a more sustainable world," she added.
Santos is now a product engineer at Sabic in Campinas, Brazil. She works on the "development of products containing recycled material, translation of Sabic's portfolio for local production, resolution of technical problems, development and qualification of alternative raw materials, management of chemical products and resolution of product harmonized system code questions."
"I implemented a sustainability committee in our plant here in Brazil to centralize and promote actions towards a more sustainable future," she said. "With that focus, I am developing recycled raw materials that can be used in our products maintaining good technical quality. It has been challenging to have all the safety data required to work with this type of material, but it is also very rewarding when we achieve good test results in our customer processes."
Her greatest professional achievement has been joining Sabic, she said. "It was a turning point on my career that allowed me to grow professionally and personally and develop projects that have a positive impact in the society. The best example was the development of a grade with recycled content to be used in the automotive business."
Santos has never stopped learning.
"Ever since I graduated university, I'm always seeking new opportunities to learn, doing a [master's degree], doing courses in plastics for food applications and for medical applications, learning Lean Six Sigma, learning on-the-job skills, learning Spanish and, more recently, joining a post-graduate program in ESG [environmental, social and governance] and corporate sustainability," she said.
Santos said she is surprised by how fast the industry is changing to adapt to new regulations and more strict laws regarding plastic waste.
"New technologies are being developed to recycle plastic obtaining high-quality materials, new bio-based and biodegradable plastics as well as new formulations to reach higher performance. The portfolios are always expanding with new innovative products and expanding applications to different markets," she said. "Plastic is a relatively new material, and there is still a lot to be explored."