Madras Christian College proudly Congratulates Dr. R. Liju (alumnus, Department of Chemistry) on being awarded the Prestigious Marie Skłodowska-Curie Action (MSCA-2024) Postdoctoral Fellowship by the European Commission for his project, “CHITOCAT.” This esteemed research grant, valued at approximately €20 million, recognizes Dr. Liju’s exceptional talent, dedication, and the rigorous training he received during his time at the College.
This fellowship will support two years of advanced research at the Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Technology, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia. Dr. Liju earned his Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry from Madras Christian College and his Master’s degree from Loyola College, Chennai. He then returned to Madras Christian College to complete his Ph.D. in Chemistry in 2024 under the guidance of Dr. E. Rajkumar, Department of Chemistry.
Under this fellowship, Dr. Liju will develop a recyclable biopolymeric support for catalysts used in the synthesis of deuterium (D)-labelled compounds via a continuous flow chemistry (CFC) process. This research will be conducted at the Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Technology (FKKT), University of Ljubljana, under the mentorship of Dr. Ross Jansen van Vuuren. He will be co-hosted by Assist. Prof. Maksim Ošeka at Tallinn University of Technology (Estonia) and will undertake an industrial placement at Sanofi under the mentorship of Dr. Volker Derdau (Head of Isotope Chemistry).
Dr. Liju is currently a Postdoctoral fellow with Dr. Ross Jansen van Vuuren in the Košmrlj Group at FKKT, University of Ljubljana, and will commence his MSCA postdoctoral fellowship in June 2025.
We are confident that Dr. Liju will make significant contributions to his field and serve as an inspiration to our current students and researchers. We extend our warmest congratulations and best wishes to Dr. R. Liju for continued success on the international stage
