Grazia Totaro graduated in Chemistry from the University of Ferrara and earned a PhD in Materials Engineering from the University of Bologna. She subsequently held positions as a postdoctoral researcher and Assistant Professor at the Department of Civil, Chemical, Environmental and Materials Engineering of the University of Bologna. She then served as a tenure-track Assistant Professor at the Department of Chemistry and Industrial Chemistry of the University of Pisa, where she is currently an Associate Professor.
During her academic career, she conducted research at the Université René Descartes in Paris, at the École Nationale Supérieure de Chimie de Clermont-Ferrand (ENSCCF), and she was visiting professor at ENSCCF in 2012 and 2015. She has collaborated with several industrial partners, including LyondellBasell (Ferrara, Italy) and Reagens S.p.A. (San Giorgio di Piano, Italy).
She has actively contributed to the European H2020 projects PROLIFIC (Grant Agreement No. 790157) and TERMINUS (Grant Agreement No. 814400), collaborating with leading European academic and industrial partners, including SIGMA Clermont (France), FHNW – University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland (Switzerland), Covestro (Germany), Norner (Norway), IPC – Centre Technique Industriel de la Plasturgie et des Composites (France), FTMC – Center for Physical Sciences and Technology (Lithuania), and Tetra Pak (Sweden).
She is the author of approximately 55 papers published in international peer-reviewed journals, two book chapters, two patents, and numerous contributions to conference proceedings and editorials.
Her research focuses on macromolecular chemistry, with particular emphasis on polymers derived from renewable resources and biodegradable polymeric materials.
Recent projects:
- Participation in the research activities of the University of Pisa research group within the CIVIS TRIA project, funded under the Tuscany Regional Programme (PR FESR Tuscany 2021–2027), Action 1.1.4, Call No. 1 – Strategic Research and Development Projects. The project, entitled Life Cycle of Ultrasound Probes: Technologies for Environmental Impact Reduction, has a total eligible budget of €2,042,321.50, with EU funding of €712,823.98.
- Participation in the research activities of the University of Pisa research group within the ESTEtICO project, funded under the Tuscany Regional Programme (PR FESR Tuscany 2021–2027), Action 1.1.4, Call No. 2 – Research and Development Projects for SMEs and Mid-Caps. The project, entitled Energy: Technological Solutions for the Integration of Photovoltaics into Architecture and the Landscape, has a total budget of €874,824.30, with EU funding of €369,006.49.
Awards and Recognitions
- Seal of Excellence awarded by the European Commission for the proposal “Multifunctional Hybrid Systems from Agro-Waste”, submitted under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions, H2020-MSCA-IF-2018-GF call (Proposal No. 845228).
- Best Paper Award 2019 awarded by the Department of Civil, Chemical, Environmental and Materials Engineering, University of Bologna. The awarded paper is: Totaro, G., Sisti, L., Vannini, M., Marchese, P., Tassoni, A., Lenucci, M.S., Lamborghini, M., Kalia, S., & Celli, A. A New Route for the Valorization of Rice Endosperm By-Products: Production of Polymeric Biocomposites. Composites Part B: Engineering, 139 (2018), 195–202.
- Key Innovator Recognition awarded by the European Commission for the H2020 project TERMINUS (2019–2023), “In-built Triggered Enzymes to Recycle Multi-layers: an Innovation for Uses in Plastic Packaging” (Grant Agreement No. 814400).
- Filippo Re Award – Environment, Economy, Territory, Society (5th Edition) – Corresponding author of the paper selected among the winners of the Filippo Re Award – Environment, Economy, Territory, Society, 5th Edition, Climate Change: Ideas and Projects for Agriculture. The paper, presented by Dr. Elia Pagliarini, received the Second Prize (joint award) in 2024. Awarded paper: Pagliarini, E., Totaro, G., Saccani, A., Gaggìa, F., Lancellotti, I., Di Gioia, D., & Sisti, L. Valorization of Coffee Wastes as Plant Growth Promoter in Mulching Film Production: A Contribution to a Circular Economy. Science of the Total Environment, 871 (2023), 162093.
- Polymers 2024 Best Paper Award awarded by the Editorial Board of the journal Polymers (MDPI) based on the overall evaluation of the originality, scientific impact, citations, and downloads of the following publication: Rosato, A., Romano, A., Totaro, G., Celli, A., Fava, F., Zanaroli, G., & Sisti, L. Enzymatic Degradation of the Most Common Aliphatic Bio-Polyesters and Evaluation of the Mechanisms Involved: An Extended Study. Polymers, 14(9) (2022), 1850.