Curriculum

Curriculum

Degree in Chemistry: 14.03.1981 cum laude.
1983-1998: Researcher of Inorganic Chemistry at the Department of Inorganic Chemistry of Messina University
1984/1985: visiting researcher at the Chemistry Department of University of Milano 
1985-1987: National Research Grant spent at Chemistry Department of Sheffield University (GB) under the supervision of prof Maitlis.
1998-2021: Associated Professor of Inorganic Chemistry 
 
Teaching activity
 
Currently, she teaches General and Inorganic Chemistry for the degree in Physics, Material Chemistry for the degree in Chemistry, Nanostructured Materials for the master-degree in Chemistry, and gives seminar on materials, nano-materials chemistry and ionic liquids for the PHD course of Chemistry. She has participated as thesis committee member in master and doctoral thesis.
 
Management activities
 
• member of the Academic Senate of the University of Messina (2015-2021), 
• adviser of the Italian chemical society (Sicilian Region) (2009-2012), 
• component of the chemical sciences committee university of Messina (2012-2015) –
•  component of the research committee of university of Messina (2015-2018), 
• quality insurer for the degree course of chemistry (2013-2016)
• quality insurer for the master-degree in chemistry (2016-2021). 
 
 
Research Activity
 
Researcher numbers:  ID Lo schiavo, Sandra 8090527800
ID Schiavo, Sandra Lo 6603246462
Orcid Codice (Lo schiavo, Sandra) 0000-0002-5837-0683           
 
Keywords: Synthesis, Coordination Chemistry, Sol-gel Chemistry, POSS, Nanotechnologies, Nanostructured materials, stone restoration materials, smart materials, functional ionic liquids
h-index 23
 
The research activity has been always focused on the design, synthesis and characterization of functional materials, molecular or not, with applications in catalytic, optical, sensing and cultural heritage fields. Her primary interest was devoted to the chemistry of coordination compounds based on bi- and poly-nuclear metal complexes. In the context of these studies she has developed new synthetic strategies, pointed out novel reactivities for coordination compounds opening new frontiers of applications for molecular materials that usually considered subject of “academic research” topic. A significative example is represented by redox dirhodium(II,II) systems with the classic lantern structure (discrete or supported on silica layer or polymeric substrates) which showed to be ideal chromogenic materials for CO and NH₃ gas sensing and successfully utilized as synthons for photo-redox supramolecular materials 
At the same time, she extended her interest to polymer chemistry and in particular to nano-technologies as useful means to make transition metal complexes more processable and to access to advanced materials with restoration functions for CH (cultural heritage) stone artfacts, too. Aware of the role played by organic/inorganic silica-nanostructured resins in many fields (optical, coating, farmaceutical), she identified in sol-gel chemistry and in the so called “POSS nanotechnology” (POSS=polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxanes [Si₁O_1,5]n) unique and versatile technologies for the development of multifunctional hybrid materials addressed to act as protective/consolidants in CH lithic restoration and applied to get both conventional polisiloxanes species as well as silica-nanofiller epoxy/acrylic resins for in situ applications. As a continuation of these studies, much of her current research is currently devoted on exploring innovative and “eco-friendly” synthetic methodologies aimed to building materials repair, based on bio-source polymers and involving the use of “smart” nanoparticles such as TiO₂, ZnO, etc. and/or other functional species such as ionic liquids, capable to infer to materials further functions (i.e tunable hydrophobicity, bio-activity, self-healing, etc).
In the last ten years, the big impact that ionic liquids (Ils) produced in a variety of fields (nanotechnologies, catalysis, separation processes, “green chemistry”, capacitors, solar cells, field electric transistors and so on) led prof Lo Schiavo to explore their potential in several fields. A particular attention has been paid to supported ionic liquids, polymeric or POSS/nano-supported, evidencing their gas adsorbing capabilities, their hydrophobicity as a function of anions and the unique amphiphilic/LLextraction properties of POSS ammonium ionic liquids. The latter ILs, thanks to the cation surface-activity have been exploited for the construction of functional ionic self-assembled materials, with anionic porphyrins and oxidized MWCNts. 
            Surface activity ionic liquids (SAILs) exhibit a good potential of application in CH field: they have been mentioned as good candidates for cleaning processes and for their bio-activity. Further ILs may result very useful in synthetic procedures as dynamic templating agents and nano-particles dispersant. They may significantly contribute to stone restoration in preventing, in some extent, microbial recolonization processes. As a confirm, surface active cholinium based ionic liquids  display interesting antimicrobial and antifouling properties  towards microbial strains isolated from deteriorated monuments. 
Her research activity is documented by more 80 publications (h-index 23, more than 1x00 citations) on peer reviewed International Journals, by participation (also on invitation) to national and international meetings.
 
Indicative references
 
- A dirhodium(II,II) complex as a highly selective molecular material for ammonia detection: QCM studies. N. Donato, M. Latino, G. Neri, J. Mat. Chem., 21, 18034-18041 (2011)
 
- Selective monitoring of parts per million levels of CO by covalently immobilized metal complexes on glass.Gulino A.,  Gupta T., Marc Altman,  S. Lo Schiavo,  Mineo P.G., G. Evmenenko G., Pulak Dutta P.,  Mi. E. van der Boom, Chem. Commun., 2900-2902 (2008)
 
- Self-assembly of square molecular boxes , Schiavo, S.L., Pocsfalvi, G., Serroni, S., Cardiano, P., Piraino, P., Eur. J.  Inorg. Chem, (6), 1371-1375.  (2000)
 
-Redox materials by the covalent entrapment of redox-active dirhodium(II,II) species in a siloxane network, Lo Schiavo, S., Forte, C., Pignataro, B., Tresoldi, G., Piraino, P., Macromolecular Rapid Communications, 2004,  25(10), 1033-1031
 
-Epoxy-silica polymers as stone conservation materials, Cardiano, P., Ponterio, R.C., Sergi, S., Lo Schiavo, S., Piraino, P., Polymer, 2005, 46(6), 1857-1864.
 
 
-Novel propylmethacrylate-monofunctionalized polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxanes homopolymers prepared via radical bulk free polymerization, Lo Schiavo, S., Mineo, P., Cardiano, P., Piraino, P. , European Polymer Journal, , 43(12), 4898-4904 (2007)
 
- POSS-Tetraalkylammonium Salts: A New Class of Ionic Liquids, P. Cardiano, G. Lazzara, Manickam S.,Mineo P.G., Milioto S., Lo Schiavo S., Eur. J.  Inorg. Chem., 34, 5668-5676 (2012).
 
- Highly untangled multiwalled carbon nanotube@polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane ionic hybrids: Synthesis, characterization and nonlinear optical properties, Cardiano P., Fazio E., Lazzara G., Manickam S., Neri F., Mineo P.G., Piperno A., Lo Schiavo S., Carbon, 86, 325-337 (2015)
 
-A new supramolecular polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxanes (POSS)@porphyrin nanohybrid: synthesis and spectroscopic characterization,. Castriciano M.A, Leone N., Cardiano P., Manickam S., Monsù Scolaro L., Lo Schiavo S., J. Mater. Chem. C, 1, 4746-4753 (2013)
 
-Very fast CO2 response and hydrophobic properties of novel poly(ionic liquid)s, MineoP.G., Livoti, L., Giannetto, M., Lo Schiavo, S., Cardiano, P., J. Mat. Chem, 8861-8870, (2009)
 
-A new application of ionic liquids: Hydrophobic properties of tetraalkylammonium-based poly(ionic liquid)s, Cardiano, P., Mineo, P.G., Neri, F., Lo Schiavo, S., Piraino, P., J. Mat. Chem, 18(11), 1253-1260, 2008 
 
-Capacitive properties of the hydrophobic [2-(methacryloyloxy)ethyl]trimethyl ammonium nonafluoro-1-butanesulfonate poly(ionic liquid) thin film, Patanè S., Triolo C., Cardiano P., Lo Schiavo S., Ionics,  23 (2017) 1481-1487.
 
-Epoxy-silica polymers as stone conservation materials, Cardiano, P., Ponterio, R.C., Sergi, S., Lo Schiavo, S., Piraino, P., Polymer, 2005, 46(6), 1857-1864.
 
- Testing the antimicrobial properties of an upcoming environmental-friendly family of ionic liquids. De Leo, F., Cardiano, P., De Carlo G., Lo Schiavo, S., Urzi, C, Ionic Liquids, 2017.
 
-Surface active ionic liquids based coating as subaerial anti-biofilms for stone built cultural
Heritage, Coatings, 2021, 11, 26, 1-22.
 
-Present and future perspectives for biocides and antifouling products for stone-built cultural heritage: Ionic liquids as a challenging alternative, Lo Schiavo, S., De Leo, F., Urzì, C., Applied Science, 2020, 10(18),6568.
 
-Novel luminescent ionic Adducts based on Pyrene-1-sulfonate,  Castriciano, M.A., Cardiano, P., Fazio, E., (...), Monsù Scolaro, L., Lo Schiavo, S., 2018, ACS Omega, 2018, 3(12), pp. 18811-18820.
 
Analytical assessment to develop innovative nanostructured BPA-free epoxy-silica resins as multifunctional stone conservation materials. Gomez-Laserna O.,  Lanzafame, P., Papanikolaou, G., (...), Lo Schiavo, S.,.. Science of the total Environment, 2018, 645.