Curriculum Vitae
PERSONAL DATA
Susana Bravo Cabral da Fonseca
Author’s public profile
S. Cabral-Fonseca
PROFESSIONAL STATUS
Senior Researcher
ACADEMIC AND SCIENTIFIC DEGREES
Ph in Polymer Science and Engineering, University of Minho, 2008.
Master’s Degree (pre-Bolonha) in Polymer Science and Engineering, University of Minho, 2001.
Degree in Chemical Engineering (5 years, pre-Bolonha), NOVA School of Science and Technology, 1992.
RELEVANT PUBLIC FUNCTIONS AND POSITIONS
Since 2008: Research Officer at LNEC
Between 2001 and 2008: Research Assistant at LNEC
Between 1998 and 2001: Research Trainee at LNEC
Between 1994 and 1998: Research Fellow at LNEC
MAIN AREAS OF RESEARCH/INTEREST
Characterization and performance assessment of organic building materials, namely plastics, fibre reinforced polymer matrix composites (FRP) and coatings (paints, varnishes and others).
Durability of organic building materials.
Analysis of the causes of pathologies in organic building materials.
Use of organic coatings to prevent and mitigate pathologies in structures (namely concrete, metal and wood).
DEVELOPED ACTIVITY
As of September 2023, the following activities stand out (grouped according to the different aspects of the LNEC mission):
Research, Development, and Innovation
(i) Design, participation, and coordination of scientific projects
Participation in research projects funded by the institution itself, being responsible for three and participating in two others.
Participation in research projects funded by entities outside the LNEC, including participation in three European projects and 10 national projects.
Principal Researcher of a project funded by the Foundation for Science and Technology (PTDC/ECM-EST/2701/2014).
Participation in 16 proposals for research projects with other institutions.
(ii) Scientific supervision
Supervision of 10 Master's theses (all defended).
Supervision of five PhD theses (three already defended).
(iii) Preparation of scientific and technical publications
Authorship or co-authorship of:
23 articles peer-reviewed articles published in international scientific journals;
Five articles published in national journals;
Four book chapters;
Six scientific and technical publications edited by LNEC.
(iv) Presentations and communications in scientific and technical meetings
Authorship or co-authorship of 19 papers in national conferences and 29 papers in international conferences.
Presentation of lectures related to his areas of specialization.
Studies and technical expertise
(i) Coordination of and participation in studies
Preparation of more than one hundred technical reports resulting from studies on organic materials used in construction, namely plastics, fibre-reinforced polymer matrix composites and coatings (paints, varnishes, and others).
(ii) Coordination and participation in technical expertise
Coordination of reports in his areas of specialization, being responsible for (i) approaching the problem with the client in order to diagnose the situation; (ii) designing the methodology and planning the work to be carried out; (iii) coordinating, if necessary, researchers with specializations complementary to his own; (iv) coordinating the work, especially that of an experimental nature; and (v) drafting of the expert report.
Other Scientific and Technical Activities
(i) Evaluation of products and systems
Preparation of five technical specifications (one for the drafting of an approval document for FRP pipes for use in underground drinking water supply, sewerage and drainage systems, both pressurized and non-pressurized, and four with rules for Application Documents on paint coatings for various applications).
Coordination of studies that led to the issuance of 22 Application Documents for paint coatings used to protect concrete, exterior building surfaces, interior walls and ceilings, and exterior wood.
Coordination of the study that led to the first European Technical Assessment for thermoplastic products used in horizontal road marking.
(ii) Participation in Technical Committees
Expert for the European Organization for Technical Approvals (EOTA).
Member of the LNEC Coordination Committee for the Technical Assessment of Construction Products.
Member of the Working Group of the Technical Committee for Standardization CT 115: Structural Eurocodes, dealing with fibre reinforced polymer structures.
Member of the Technical Committee for Standardization CT 3: Paints, varnishes and coatings; Subcommittee I: Test methods.
(iii) Participation in the organization of scientific and technical dissemination initiatives
Co-chair of the 12th International Conference on FRP Composites in Civil Engineering (CICE 2025), to be held in Lisbon, July 9-11, 2025.