Montserrat Filella

Dr. Montserrat Filella is a Lecturer and volunteer staff member at the University of Geneva, actively contributing to research and teaching in environmental and analytical chemistry. She teaches an advanced course on the chemistry of the environment and has been involved in academic instruction at institutions in France and the UK, including the Open University. Her interdisciplinary research spans environmental processes, speciation of trace elements, and science communication.

Her research interests include the physico-chemical behavior of chemical components in environmental and biological systems, with a strong focus on technology-critical elements (TCEs) such as antimony, tellurium, niobium, tantalum, and germanium. She integrates computer modeling with laboratory and field measurements to understand metal speciation, stability constants, and environmental fate. She is also actively involved in current research on microplastics and nanoplastics, developing analytical tools and collaborating on detection methods using techniques like STXM and MIXE.

The recent publications highlight a consistent trend in environmental analytical chemistry, particularly in the speciation, thermodynamics, and detection of understudied elements. Her work bridges fundamental inorganic chemistry with applied environmental concerns, emphasizing data quality, method validation, and sustainability. She frequently contributes to editorial research fronts and critical reviews, demonstrating leadership in her field.

Dr. Filella is engaged in science popularization, participating in scientific festivals and exploring interdisciplinary connections such as music and chemistry. She is a member of scientific societies and leads initiatives like the microplastics.ch network. While no formal awards are listed, her extensive publication record in high-impact journals reflects significant scholarly contributions. She collaborates widely with researchers across Europe and contributes to international projects, including IUPAC’s Humic-Metal Binding Constants Database.

She is currently working on measuring antimony speciation in plastics, analyzing element concentrations in plastic waste, and evaluating advanced spectroscopic methods for nanoplastics detection. These efforts are conducted in collaboration with researchers such as Takuji Adachi, Andrew Turner, and Moritz Bigalke. Though no students are listed, her mentorship may occur through collaborative networks and teaching activities.