Maria A Sandoval

• • Provided process engineering and production support across aerospace electroplating and surface treatment operations within a Nadcap-accredited chemical processing environment, assessing deviations and non-conformities against specified materials and process requirements (ISO 9001 / ISO 14001).

• • Authored a Failure Identification Plan for a hydrogen embritlement investigation in electroplated components, defining test plans, quality control checks, data collection routes and systematic interpretation criteria for root cause analysis.

• • Led electrochemical cadmium removal trials on rinse water to reduce effluent burden — directly addressing REACH (EC) No 1907/2006 cadmium restrictions — supporting environmental compliance, waste minimisation and net-zero objectives.

• • Produced integrated project management documentation (PMPs, HAZOP programmes, consolidated project briefs) and built KPI dashboards improving programme visibility and reporting to quality, cost and schedule targets.

• • Developed and qualified electrodeposition manufacturing processes for PFAS-free, CNT-based protective coatings and Cu/Ni thin-film systems for aerospace structures — a REACh-driven material substitution programme replacing restricted chemistries.

• • Defined critical process parameters and translated coating processes from laboratory to manufacture-ready scale; assessed deviations and non-conformities against polymer and aerospace coating standards, with root cause analysis to ISO 9001 / AS9100 and Nadcap-aligned process control.

• • Prepared and guided test plans; critically and systematically interpreted test data, applying outcomes to substantiate specification and process changes.

• • Applied machine learning and DoE to coating process parameters (electrodeposition conditions, CNT dispersion, coating thickness), reducing experimental iteration cycles and improving manufacturing predictability.

• • Coordinated supply chain, engineering, programme and customer stakeholders; managed risks and milestones to quality, cost and schedule targets within a matrix R&D environment.

• • Designed, commissioned and operated an electrochemical molten-salt reactor for tyre-derived carbon processing — from planning, assembly and instrumentation through to successful test execution and reporting.

• • Built and validated machine learning models predicting electrochemical behaviour (cyclic voltammetry) from process parameters, enabling data-driven materials and process optimisation; peer-reviewed publication under review (2026).

• • Progressed the technology from TRL 2 to TRL 4 with DoE-ML hybrid workflows, PFD development and Aspen modelling; secured a Royal Academy of Engineering Frontiers Symposium Grant (2025).