Research

students in laboratory

The Department of Chemical Engineering  has an active research program with
research opportunities for undergraduate and graduate studuents available in the following key areas:

Kingsbury Hall

The Department of Chemical Engineering has clean and renewable energy research activities in different labs.  The department has been involved in teaching courses in energy and environment related areas such as CHE 410 Energy and Environment, CHE 705/805 Fossil Fuels, CHE 706 / 806 Electrochemical Methods, CHE 712/812 Nuclear Engineering, and ENE 709/CHE 809 Air Pollution Control for several years.  The Center for Clean and Renewable Energy Research was established in 2007 with the purpose of improving organizational cohesion and enhancing public recognition of the role of chemical engineering in this important area.

Graduate and undergraduate students are actively involved in these research projects.
 

Biochemical Engineering

Faculty  P. T. Vasudevan
Current Research

  • Development of Novel Enzyme Catalysts for the Production of Biofuels
  • Development of Novel Heterogeneous Catalysts for the Production of Green Diesel

Biomaterials

Faculty Kyung Jae Jeong
Current Research

  • Injectable hydrogel for intraocular drug delivery
  • Multifunctional surface chemistry for biointegration of medical implants
  • Bioadhesives to interface tissue and medical implants
  • Finding correlations between innate immunity and tissue-biomaterial interactions

Biomedical Engineering

Faculty Jeffrey Halpern
Current Research

  • Detecting low levels of biomolecules with electrochemistry for quick and accurate analysis
  • Diagnosing various diseases and disorders including myocardial infraction, psychological disorders, and cancer
  • Designing new biosensors that can be widely implemented

Biophysics

Faculty Harish Vashisth
Current Research

  • Signaling and transport via membrane receptors
  • Conformational dynamics of proteins and nucleic acids
  • Multiscale methods for biophysical phenomena

Chemical & Biosensors

Faculty Jeffrey Halpern
Current Research

  • Detecting low levels of biomolecules with electrochemistry for quick and accurate analysis
  • Employing surface affinity interactions to increase the sensitivity of electrochemical sensors
  • Diagnosing various diseases and disorders including myocardial infraction, psychological disorders, and cancer

Electrocatalysis

Faculty  Xiaowei Teng
Current Research

  • Nanocatalysts for direct ethanol fuel cell applications
  • Metal oxide nanostructures for energy storage applications

Electrochemical Engineering

Faculty
Current Research

Fluid Dynamics

Faculty  Nivedita R. Gupta
Current Research

  • Drop and capsule dynamics in confined domains
  • Break up of drops in coflowing fluids

Microfluidics

Faculty Nivedita R. Gupta
Current Research

  • Surfactant and elastic effects in microfluidic devices
  • Synthesis of nanoparticles in microfluidic reactors

Modeling & Simulation

Faculty  Nivedita R. Gupta
Current Research

  • Drop and capsule dynamics in confined domains
  • Break up of drops in coflowing fluids

Faculty  Harish Vashisth
Current Research

  • Signaling and transport via membrane receptors
  • Conformational dynamics of proteins and nucleic acids
  • Multiscale methods for biophysical phenomena

Synthetic Biology

Faculty  Kang Wu
Current Research

  • Spore surface display of enzyme complexes for lignocellulosic biomass deconstruction
  • Protein secretion through the Twin Arginine Translocation pathway
  • Microbial carbon dioxide reduction facilitated by biocompatible nanoparticles
  • Bioremediation of heavy metals and hydrocarbons using Geobacilli
  • Production and characterization of thermostable enzymes for cellulosic ethanol

Tissue Engineering

Faculty  Kyung Jae Jeong
Current Research

  • Hydrogel-based drug delivery for tissue regeneration
  • Novel tissue engineering scaffolds