School of Chemical, Biological and Materials Engineering
Soft Matter Research & Technology
We combine self-assembly, polymer science, rheology, and interfacial engineering to develop functional materials and processes for environmental and energy applications.
Research areas
Membrane Synthesis
Instead of non-solvent induced phase separation (NIPS), we utilize self-assembly as a route for producing mesoporous polymeric materials that can be used as UF and NF membranes.
PFAS Removal from Water Resources
We are developing mass transport modeling equations in order to design high efficiency foam fractionation systems.
Nanoemulsions
Nanoemulsions have attractive features including long-term stability without going through coalescence, tunable flow behavior (from liquid to solid) and optical properties (from opaque to nearly transparent).
Biopolymer Porous Polymers
We synthesize multifunctional porous polymers through (nano)emulsion- and foam-templating methods.
Rheology of Structured Fluids
We measure rheological material functions (e.g., yield stress, relaxation time, viscoelastic moduli) for suspensions, (nano)emulsions, liquid crystals, etc. in different states (liquid, glass and gel).
Hydrogels
We study the molecular network and rheology of hydrogels. We also implement porosity and stimuli-responsiveness in hydrogels.
Publications
Peer-reviewed papers, intellectual properties, invited & keynote talks
Facilities
ARES-G2 rheometer, membrane testing cells, tensiometer, and more
Teaching
Polymer Processing, Sustainable Polymer Manufacturing, Advanced Process Design, and more
Gallery
Conferences, outreach, and group events