Energy & Sustainability
The Department of Chemical Engineering mobilizes faculty expertise in advanced materials, catalysis, batteries, and AI-driven simulations to deliver low-cost clean-energy technologies and sustainable manufacturing routes. Our researchers design next-generation catalysts that transform abundant feedstocks such as CO₂ and methane into low-carbon fuels and commodity chemicals while reducing reliance on scarce precious metals. Using pulsed-laser synthesis, we create non-equilibrium nanomaterials that accelerate electrocatalytic CO₂ conversion and selective organic oxidations, opening pathways to liquid fuels and environmental remediation of PFAS.
Complementing molecular conversion, we advance electrochemical energy storage. We are engineering solid-state lithium conductors, tailoring interfaces with ultrathin polymer coatings, and re-imagining cell architectures to deliver safer, longer-lived, high-energy batteries for vehicles and grid storage. Sustainability also drives our polymer research: bio-inspired catalysis and metabolic engineering strategies upcycle legacy plastics and enable circular, sequence-defined polymers, mitigating waste and resource depletion.
Across these efforts we partner with colleagues in chemistry, optics, and the Laboratory for Laser Energetics to link atomic-scale discovery with device-scale performance, ensuring that Â鶹´«Ã½ innovations translate into cleaner energy, resilient infrastructures, and a more sustainable planet.
