Chemical Engineering

PROGRAM

The Graduate Program in Chemical Engineering reflects the diversity of the chemical engineering profession in its research emphases. Chemical engineering is often called the liberal arts degree of the technical world. Although specialization enters into the graduate program, the emphasis is on educating students to solve problems through the scientific methods of research. Acquiring specific information in a narrow specialty is secondary compared to a student's ability to approach and solve complex problems involving the coupling of several fields. Chemical engineering is a dynamic discipline, continually moving into new areas of technology. The graduate research program reflects this with thrusts in cutting edge technologies such as biotechnology, computer applications, and advanced materials.

RESEARCH AREAS

Biomedical and Biotechnology Studies

Cardiovascular fluid dynamics and transport, pulmonary gas transport, affinity liquid-liquid extraction, plasmid breakdown kinetics in R-DNA containing microorganisms, artificial heart, implantable artificial lung, dosimetry of air pollutants, drug delivery, plant cell secondary metabolism, bioreactor design for plant tissue culture, electrophoresis separations of biological materials, and biocatalysis in nonaqueous colloidal media.

Catalysis and Kinetic Studies

Metal-support effects, microwave hall effect measurements of crystallites, heats of adsorption, surface chemistry of coal chars, etching of metals by radical species, structure of bimetallic catalysts, mixing and chemical reaction in turbulent flows, theoretical analysis of kinetic processes on surfaces, and molecular simulation of kinetic and diffusion processes.

Environmental

Advanced oxygenation technology for wastewater treatment, polymer microencapsulation technology for controlled release of pesticide formulations, and recycle of polymers.

Fluid Mechanics

Theoretical analysis of turbulence and combustion, mixing and turbulence in multiphase systems. Kinetics of liquid penetration into capillary systems, motion and interaction of drops, flow in capillaries, and dispersion in continuous flow electrophoresis.

Materials Engineering

Microstructural design of materials, thin film growth, sol-gel process, plasma synthesis of nano particles, microstructure of ceremic materials.

Physical and Thermodynamic Properties

Techniques for predicting chemical process design data, prediction of thermo and physical properties of pure components, prediction of activity coefficients, development of equations of states, prediction of diffusion coefficient of some nonpolar solvents, and critical property measurements.

Polymers and Surface Science

Molecular diffusion of polymer systems, rheology of polymer melts and polymer solutions, molecular self-organization in solutions, adsorption, thermodynamics of polymer-solvent systems, and block copolymers.

FACILITIES

STATISTICS

Tenure track faculty-20.
Graduates/year-M.S., 15; Ph.D., 10.

DEGREES OFFERED

M.S. and Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering.

For more information, contact:

Dr. J. L. Duda
Professor and Head
Department of Chemical Engineering
The Pennsylvania State University
University Park, PA 16802

Tel: 814-865-2577
FAX: 814-865-7846

BITNET: jld6@psuadmin

Request Grad Program Information

THE FACULTY AND THEIR RESEARCH

Ali Borhan, assistant professor. B.S., M.S. (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) Ph.D.(Stanford). Fluid dynamics, transport phenomena, hydrodynamic stability.

Alfred Carlson, associate professor. B.S. (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) M.S., Ph.D. (University of Wisconsin). Protein interaction with separation media, protein and enzyme technology, microbial stability and growth kinetics.

Lance R. Collins, assistant professor. B.S.E.(Princeton) M.S., Ph.D. (University of Pennsylvania). Turbulent flow, heat and mass transfer, combustion.

Wayne R. Curtis, assistant professor. B.S., (Penn State) Ph.D. (Purdue). Plant cell tissue culture, secondary metabolism, plant cell bioreactor design.

Ronald P. Danner, professor. B.S., M.S., Ph.D. (Lehigh). Study of phase equilibria and diffusion characteristics in polymer-solvent and gas-solid systems.

Thomas E. Daubert, professor. B.S., M.S., Ph.D., (Penn State). Thermodynamic, physical, and transport property prediction and experimental determination.

David A. Edwards, associate professor. B.S. (Michigan Technological University). PhD. (Illinois Institute of Technology). Transport phenomena in porus (e.g. biological) media, colloids and interfaces, effective medium theories, fluid dynamics.

J. Larry Duda, professor and head chemical engineering. B.S. (Case Institute of Technology); M.S., Ph.D. (University of Delaware). Polymers, diffusion, tribology, fluid mechanics, rheology.

Kristen A. Fichthorn, assistant professor. B.S. (University of Pennsylvania); Ph.D. (University of Michigan). Atomistic simulation, statistical mechanics, surface science, materials.

W. Patrick Hegarty, associate professor. B.S. (University of Michigan), graduate credits from University of Michigan, Illinois Institute of Technology, and Purdue.

Arthur E. Humphrey, professor, B.S., M.S. (University of Idaho); M.S. (MIT); Ph.D. (Columbia University). Biochemical engineering, bioreactor design, monitoring, and control.

J. R. McWhirter, professor, B.S. (University of Illinois); M.S., Ph.D., Penn State). Gas-liquid mass transfer and separation processes with emphasis on aeration/oxygenation systems for biochemical oxidation processes including environmental applications and fermentation processes.

Themis Matsoukas, assistant professor. B.S. (National Technical University of Athens); Ph.D. (The University of Michigan). Aerosol engineering, materials, sol-gel process, colloidal phenomena.

R. Nagarajan, associate professor. B.Tech. (Indian Institute of Technology, Madras); M.Tech. (Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur); Ph.D (State University of New York at Buffalo). Organized molecular assemblies: fundamentals and applications to biotechnology, polymer materials, chemical separations, lubricants, nanoparticle synthesis.

Jonathan Phillips, associate professor. B.S.-Physics (Middlebury College); Ph.D. (University of Wisconsin). Heterogeneous catalysis, surface science, reaction dinetics, plasma physics, and chemistry.

John M. Tarbell, professor. B.S. (Rutgers); M.S., Ph.D. (University of Delaware). Cardiovascular fluid mechanics, arterial wall mass transport, artificial heart.

James S. Ultman, professor, B.S. (Illinois Institute of Technology); Ph.D. (University of Delaware). Biomass transport, biofluid mechanics, artificial organs, medical instrumentation.

M. Albert Vannice, Distinguished professor of Engineering. B.S. (Michigan State University); M.S., Ph.D. (Stanford University). Heterogeneous catalysis, reaction kinetics, gas adsorption, catalyst preparation and characterization.

James S. Vrentas, Dow professor. B.S. (University of Illinois); M.Ch.E., Ph.D. (University of Delaware). Transport phenomena, applied mathematics, fluid mechanics, diffusion, polymer science.

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U.Ed. ENG 95-16 - Michael Reischman
10/04/94