Claire S Adjiman, Editor-in-Chief
Imperial College London, UK
Claire Adjiman is a Professor of Chemical Engineering at Imperial College London, UK, and a Molecular Systems Design & Engineering Editorial Board Member. Her research focuses on how molecular-level considerations can be brought into process design through modelling and optimisation – for example, some of her recent work uses a combination of quantum mechanical calculations and computer-aided molecular design to determine an optimal solvent that increases the rate of a chemical reaction.
She is a co-director of the Institute for Molecular Science and Engineering, which targets solving problems related to the world’s grand challenges through molecular innovation. Take a look at her inaugural lecture from 2013: ‘Molecules on Best Behaviour: The Engineering of Molecular Systems'. Professor Adjiman is the recipient of an EPSRC Leadership Fellowship until 2017 as a future global research leader.
Andrew Ferguson, Deputy Editor-in-Chief
University of Chicago, USA
Andrew Ferguson is an Associate Professor at the Institute for Molecular Engineering at the University of Chicago. He earned an M.Eng. in Chemical Engineering from Imperial College London in 2005, a Ph.D. in Chemical and Biological Engineering from Princeton University in 2010, and from 2010 to 2012 he was a Postdoctoral Fellow of the Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT, and Harvard in the Department of Chemical Engineering at MIT. He commenced his independent career in the department of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in August 2012, and joined the IME in July 2018.
Ferguson's research uses molecular simulation, statistical thermodynamics, and machine learning to understand and engineer self-assembling materials, macromolecular folding, and antiviral therapies. Ferguson is the recipient of a 2017 UIUC College of Engineering Dean's Award for Excellence in Research, 2016 AIChE CoMSEF Young Investigator Award for Modeling & Simulation, 2015 ACS OpenEye Outstanding Junior Faculty Award, 2014 NSF CAREER Award, 2014 ACS PRF Doctoral New Investigator, and was named the Institution of Chemical Engineers North America 2013 Young Chemical Engineer of the Year.
Luke Connal, Associate editor
Australian National University, Australia
Luke Connal is an Associate Professor at the Research School of Chemistry at the Australian National University (ANU) where he is an ANU Futures Fellow. His research program is in the design of advanced polymeric materials for applied systems. He has been recognised by numerous awards such as the ACS Chemical and Engineering News Talented 12.
Robert Riggleman, Associate editor
University of Pennsylvania, USA
Robert Riggleman is an Associate Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania. He earned his PhD in Chemical and Biological Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2007, which was followed by postdoctoral appointments at the University of Wisconsin-Madison (2007-2008) and the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of California-Santa Barbara (2009-2010).
His research uses molecular dynamics, Monte Carlo, and field-theoretic simulations to study fundamental problems related to the dynamics and thermodynamics of soft materials. Some highlights of his work include the development of field-theoretic simulations techniques for the study of the structure of inhomogeneous polymer nanocomposites both in and out of equilibrium, uncovering the relationship between structure and mechanical failure in polymer networks and glasses, and the influence of nanoscale confinement on the dynamics and thermodynamics of polymers.
Linda Broadbelt
Northwestern University, USA
Linda Broadbelt is Sarah Rebecca Roland Professor in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering and the Associate Dean for Research of the McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science at Northwestern University. She was Chair of the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering from 2009-2017. She was also appointed the Donald and June Brewer Junior Professor from 1994-1996. She has completed the short course Business for Scientists and Engineers through the Kellogg Graduate School of Management.
Her research and teaching interests are in the areas of multiscale modeling, complex kinetics modeling, environmental catalysis, novel biochemical pathways, and polymerization/depolymerization kinetics. She served as the Past Chair, Chair, First Vice Chair and Second Vice Chair of the Catalysis and Reaction Engineering Division of AIChE, and also previously served on the Executive Board of the National Program Committee of AIChE. She is currently an Associate Editor for Industrial &Engineering Chemistry Research.
Her honors include selection as the winner of the R.H. Wilhelm Award in Chemical Reaction Engineering from AIChE, the E.V. Murphree Award in Industrial Chemistry and Engineering from the American Chemical Society, the Dorothy Ann and Clarence Ver Steeg Award, a CAREER Award from the National Science Foundation, and an AIChE Women’s Initiative Committee Mentorship Excellence Award, selection as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, a Fellow of AIChE, and a Fulbright Distinguished Scholar, appointment to the Defense Science Study Group of the Institute for Defense Analyses, and selection as the Su Distinguished Lecturer at University of Rochester, Ernest W. Thiele Lecturer at the University of Notre Dame and the Allan P. Colburn Lecturer at the University of Delaware.
LaShanda Korley
University of Delaware, USA
Prof. LaShanda T. J. Korley is a Distinguished Professor in the Departments of Materials Science & Engineering and Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering at the University of Delaware (UD). Prof. Korley is the Director of an Energy Frontier Research Center – Center for Plastics Innovation (CPI) funded by the Department of Energy and also the Co-Director of a Materials Research Science and Center – UD Center for Hybrid, Active, and Responsive Materials (UD CHARM). She is also the Principal Investigator for the National Science Foundation Partnerships for International Research and Education (PIRE): Bio-inspired Materials and Systems and the co-director of the Center for Research in Soft Matter & Polymers (CRiSP) at the University of Delaware. Her research focuses on bio-inspired polymeric materials, film and fiber manufacturing, plastics recycling and upcycling strategies, stimuli-responsive composites, peptide-polymer hybrids, fiber-reinforced hydrogels, and renewable materials derived from biomass.
Yongye Liang
Southern University of Science and Technology, China
Yongye Liang is Associate Professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at the Southern University of Science and Technology, China. His primary research interest is molecular engineering, which combines chemical design and synthesis with device studies to develop advanced functional materials for organic electronics, electrocatalysis, and bioimaging. Professor Liang was named by Thomson Reuters a 2016 Highly Cited Researcher.
Anja Palmans
TU Eindhoven, The Netherlands
Anja Palmans is a professor of “Supramolecular Chemistry and Catalysis” at the Department of Chemical Engineering and Chemistry. Her research interests include supramolecular and polymer chemistry, catalysis, and the use of dynamic bonds to create reusable materials.
Integrating polymer and supramolecular chemistry with the novel field of bio-orthogonal chemistry allows access to copolymers that form nanometer-sized structures, capable of efficient and selective catalysis in water and in complex cellular media. Also, by combining non-covalent and dynamic covalent bonds, smart polymeric materials are developed that can be easily reshaped, reused, and broken down into the constituting parts.
Patrick Stayton
University of Washington, USA
Patrick Stayton is Washington Research Foundation Professor and Director of the Molecular Engineering and Sciences Institute at the University of Washington. He is the founding Director of the Institute for Molecular Engineering and Sciences, and the Center for Intracellular Delivery of Biologics. His research group works at the interface of fundamental molecular science and applied molecular bioengineering. Studies are aimed at elucidating the basic principles underlying biomolecular recognition, and connected projects applying these principles to medical applications in the drug delivery, medical diagnostics, and regenerative medicine fields. He has also been awarded the 2009 Faculty Research Innovation Award, UW College of Engineering, and the Distinguished Teacher and Mentor Award from the Department of Bioengineering.
