Graduate Studies
Biomolecular engineering reflects the interface between biology and chemical engineering. The advent of molecular biology, genomics, proteomics, and related technology has changed the face of biology and the information revolution in biology has meant that there is now no shortage of data. Instead the need has shifted to that of understanding the molecular mechanisms that define life. Chemical engineers are particularly skillful at undertaking a systems-level understanding of the often widely disparate length and time scales, and integrating descriptions of molecular- level phenomena into an understanding of macroscopic systems. Further, chemical engineers are key contributors to the tools necessary for rapid, accurate and cost effective analysis of biomolecules. Chemical engineers increasingly convert the basic insights from the emerging understanding of biology into useful processes, diagnostics, therapies, and devices that will be of broad benefit to human kind.
At Cornell, Susan Daniel’s research is pioneering ways to separate and aggregate membrane-bound species in microfluidic devices that will aid scientists and drug companies in studying transmembrane proteins and create new biosensors to detect post-translational changes in cell surfaces. Matthew DeLisa's group is revealing the design principles that govern the complex protein machinery inside of cells to create new methods for the creation of biotherapeutics that cannot be produced using natural systems. In particular, we are generating bacterial cells that are highly efficient at synthesizing complex protein architectures (e.g., human therapeutics) by equipping these cells with super-charged machinery for translating, folding, assembling and secreting proteins. David Putnam's research is focused in three areas: 1) the design functional biomaterials to facilitate, target, and control the delivery of nucleic acid-based drugs (e.g., siRNA) that may one day help to treat cancers or infectious diseases, 2) the design of new biorepellents or bioadhesives to entice tissues to slide or adhere to each other, 3) the engineering of bacteria to produce and stabilize and new vaccines and adjuvants. Finally, Mike Shuler's team is merging cell culture with microfabrication technologies to create "lab-on-a-chip" analogue devices that mimic the human body. Such devices are potentially very useful in the fields of toxicology and drug testing because they may increase the accuracy of in vitro predictions, simplify testing procedures, and reduce the cost of such tests, allowing many more tests to be done with a limited set of resources.
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The flow of complex fluids and polymers has always been a major interest for chemical engineers. At Cornell, these topics are the focus of attention for a large number of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering faculty, as well as field members in Materials Science and Engineering, and in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. Overall, Cornell has arguably the largest faculty group nationwide studying complex fluids and polymers. The School's research in this area is diverse. It includes nanofibril formation during electrospinning of polymers and composites (Joo's lab), blood flow in capillaries (Olbricht), fluid dynamics of polymers with simple and complex architectures (Archer), transport of contaminants in groundwater (Lion), electrophoresis of polyelectrolytes and colloids in confined geometries, dynamics of geothermal reservoirs, processing of fibrous composites, and novel spin-casting of metals (Steen). It covers the synthesis, characterization, and simulation of tailored inhomogeneous elastomers (Cohen, Duncan and Escobedo).
Research in the school emphasizes fundamental approaches that are applicable to a broad range of related problems. For example, we are developing methods to predict the stability of viscoelastic fibrils during electrospinning, to understand how polymer architecture and cross-link homogeneity influence hydrodynamics in drag flows as well as in electrophoresis, and to determine quantitatively the relationship between macroscopic properties of flowing suspensions and their microscopic structure. Our research combines analytical methods, experiments, and numerical simulations needed to reveal the underlying physics of these challenging problems. Molecular-scale simulation algorithm development is opening new vistas to solve equilibrium and non-equilibrium solutions of polymers and other complex fluids (Escobedo).
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Over the past few decades, much of materials research has focused on characterization which has resulted in an increased ability to provide correlations between nanoscopic scale atomic structure and bulk materials' properties. In contrast, the synthesis and processing of materials remains a relatively immature field, relying heavily on empiricism. Success in developing new materials as well as integrating known materials into new device structures will require integrated knowledge of the chemical and physical rate processes that underlie materials synthesis and processing.
At Cornell, we have several successful programs tackling synthesis and processing of materials and the development of novel fabrication approaches for new materials with tailored properties. Engstrom's group study molecular beam scattering of thin film precursors from semiconductor surfaces, and fundamental studies of thin film deposition, making use of precisely controlled beams of molecular and/or atomic species, with applications in silicon-based microelectronics, and, more recently, molecular electronics. He is currently developing fundamental studies of microchemical systems for point-of-use chemical production, high-throughput screening, and acceleration of the R&D cycle. Stroock's lab focuses on the ability to engineer chemical processes on micrometer-scales for improved portability, speed of operation, and integration with existing microtechnologies (e.g., electronics) and biological systems (e.g., cells). Their goal is to understand and control the transport phenomena, material properties, and colloidal interactions that will act as the foundations of chemical microsystems. Experimental work in our group involves the design, fabrication, and characterization microsystems. Molecular-level computational studies are carried out in Clancy's group of coupled dopant-defect diffusion in advanced Si-rich electronic devices, and predictions of reactivity of organo-metallic high-k dielectric materials for molecular electronic applications and thin film growth of small molecule organic semiconductors like pentacene. Algorithm development by Escobedo allows mesoscopic scale prediction of thin film growth in semiconductor materials.
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Growth in world population and increasing standards of living are leading to dramatically increased demands for energy. By 2050, we face a three-fold increase in primary energy demand, which must be provided with no 'greenhouse gas' emissions in order to stabilize at twice the emission levels existing at the beginning of the 20th century. The world needs new methods of generating and converting energy with reduced greenhouse gas emissions, new energy sources, and new ways of distributing and storing energy. The technological challenges are daunting, but the opportunity to participate in the solution of the world's largest and most persistent problem presents unprecedented opportunities and rewards.
At Cornell a new initiative focuses on global environmental impact due to energy production and utilization. As stated by Holdren (2003) " ... it has become increasingly clear that energy is the core of the environmental problem; environment is the core of the energy problem; and the energy--environment intersection is the core of the sustainable development problem." In Chemical Engineering, in Brad Anton's lab, we have an active project investigating the kinetics of the enzymatic conversion of cellulose biomass to soluble sugars which can be fermented to produce organic chemicals, including fuels. The goal of the project is to aid development of a commercially viable process for converting cellulose, nature's most abundant product of photosynthesis, into renewable replacements for petrochemicals. Don Koch's group are studying the coalescence of aerosol drops relevant to studies of pollutants formed during combustion; computational and experimental studies of mass transfer in suspensions for clean coal technologies. Koch and Clancy are collaborating to understand transport and suggest templates for new materials capable of storing high concentrations of hydrogen. Clancy's group are making computational predictions of the stability of natural gas hydrates for clean natural gas production and carbon sequestration. Steen's spin-casting methods dramatically reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas production.
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