Category: News

The bad news: The Chemical Engineering building is closed for a years-long renovation. The good news: The department’s Unit Ops Laboratory has been relocated to the Nuclear Science building, and there are 13 new pieces of equipment in the teaching lab.  This new equipment is thanks to a $500,000 contribution from the Herbert Wertheim College […]

Born in Imo State, Nigeria, the fifth of six children, Cynthia Eluagu worked hard to stand out in her family. She did so by earning a bachelor’s degree in engineering with honors in Materials and Metallurgical Engineering. 

University of Florida chemical engineering researcher Helena Hagelin Weaver, Ph.D., is uncovering how the structure of catalyst materials can dramatically improve the efficiency of methane conversion. Her team’s findings, recently published in ACS Catalysis, reveal how manipulating nanoscale support structures can boost methane oxidation at lower temperatures — a key step toward reducing greenhouse gas emissions and enabling more sustainable chemical production.

UF researchers have developed a breakthrough CRISPR upgrade — called CRISPR-LEAP — that can target nearly any DNA sequence, potentially transforming cancer detection, infectious disease testing and personalized medicine.

Shubham Ravan, a first-year master’s student in chemical engineering, specializes in semiconductor fabrication and scaling processes from lab to commercial applications. He recently received the department’s MS Research, Leadership and Service Excellence Award and serves as the graduate cohort representative. Outside the lab, he stays active with badminton and table tennis and enjoys reading science fiction and biographies.

University of Florida researchers have developed a new “designer” catalyst by combining platinum and chromium into atomic pairs within silver, enabling a more stable process for producing hydrogen gas. The breakthrough, led by Professor Jason Weaver, Ph.D., could improve energy conversion and reduce industrial costs. The team’s findings were published in Angewandte Chemie, a prestigious, peer-reviewed German journal.

A University of Florida professor is developing a fast, powerful tool for blocking harmful human enzymes, a process that could result in better medicines and more precise treatments for diseases. 

University of Florida’s Elizabeth Aikman, a fifth-year Ph.D. candidate studying biomaterials from Bombyx mori silk, attended summer school in California in July to advance her studies. Bombyx mori are also known as domestic silk moths and are economically important to the billion-dollar sericulture (silk) industry. 

Albert DaCosta (BS ‘98) returned to his old stomping grounds recently to discuss life after the University of Florida and offer advice for future graduates.

Third-year doctoral University of Florida student Yunhan Chuai credits his parents with being “brave and supportive enough” to send him across the ocean to study engineering.   

With a background deeply rooted in engineering, Taofeek Tejuosho is a fifth-year Ph.D. student in chemical engineering working to accelerate the design and development of polymer materials for diverse technological applications.

The goal: Healthier organs ready for transplant. The UF-developed process stands to revolutionize organ transplants and post-surgical treatment.

Sunil Roy’s journey started in India, wove though Gainesville and – for now – landed him in Silicon Valley. He came back to UF in January and spoke to students about those years, and more specifically, his experiences at the University of Florida.  

Professor Mark Orazem started with the University of Florida in 1988, nearly 20 years after the current Chemical Engineering building was constructed. What does he remember most?  His office door.  “Because of the building’s shifting, unstable foundation, I would be unable to open the door to my office,” said Orazem, now a distinguished professor and […]