2025
December
Jen collaboration studies algae emissions in the Gulf of Maine
Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences
ChemE’s Coty Jen was spotlighted by Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences for a collaborative field study of particle formation in the air over the Gulf of Maine. The team is working to understand what kinds of particles are forming in the atmosphere, how quickly, and how that process is controlled by marine algae. Their measurements are critical in predicting how ocean microbial communities influence climate.
Four Engineering alumni among Alumni Award winners
Carnegie Mellon University
Four College of Engineering alumni were selected to join this year’s cohort of Carnegie Mellon University Alumni Awards honorees: Samantha Allen (INI 2015), Recent Alumni Service Award; Halil Kulluck (ENG 1985), Alumni Service Award; Joanna M. Livengood (ENG 1980, 1991), Alumni Achievement Award; and Tyelisa Shields (INI 2010), Alumni Service Award.
November
Niepa’s magnetic capsules offer a novel way to study microbes
Chemical & Engineering News
ChemE/BME’s Tagbo Niepa developed tiny magnetic capsules that can grow unculturable microbes in soil or ocean water and then be retrieved. The technology, which could move research out of the lab, was featured in Chemical & Engineering News.
Whitehead listed as Highly Cited Researcher
Clarivate
ChemE’s Kathryn Whitehead has been recognized on the Highly Cited Researchers 2025 list from Clarivate. The list celebrates the highest standards of impact and integrity in science and scholarship. In the field of pharmacology and toxicology, Whitehead has authored multiple Highly Cited Papers that rank in the top 1% by citations and publication year in the Web of Science Core Collection over the past 11 years.
Stinchfield earns Computing & Systems Technology award at AIChE
ChemE Ph.D. student Georgia Stinchfield won the Best Student Presentation Award from the Computing & Systems Technology (CAST) directors at the 2025 American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) annual meeting. Stinchfield, who works with ChemE's Carl Laird, presented "Snoglode: A Flexible Solver for Parallel Decomposition and Global Optimization of Large-Scale Block Angular Decomposable Optimization Problems."
Two AIChE student leaders honored at annual conference
ChemE students Vaishnavi Harish and Sreshta Kalisi were recognized at the 2025 American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) Annual Student Conference. Both are leaders of Carnegie Mellon's AIChE student chapter. Harish received the 2024-2025 First Year Student Recognition Award. Kalisi received the 2024-2025 Donald F. Othmer Second Year Student Academic Excellence Award.
Mahmood honored at AIChE undergraduate research poster competition
At the 2025 American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) Annual Student Conference, ChemE student Maerah Mahmood earned 3rd place honors in the materials engineering and science IV category of the Undergraduate Student Poster Competition. Mahmood presented "Effect of magnetic and electric dipole on the optical rotation of helical polymers."
Colombo Tedesco and Stinchfield receive travel awards for AIChE
ChemE Ph.D. students Carolina Colombo Tedesco and Georgia Stinchfield received Women in Chemical Engineering (WIC) Travel Awards to attend the 2025 American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) annual meeting. Stinchfield works with ChemE's Carl Laird. Colombo Tedesco, who works with ChemE's John Kitchin and Carl Laird, also received a Travel Award from the AIChE Catalysis & Reaction Engineering Division.
October
Hredzak and Tilton recognized for prescription safety glasses program
ChemE staff members Trish Hredzak and Julie Tilton were recognized by Carnegie Mellon's Environmental Health & Safety lab safety committee for spearheading the prescription safety glasses program.
Dolisca wins National GEM Consortium poster award
BME Ph.D. student Anghea Dolisca won 1st place in the Technical Poster Session at the National GEM Consortium 2025 Annual Conference. Dolisca, who works with ChemE/BME's Tagbo Niepa, presented "When Quantum Materials Meet Reality: Surviving the Harsh World of Applications."
Grossmann delivers Shell Lecture at Rice University
Rice University
ChemE’s Ignacio Grossmann was a featured speaker in the Shell Lecture Series presented by the Department of Computational Mathematics & Operations Research at Rice University. His talk was titled “Challenges in the application of mathematical programming approaches to industrial enterprise-wide optimization.”
Grossmann addresses Mexican Society of Operations Research
Mexican Society of Operations Research
ChemE’s Ignacio Grossmann gave a plenary talk at the 2025 Congress of the Mexican Society of Operations Research in Leon, Mexico. His address was titled “Digital supply chains: The role of optimization techniques.”
August
Biegler ranked on ScholarGPS
ScholarGPS
ChemE’s Lorenz Biegler was ranked #1 in process optimization for 2024 on ScholarGPS. Highly Ranked Scholars™ are determined based on productivity and impact, including their number of publications, citations, and h-index.
Grossmann ranked on ScholarGPS
ScholarGPS
ChemE’s Ignacio Grossmann was ranked #10 in chemical engineering for 2024 on ScholarGPS. Highly Ranked Scholars™ are determined based on productivity and impact, including their number of publications, citations, and h-index.
Khair receives PSRI Fluidization and Fluid-Particle Systems Award
Khair receives PSRI Fluidization and Fluid-Particle Systems Award
ChemE’s Aditya Khair received the PSRI Fluidization and Fluid-Particle Systems Award. This award recognizes an individual’s outstanding scientific and technical research contributions to the field of fluidization and fluid-particle flow systems. Khair will be presented with the award at the American Institute of Chemical Engineers annual meeting this fall in Boston.
Khair recognized as a 2024 JFM Outstanding Reviewer
Cambridge University Press
ChemE’s Aditya Khair was recognized by the Journal of Fluid Mechanics (JFM) as a 2024 Outstanding Reviewer. This achievement, awarded to only 1% of the entire JFM community, recognizes the significant commitment of reviewers and is based on the timeliness and quality of their reviews along with input from the JFM Editorial Board.
July
Torres featured for work in sustainable chemistry
Mellon College of Science
ChemE’s Ana Torres and her colleagues were highlighted in a Mellon College of Science story. The group of researchers aims to reduce the amount of harmful chemicals in our environment by synthesizing less persistent or toxic alternatives. Torres is focusing on analyzing the end of a material’s lifecycle.
Gellman invited to contribute to Faraday Discussion
ChemE’s Andrew Gellman has been invited to contribute to a volume of the Faraday Discussions, published by the Royal Society of Chemistry. The topic of the volume is “Bridging the gap from surface science to heterogeneous catalysis,” and will be discussed at a meeting in London in April 2026. Faraday Discussions, honoring the legacy of renowned scientist Michael Faraday, are international meetings addressing ideas emerging at the forefront of physical sciences.
Three Ph.D. students recognized by American Chemical Society
ChemE Ph.D. students Andrew Ashmar, Carolina Colombo Tedesco, and Sarah Sonbati were selected as recipients of the 2025 American Chemical Society (ACS) Graduate Student and Postdoctoral Scholars Recognition Program. Ashmar, who works with ChemE's Daphne Chan, was recognized for his leadership in the promotion of research safety. Colombo Tedesco, who works with ChemE's John Kitchin and Carl Laird, was recognized for her leadership in the promotion of inclusion and belonging. Sonbati, who works with ChemE's Anne Skaja Robinson, was recognized for her leadership in mentoring.
Kitchin discusses Carnegie Mellon joining MDS-Rely
TechVibe Pittsburgh
As a guest on the Pittsburgh Technology Council’s TechVibe Pittsburgh podcast, ChemE/MSE’s John Kitchin shared his thoughts on Carnegie Mellon joining the Center for Materials Data Science for Reliability and Degradation (MDS-Rely) research cooperative. It is the third university to join the National Science Foundation-funded initiative promoting collaboration between universities, industry, and government organizations. “Carnegie Mellon has quite a historical role in the development of AI and machine learning, going back to the fifties. The University of Pittsburgh and Case Western Reserve University bring to our collaboration equal depth in the materials and applications. And the two of them can’t work without each other; they go hand in hand,” says Kitchin.
June
Jen discusses record amount of sargassum seaweed
ABCNews
ChemE’s Coty Jen was quoted by ABC News about the record amount of seaweed in the Caribbean and its potential harm on wildlife and the environment. According to Jen, sargassum, a type of brown algae, is a “public nuisance” that “releases smelly compounds into the air as it rots.” As sargassum continues to increase, it could eventually reach U.S. beaches.
May
Martinez Vasquez selected as GEM Employer Fellow
ChemE Ph.D. student Shakira Martinez Vasquez was selected as a 2025 GEM Employer Fellow, sponsored by EMD Serono and Carnegie Mellon University. Martinez Vasquez works with ChemE/BME's Tagbo Niepa.
March
Gomes’ predictive platform for biocatalysts spotlighted
Chemical & Engineering News
ChemE’s Gabe Gomes and Alison Narayan at the University of Michigan–Ann Arbor have created Catnip, a machine learning web app that was featured in Chemical & Engineering News. The platform predicts which enzymes might work to catalyze reactions on particular molecules to aid chemists in organic synthesis.
Liu wins Professional Promise Award
ChemE student Linda Liu received the Professional Promise Award from the Pittsburgh chapter of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE). Each year, one outstanding senior from each of the regional programs in chemical engineering is recognized. Winners are selected by the faculty based on their academic accomplishments as undergraduates, internship or research experience, and their potential for achievement in the profession.
Usman wins Three Minute Thesis People’s Choice Award
ChemE Ph.D. student Huda Usman won the People's Choice Award at the Carnegie Mellon Three Minute Thesis 2025 championship. The award is selected by the in-person audience. Usman also won 3rd place overall, awarded by the judging panel. Usman, who works with ChemE/BME's Tagbo Niepa, presented "Culturing the Unculturable: A New Frontier in Antibiotic Research."
2025 Covestro Lecture
Alexander Mitsos, professor and laboratory director, Aachener Verfahrenstechnik (RWTH Aachen University), will give the Covestro Lecture in Process Systems Engineering on March 11, 2025. Dr. Mitsos' talk is titled "Process systems engineering meets machine learning." The Covestro Lecture Series in Process Systems Engineering recognizes the contributions of the Covestro Corporation in establishing and endowing the Covestro Chair for Chemical Engineering. Lectures are given by internationally recognized speakers who have made significant impact in the field of process systems.
February
Niepa appointed to USNC/IUPAC
ChemE/BME’s Tagbo Niepa was appointed by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine as a Member of the U.S. National Committee for the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (USNC/IUPAC). USNC/IUPAC encourages cooperative international activities that promote the advancement of the chemical sciences, arrange scientific meetings in the U.S., and involve U.S. researchers with international issues.
Usman wins Three Minute Thesis preliminary
ChemE Ph.D. student Huda Usman was co-winner of preliminary round 4 in the Carnegie Mellon Three Minute Thesis competition. Usman, who works with ChemE/BME's Tagbo Niepa, presented "Culturing the Unculturable: A New Frontier in Antibiotic Research." She advances to the championship on March 11.
Grossmann named Foreign Academic
ChemE’s Ignacio Grossmann was selected as a Foreign Academic of the Chemical and Physical Sciences Section of the Royal Academy of Exact, Physical, and Natural Sciences of Spain.
January
Whitehead speaks about the future of chemical engineering research
Nature Chemical Engineering
ChemE’s Kathryn Whitehead was quoted in Nature Magazine in a piece celebrating the first anniversary of Nature Chemical Engineering. The magazine spoke with 40 chemical engineering researchers, including Whitehead, about their predictions for the future of the field and what excites them the most. Whitehead talked about using nanoparticle chemistry to help deliver RNA treatments, which are currently used to treat liver disease, to other organs that are currently more difficult to target. “We and others are now uncovering the chemical mechanisms that control delivery and are expanding the nanoparticle formulation space, which we hope will enable treatment of any human disease, no matter its location,” she said.
Badia named Generative AI in Healthcare Fellow
Center for Machine Learning and Health
BME Ph.D. student Ann Badia has been named a 2024 Generative AI in Healthcare Fellow with the Center for Machine Learning and Health in Carnegie Mellon's School of Computer Science. Badia works with ChemE/BME's Tagbo Niepa.
2024
December
Apgar earns poster award at African Materials Research Society Conference
BME Ph.D. student Amy Apgar received the iCANX Poster Award at the 2024 African Materials Research Society Conference. Apgar, who works with ChemE/BME's Tagbo Niepa, presented "Live Biotherapeutic Formulation and Delivery Using Nanocultures."
Gomes quoted on ChatGPT
Nature
ChemE’s Gabe Gomes was quoted in Nature about how large language models like ChatGPT can help overcome language barriers in scientific writing. “It democratizes writing and it helps folks that have English as a second language,” said Gomes.
Gomes part of red teaming for Amazon AI models
ChemE’s Gabe Gomes contributed to the red teaming efforts for Amazon’s new family of foundation models, called Nova. The Gomes Group tested the models’ capabilities in chemistry and chemical compounds. Their non-automated evaluations explored aggregation attack vulnerabilities through purchasing and remote chemical mixing scenarios. The Gomes Group also conducted automated evaluations using two distinct datasets of hazardous and common chemicals.
Niepa honored as Rising Star of Mechanical Engineering
ChemE/BME’s Tagbo Niepa received a Rising Star of Mechanical Engineering award from the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). The award honors early-career researchers recognized through prestigious awards such as NSF CAREER, ONR YIP, AFOSR YIP, DARPA YFA, and NIH New Innovator Awards. Niepa has received the NSF CAREER award and the NIH New Innovator Award to support unconventional approaches to major challenges in biomedical and behavioral research.
November
Gomes quoted on large language models
Chemistry World
ChemE’s Gabe Gomes spoke to Chemistry World about the potential of using large language models instead of humans to answer chemistry questions. “This is incredibly well thought out and well-done work,” said Gomes. “I believe strongly that the way forward for making the models more powerful and capable is by having proper reasoning in them. But if we cannot measure that, we will keep seeing mirages that they seem to be improving when they are not.”