Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Chemical engineers are vital to industries including petrochemicals, pharmaceuticals, bioengineering, consumer and paper products, ceramics, specialty chemicals and electronics, just to name a few. Chemical engineers are often intimately involved in research and development, process engineering and product development, as well as in developing ways to manufacture chemicals developed in the laboratory at larger scales.
What’s great about chemical engineering is the fascinating array of possibilities available, from working for NASA, to engineering the world’s best cosmetics, to working on cutting-edge bio- and nanotechnology research.
Opportunities for Students
The Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering has a long history of excellence in both undergraduate and graduate education. Our graduate program provides opportunities for intensive course work, research and teaching experience, and our 90 graduate students are in high demand in both industry and academia. In addition, with more than 40 different courses ranging from surface phenomenon to thermodynamics, our undergraduates are well prepared for a wide variety of career pathways.
Our research program offers a solid foundation in both the theoretical and applied aspects of chemical engineering. We offer outstanding research programs in many cutting-edge technology areas, and the department is home to several consortia and interdisciplinary research centers. The Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering occupies more than 60,000 square feet of space and houses state-of-the-art research facilities.
Our students enjoy the unique opportunity to interact and work with top scientists from leading edge research centers and institutes on campus and around Ohio, including the Comprehensive Cancer Center, the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, the Mathematical Biosciences Institute, and Ohio State’s Heart and Lung Research Institute.
Research
Research expenditures in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering exceed $6.5 million per year and continue to grow, allowing our students to choose their research projects from a wide range of topics. Our faculty and graduate students often collaborate with researchers in other departments, and many participate in multidisciplinary research teams to conduct cutting-edge research in bioinformatics, gene therapy, cardiovascular science, intelligent materials, microfabrication, nanotechnology, complex fluids and environmentally benign manufacturing. For example, some students are doing dissertation research in tissue engineering and cancer cell separation at Ohio State University Hospitals.
New innovations in polymer-based nanotechnology are being developed by Ohio State and partner universities at the Center for Affordable Nanoengineering of Polymer Biomedical Devices. These innovations in polymer forming, chemical/atomic deposition and fluid movement at the nanoscale are expected to yield inexpensive, mass-producible products for widespread societal benefit. By partnering the latest advances in nanoengineering and nanoscience with research at the frontiers of medicine and pharmaceutics, this National Science Foundation Center aims to revolutionize medical diagnosis and treatment. The center, led by L. James Lee and the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, also features an interdisciplinary program for undergraduate and graduate education and community outreach to area schools.
In May 2005, the department received a Wright Center for Innovation award for $22.5 million to create the Ohio Center for Multifunctional Polymer Nanomaterials and Devices (CMPND). The grant is providing for the acquisition of highly advanced equipment to develop new materials to improve the strength and durability of components for automobiles and other manufactured products, in an effort to link nanotechnology to economically important polymer and associated manufacturing industries in Ohio.
The department leads a National Science Foundation funded, five-year, $2.7 million Integrated Graduate Education & Research Training (IGERT) Program in Molecular Engineering of Microdevices. A commercial clean coal demonstration plant located on campus adds a unique opportunity for research and education in chemical reaction engineering. Our faculty also lead the University Cell Analysis and Sorting Core (UCASC), which is supported by the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center (a National Cancer Institute designated support center), the Dorothy M. Davis Heart Lung Research Institute and the College of Engineering.
Our faculty and students are also actively involved in the Mathematical Biosciences Institute, sponsored by the National Science Foundation. MBI catalyzes interactions between the biological, medical and mathematical sciences through vigorous programs of research and education, and nurtures a nationwide community of scholars in this emerging new field.
Several industrial consortia sponsor research in chemical engineering, demonstrating the strong corporate interest in our research programs. For example, the research carried out in the NSF-sponsored Center for Advanced Polymer and Composite Engineering (CAPCE) is supported by 20 industrial members. Many of our graduate students work on industry-sponsored research, and some complete internships at corporate research centers during their graduate studies.
About the Department
The Ohio State Unversity Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering is one of the oldest chemical engineering programs in the country. We celebrated our centennial anniversary in April 2003. The department has 15 full-time and two active emeritus faculty, 94 graduate students, 375 undergraduate students and more than 3,000 alumni. We are undergoing a phase of expansion to add three to four faculty members in the next two years. Our goal is to become one of the top 10 chemical engineering research and education departments in the country. Our faculty offer students an exciting opportunity for their Ph.D. education and prepare them well for a career in either academia or industry. In addition, it should be noted that nearly all of our students have their first choice on their advisors.
Our researchers are involved in many interdisciplinary programs and research centers on campus, including:
- Catalysis, Membranes and Rheology Laboratories
- Center for Affordable Nanoengineering of Polymer Biomedical Devices
- Center for Materials Research
- Center for Advanced Polymers and Composite Engineering
- Biomedical Engineering Center
- Molecular Biology and Biotechnology Program
- Ohio State Carbonation Ash Reactivation (OSCAR) demonstration plant
- Ohio State Mathematical Biosciences Institute
- University Cell Analysis and Sorting Core
Research Priorities
- Bioengineering/Biotechnology/Membranes
- Colloids/Aerosols/Particle Technology
- Fluid Mechanics/Multiphase Flow
- Molecular Thermodynamics/Computational Chemistry
- Polymer/Nanomaterials/Processing
- Process Systems Engineering
- Reaction Engineering/Catalysis
Graduate Applications
Applications to Ohio State University must be submitted online. Please visit the Ohio State University Office of Graduate Admissions Web site to apply online with a credit card. Also, the chemical and biomolecular engineering department’s Web site provides links to the university admissions Internet site.
