News & EventsDepartment Events
Events
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Apr11
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The Chemical and Biological Engineering Department is pleased to present a seminar by Nathan Crook from North Carolina State University as part of our ChBE Seminar Series.
Dr. Nathan Crook will present a seminar titled "Combinatorial and evolutionary engineering of probiotic yeast for in situ biomanufacturing.”
ABSTRACT: The large intestine is the site of many human diseases yet is difficult to access with orally- or intravenously delivered drugs. At the same time, the gut provides a habitat for a numerous and diverse population of microbes (viral, prokaryotic, and eukaryotic) that perform important, health-relevant chemistries using host- and diet-derived carbohydrates as a feedstock. Therefore, there has been a rising interest in genetically engineering these gut microbes to produce therapeutic molecules in the gut, ultimately improving drug delivery and reducing drug costs. Saccharomyces boulardii (Sb) is a widely used yeast probiotic, demonstrating effectiveness against various gastrointestinal disorders. As a yeast, Sb exhibits high rates of protein secretion, is tolerant to low pH, can be freeze-dried, and low (if any) rates of horizontal gene transfer. Sb is therefore a promising chassis for development of personalized engineered probiotic medicines. In this talk, I will discuss our lab’s recent progress in tuning four key parameters of Sb’s efficacy as a drug delivery vehicle. First, I will present the development of a constitutive Sb promoter library, and how we applied this library to synthesize β-carotene in the mouse gut. Then, I will introduce how sensing of extracellular metabolites may be achieved through repair of Sb’s defective mating pathway and the expression of human adenosine and melatonin G protein-coupled receptors. I will next detail our efforts to enhance Sb’s in vivo residence time through both rational and screening-based approaches. Finally, I will discuss some new work from our lab focusing on the engineering and optimization of protein secretion titers in Sb, culminating in a quadruple knockout strain with a 10-fold increase to recombinant peptide production. Taken together, this work establishes Sb as a genetically tractable commensal fungus and demonstrates the tunable delivery of small-molecule and protein therapeutics during colonization.
Dr. Crook received his B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the California Institute of Technology in 2009, and his Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin in 2014, studying under Dr. Hal Alper. He pursued postdoctoral studies in Pathology and Immunology at Washington University in Saint Louis School Medicine from 2014-2017 in the lab of Dr. Gautam Dantas. Dr. Crook joined the department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at NCSU in January 2018, and his lab focuses on how to engineer microbial communities. He received an NSF CAREER award and NIH New Innovator Award in 2023, and mentors 10 amazing graduate students and 3 amazing postdocs.
Bagels and coffee will be provided at 9:30am, and the seminar will start at 9:40am. Please plan to arrive on time to grab a bagel and mingle!
*Please note that there will be no Zoom option for seminars this year.
TIME Thursday, April 11, 2024 at 9:30 AM - 10:45 AM
LOCATION LR4, Technological Institute map it
CONTACT Olivia Wise olivia.wise@northwestern.edu EMAIL
CALENDAR McCormick-Chemical and Biological Engineering (ChBE)
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May1
EVENT DETAILS
lessThe patient imperative in drug manufacturing
The landscape of drug development is undergoing a transformative shift with the emergence of novel therapeutic modalities, such as cell and gene therapies, RNA-based treatments, and advanced antibody technologies. These innovations are not only revolutionizing patient outcomes (illustrated by the enhanced survival rates seen with CAR-T therapies) but are also poised to significantly drive industry growth over the next decade. As these technologies advance, the pharmaceutical industry faces dual challenges: maintaining a high rate of innovation and managing the increasing complexity of product portfolios and supply chains. The successful delivery of these cutting-edge treatments to patients hinges on the industry's capacity to ensure reliable, sustainable, and economically viable supply chains. Central to overcoming these challenges is the imperative to foster innovation within manufacturing science and technology, ensuring that breakthrough therapies can reach patients who need them most.
Jorge Vazquez Anderson is a Partner at Boston Consulting Group (BCG), where he specializes in advising healthcare industry leaders on the complexities of efficiently delivering novel medicines to patients. With deep expertise rooted in the convergence of R&D, manufacturing, and supply chain operations, he provides strategic insights that help shape the future of drug manufacturing. Holding a PhD in Chemical Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin, Jorge's doctoral research in the Contreras Lab focused on pioneering synthetic biology techniques to probe RNA structures in vivo. His background in RNA science, combined with experience in business strategy, enables him to offer advice to senior executives in navigating the challenges associated with the production and distribution of novel modalities, including cell and gene therapies, RNA therapeutics, and next-generation antibodies.
TIME Wednesday, May 1, 2024 at 4:30 PM - 5:30 PM
CONTACT Will Chaussee william.chaussee@northwestern.edu EMAIL
CALENDAR McCormick-Chemical and Biological Engineering (ChBE)
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May2
EVENT DETAILS
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The Chemical and Biological Engineering Department is pleased to present a seminar by Peter Beltramo from the University of Massachusetts as part of our ChBE Seminar Series.
Dr. Peter Beltramo will present a seminar titled "Interfacial colloidal interactions, dynamics, and assembly: from biomembranes to ordered 2D materials.”
ABSTRACT: Soft matter interfaces are ubiquitous across diverse technologies ranging from pharmaceuticals to chemical formulations. The presence of surfactant molecules or colloidal particles at fluid interfaces gives the interface distinct properties in response to flow, deformation, and external fields that must be measured, understood, and manipulated for desired functionalities. This talk will focus on colloidal interactions in two such systems: crowded artificial biological membranes and anisotropic particles at air-water interfaces. In the first part of the talk, we discuss the effects of increasing concentration of model membrane inclusions in an artificial cell membrane on inclusion diffusivity and the apparent viscosity of the membrane. In the second part of the talk, we highlight our recent discovery that particle surface porosity severely attenuates the capillary attraction between colloidal ellipsoids at fluid interfaces, enabling the development of ordered anisotropic 2D monolayers. By monitoring the dynamics of two particles approaching one another, we find that porous particles exhibit a strikingly shorter-range capillary interaction potential. Interferometry measurements of the fluid deformation surrounding a single particle quantitatively confirm the decrease in capillary interaction energy and point to roughness-induced changes to interfacial pinning as the mechanism for reduced attraction. Lastly, we show how this reduction in interparticle capillary attraction and alteration in interfacial pinning manifests in the overall 2D interfacial assembly of such particles, informing an approach for the development of anisotropically ordered 2D materials.
Peter Beltramo is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering at UMass Amherst. He earned a BS in Chemical Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania in 2009 and a PhD in Chemical Engineering from the University of Delaware in 2014, where he studied the electrokinetics and self-assembly of colloidal suspensions. Before starting at UMass Amherst in 2018, he completed a postdoc in Soft Materials at ETH Zurich. At UMass, his lab studies interfacial soft matter in contexts ranging from membrane biophysics and biomimetic materials to particle stabilized emulsions and ordered 2D materials. His recent recognitions include the NSF CAREER Award, ACS-PRF Doctoral New Investigator Award, and a Lilly Teaching Fellowship at UMass Amherst.
Bagels and coffee will be provided at 9:30am, and the seminar will start at 9:40am. Please plan to arrive on time to grab a bagel and mingle!
*Please note that there will be no Zoom option for seminars this year.
TIME Thursday, May 2, 2024 at 9:30 AM - 10:45 AM
LOCATION LR4, Technological Institute map it
CONTACT Olivia Wise olivia.wise@northwestern.edu EMAIL
CALENDAR McCormick-Chemical and Biological Engineering (ChBE)
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May8
EVENT DETAILSmore info
lessThe Center for Scientific Studies in the Arts is a collaboration between the Art Institute of Chicago and materials science-related departments at Northwestern University to pursue objects-based and objects-inspired scientific research. Materials research benefits ongoing work in conservation, archaeology, art history, and curatorial scholarship.
Learn how the Center uses materials research to care for art objects in sustainable, innovative ways with Maria Kokkori, Senior Scientist in the Center for Scientific Studies in the Arts. She will be in conversation with Corey Byrnes, Northwestern Associate Professor of Chinese Culture and co-founder/co-director of the Environmental Humanities Workshop in Kaplan Humanities Center.
This event is presented by the McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science in conjunction with exhibition Actions for the Earth: Art, Care & Ecology.
TIME Wednesday, May 8, 2024 at 6:00 PM - 7:30 PM
LOCATION Block Museum of Art, Mary and Leigh map it
CONTACT Block Museum of Art block-museum@northwestern.edu EMAIL
CALENDAR Block Museum of Art
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May9
EVENT DETAILS
lessThe Chemical and Biological Engineering Department is pleased to present a seminar by Phillip Christopher from University of California, Santa Barbara as part of our ChBE Seminar Series.
Dr. Christopher will present a seminar titled "Influence of visible photons on catalytic reactions at metal nanoparticle surfaces."
ABSTRACT: Supported metal catalysts, consisting of transition metal nanoparticles on high surface area, insulating oxide supports, are ubiquitously used in the manufacturing of chemicals and fuels, as well as pollution abetment. Efforts primarily focus on improving catalytic performance (higher rates and/or selectivity at lower temperature and pressure) by tuning the composition of the catalytic materials. Alternatively, we (and others) have observed that visible photon illumination of metal nanoparticle and single atom catalysts (Pt, Cu, Ag, Rh etc.) on insulating oxide supports (Al2O3, SiO2) can induce significant changes to catalytic reaction selectivity, rate, and apparent kinetic parameters. Mechanistic studies suggest that photons influence catalytic processes by transiently redistributing charge within adsorbate-metal bonds, thereby changing elementary step energetics, akin to photolysis of organometallic complexes.
However, there is essentially no understanding of bond specificity for the influence of visible photons on elementary step kinetics on metal nanoparticle surfaces. Further, predictive models of elementary step kinetics that include reaction temperature, pressure, and photon excitation characteristics (time dependent flux and wavelength) are missing.
In this talk I will broadly discuss experimental observations that suggest visible photon fluxes act as distinct energy sources for control catalysis on metal nanoparticle surfaces. Then, I will highlight recent efforts in our group aimed at addressing these topics of bond specificity and predictive kinetic models of photon driven chemical reactions on metal nanoparticle surfaces through analysis of the chemistry of CO and methanol on Pt and Pd nanoparticle surfaces.
Phillip Christopher earned his B.S. in chemical engineering from University of California, Santa Barbara in 2006 and his M.S and Ph.D. in chemical engineering from University of Michigan in 2011 working with Prof. Suljo Linic. From 2011-2017 he was an Assistant Professor at University of California, Riverside. In 2017 he moved to the University of California, Santa Barbara where he is a Professor and Vice Chair for Undergraduate Affairs in the Chemical Engineering Department and the Mellichamp Chair in Sustainable Manufacturing. He serves as a Senior Editor for ACS Energy Letters. His research interests are in sustainable chemical conversion, heterogeneous catalysis by supported metals, dynamic behavior of catalysts, and photocatalysis by metal nanostructures. He has been given various awards including the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE), AIChE CRE Division Young Investigator Award, and Ipatieff Prize from the ACS.
Bagels and coffee will be provided at 9:30am, and the seminar will start at 9:40am. Please plan to arrive on time to grab a bagel and mingle!
*Please note that there will be no Zoom option for seminars this year.
TIME Thursday, May 9, 2024 at 9:30 AM - 10:45 AM
LOCATION LR4, Technological Institute map it
CONTACT Olivia Wise olivia.wise@northwestern.edu EMAIL
CALENDAR McCormick-Chemical and Biological Engineering (ChBE)
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May16
EVENT DETAILS
lessThe Chemical and Biological Engineering Department is pleased to present the 35th Annual Hugh M. Hulburt Lecture with Chau-Chyun Chen from Texas Tech University as part of our Spring 2024 ChBE Seminar Series.
Dr. Chau-Chyun Chen will present a lecture titled "Adsorption Thermodynamics for Process Simulation."
ABSTRACT: Adsorptive separation offers an energy efficient and sustainable alternative to conventional thermal separation. Recent development of tailored adsorbents for selective separation of molecules has heightened interest in adsorption applications such as air separation, trace elements and heavy metals removal, CO2 capture, direct air capture, hydrocarbons processing, aqueous organic chemicals separation, among others. However, the lack of rigorous adsorption thermodynamic models for multicomponent adsorption equilibria has hampered industrial applications of adsorption technology for decades, and practitioners remain heavily relying on expensive and time-consuming trial-and-error pilot studies to develop adsorption units. Successful process simulation and development of all separation processes, adsorption included, must be built on rigorous thermodynamic models that accurately correlate and predict thermodynamic properties and phase behaviors for concerned chemical mixtures. This presentation highlights the limits and deficiencies of commonly practiced adsorption thermodynamic models such as extended Langmuir, dual-process Langmuir, and adsorbed solution theory for mixed-gas adsorption equilibria. It further presents a thermodynamically rigorous generalization of the classical Langmuir isotherm by substituting concentrations with activities, incorporating an activity coefficient model for the adsorbed phase that explicitly counts for both adsorbent-adsorbate interactions and adsorbate-adsorbate interactions, extending for multicomponent competitive adsorption, and further extending for multicomponent multilayer adsorption. Requiring a minimum set of physically meaningful model parameters, the generalized Langmuir isotherm for multicomponent monolayer adsorption and the generalized Brunauer-Emmett-Teller isotherm for multicomponent multilayer adsorption successfully address various adsorption thermodynamic modeling challenges including adsorbent surface heterogeneity, isosteric heats of adsorption, adsorption azeotrope formation, and multilayer formulation. For the first time since the advent of Langmuir isotherm, a rigorous and comprehensive adsorption thermodynamic model for multicomponent adsorption equilibria has been formulated to support process simulation of adsorptive separation.
Dr. Chau-Chyun Chen is a Horn Distinguished professor at the Department of Chemical Engineering and the Jack Maddox Distinguished Chair in Sustainable Energy at the Edward E. Whitacre Jr. College of Engineering, Texas Tech University. A co-founder of Aspen Technology, Inc., he is the inventor of the industry-leading process simulation software for electrolyte solutions, polymerization processes, small molecule drug solubility, CO2 capture with chemical absorption, and molecular characterization for petroleum assays. His current research focuses on molecular thermodynamics and process simulation for adsorptive and membrane-based separations, high salinity produced waters, energetic materials, and CO2 capture. He holds over 160 peer-reviewed scientific publications and book chapters, and 20 US and international patents.
Dr. Chen received BS degree in chemistry from National Taiwan University and MS and ScD degrees in chemical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is a fellow of American Institute of Chemical Engineers and American Association for the Advancement of Science, and a member of the US National Academy of Engineering.
About Hugh M. Hulburt
A talented administrator and teacher, Hugh M. Hulburt (1917–1987) dedicated his professional career to practicing chemistry and promoting the chemical engineering profession. After receiving his PhD in 1942, he worked in various industry positions, becoming director of research and development at the Chemical Construction Corporation and later director of chemical engineering and of physical research at American Cyanamid Company.After joining Northwestern in 1964, Hulburt served as chair of the Department of Chemical Engineering from 1965 to 1971, associate dean of the Graduate School from 1975 to 1980, and associate dean of the Technological Institute from 1980 to 1983. He chaired the committee to establish the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and fostered closer ties between industry and the University and between science and engineering.
Hulburt was editor of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Process Design and Development from its inception in 1962 until 1986, during which time it became a highly respected journal. He also served on the editorial board of the Journal of Physical and Chemical Reference Data and on the National Science Foundation’s Advisory Panel for Engineering Chemistry and Energetics. He was a fellow of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers and was its Institute Lecturer in 1962.The Hugh M. Hulburt Memorial Lecture brings to campus leaders in chemical engineering research and management to lecture and interact with students and faculty, and it fosters collaboration between industry & academia in the education of future chemical engineers.
A department luncheon will follow the lecture at 12:00pm on the Tech East Patio/courtyard.
*Please note that there will be no Zoom option for seminars this year.
TIME Thursday, May 16, 2024 at 9:30 AM - 10:45 AM
LOCATION LR4 (M113), Technological Institute map it
CONTACT Jennifer Young jennifer.young@northwestern.edu EMAIL
CALENDAR McCormick-Chemical and Biological Engineering (ChBE)
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May23
EVENT DETAILS
lessThe Chemical and Biological Engineering Department is pleased to present the annual ARDEI Lecture with speaker Christine Reyna from DePaul University.
Dr. Christine Reyna will present a seminar titled "Restructuring the STEM Pipeline: Dismantling Stereotypes and Microaggressions in STEM to Build Networks of Belonging and Support."
ABSTRACT: STEM training is the best pathway for career success in the U.S.A.. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (2024), the fastest growing and most lucrative careers are all in STEM. However, Black and Latine Americans are disproportionately excluded from many of these opportunities and remain underrepresented in STEM fields. This disparity starts in grade school when natural curiosity about science fades in the face of barriers to learning and belonging. This presentation will examine how science beliefs, coupled with racial and gender stereotypes and microaggressions in STEM settings, can communicate subtle messages about attributions and belonging for students of color. These messages can widen the gap between personal and science identity to make thriving in STEM environments challenging and even hostile for students of color. Finally, structural supports, policies, and best practices will be presented to enable educators to create inclusive STEM experiences and environments focused on empowerment, belonging, and retention.
Christine Reyna received her Ph.D. in Social Psychology from UCLA. She is currently a Professor of Psychology at DePaul University in Chicago where she has a joint faculty appointment in both the Psychological Science and Community Psychology PhD Programs. She is the founder of the Social and Intergroup Perceptions (SIP) Lab, a group of diverse scholars interested in the psychology of identity, status, prejudice, intergroup conflict, and oppression. Her research examines how individuals and groups leverage group identity, stereotypes, values, and moral framing to legitimize discrimination, systems of oppression, and ideological extremism. As a Latina scholar, she is also committed to including the voices and experiences of marginalized populations in her research and theorizing, and takes a multicultural, multidisciplinary approach to her research. In her private life, she loves adventure sports, wandering the wilderness, Halloween, and Harry Potter. She is married with two children and never passes up an opportunity to indulge her own inner child.
Bagels and coffee will be provided at 9:30am, and the seminar will start at 9:40am. Please plan to arrive on time to grab a bagel and mingle!
*Please note that there will be no Zoom option for seminars this year.
TIME Thursday, May 23, 2024 at 9:30 AM - 10:45 AM
LOCATION LR4, Technological Institute map it
CONTACT Olivia Wise olivia.wise@northwestern.edu EMAIL
CALENDAR McCormick-Chemical and Biological Engineering (ChBE)
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May30
EVENT DETAILS
lessThe Chemical and Biological Engineering Department is pleased to present student seminars by Ruihan Li and Kunhuan Liu as part of our ChBE Seminar Series.
More details to come.
Bagels and coffee will be provided at 9:30am, and the seminar will start at 9:40am. Please plan to arrive on time to grab a bagel and mingle!
*Please note that there will be no Zoom option for seminars this year.
TIME Thursday, May 30, 2024 at 9:30 AM - 10:45 AM
LOCATION LR4, Technological Institute map it
CONTACT Olivia Wise olivia.wise@northwestern.edu EMAIL
CALENDAR McCormick-Chemical and Biological Engineering (ChBE)
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Jun10
EVENT DETAILSmore info
lessMcCormick School of Engineering PhD Hooding and Master’s Degree Recognition Ceremony
TIME Monday, June 10, 2024 at 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM
LOCATION Welsh-Ryan Arena
CONTACT Amy Pokrass amy.pokrass@northwestern.edu EMAIL
CALENDAR McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science
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Jun10
TIME Monday, June 10, 2024 at 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
LOCATION Welsh-Ryan Arena
CONTACT Amy Pokrass amy.pokrass@northwestern.edu EMAIL
CALENDAR McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science
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Aug14
EVENT DETAILSmore info
lessInnovation in Quantum Pedagogy, Application, and its Relation to Culture (IQ-PARC), funded by the Department of Defense — National Defense Education Program, is extending an invitation to underrepresented students nationwide (including military-connected students) to participate in a summer school focused on quantum technologies, to be held at Northwestern University. Join us for presentations by faculty and industry partners introducing quantum technologies, cutting-edge research areas, and related job opportunities particularly in the areas of national security.
This effort aims to foster an inclusive environment that encourages participation from all corners of the academic community. Successful applicants will receive up to $1,000 USD to cover travel and lodging expenses in Evanston, IL.
Priority application deadline: May 15, 2024.
Decisions will be sent by June 15, 2024.
TIME Wednesday, August 14, 2024
LOCATION Ford Motor Company Engineering Design Center map it
CONTACT Dongyang Li lidongyang@northwestern.edu EMAIL
CALENDAR McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science