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Sustainability is a central evolving theme in the use of polymeric materials. Going from recycling of plastics, to the use of polymer membranes in separation processes (e.g., removing CO2 from air, purifying water) it is evident that polymer science has to evolve to answering these pressing questions of our time. We propose to addresses these societally critical questions by using the tools of fundamental science (including experiments, theory, simulations and the evolving tools of data science) to impact applications on a short time scales.

Our group employs a bottom-up approach to study these materials with a goal towards addressing the polymer waste problem (including polymer recycling/upcycling) and the formation/mitigation of nano plastics, which are thought to have significant health issues. We also work on developing better membranes, based on a polymer grafted nanoparticle construct, with improved gas separation abilities. In collaboration with others we focus on modeling the assembly of materials using DNA (with Oleg Gang) and modeling Biomolecular condensates (with Kyle Bishop). While our focus seems diverse, we are always guided by applications and by the need to establish their fundamental underpinnings. We combine experiments, simulations, theory and the new tools of data science to understand the driving forces that governs the behavior of these complex systems across scales.