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Damien Guironnet - professor of chemical and bimolecular engineering

Damien Guironnet

Associate Professor

guironne@illinois.edu

  • 2011-2014 | Senior Research Scientist
    BASF Corporation - Charlotte, NC
  • 2009-2011 | CENTC Postdoctoral Fellow
    The University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill, NC
  • 2005-2009 | Ph.D. in Chemistry, Summa Cum Laude
    Universitat Konstanz - Germany
    Research advisor: Prof. Stefan Mecking
  • 2001-2005 | MS in Chemical Engineering
    Ecole Nationale Superieure de Chimie de Mulhouse - France

Graduate Students

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Vanessa DaSilva

5th Year ChBE Graduate Student

ydasilva5@illinois.edu

Education

BS in Chemistry (2016-2020)

Minor in Mathematical and Statistical Modeling (2016-2020)

Northeastern Illinois University (NEIU) - Chicago, IL

Research

My research focuses on developing a process to catalytically depolymerize polyolefins.

Hobbies

I enjoy outdoor adventures, traveling, and dancing.

Keelee
Keelee McCleary-Petersen

5th Year Chemistry Graduate Student

keeleem2@illinois.edu

Education

BS in Chemistry (2016-2020)

The University of Arizona - Tuscon, AZ

Research

My research focuses on developing a chemically diverse and tunable polymer system to make shape-controlled bottlebrush polymers. I also work on a project in collaboration with Honeywell involving polymerizations using a microwave.

Hobbies

I like to read, listen to music and play cozy video games.

Jerry
Jerry Rong

4th Year ChBE Graduate Student

yrong6@illinois.edu

Education

BS in Chemical Engineering (2017-2021)

University of Colorado - Boulder, CO

Research

My research is to incorporate bottlebrush polymer channels in membranes.

Hobbies

I love playing the piano and bartending.

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Kaitlyn Wiegand

4th Year Chemistry Graduate Student

kwiegand@illinois.edu

Education

BS in Chemistry (2019-2021)

Southern Illinois University - Carbondale, IL

Research

My research is focused towards making shaped bottlebrush polymers dispersed in water for potential nanomedicine applications.

Hobbies

I enjoy baking, arts and crafts, and music. I especially enjoy learning new skills in all these areas, like learning how to bake new pastries or playing new songs on the piano.

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Alfons Pineda-Knauseder

4th Year Chemistry Graduate Student

alfonsp2@illinois.edu

Education

BS in Chemistry (2019-2021)

University of Rochester - Rochester, NY

Research

I am investigating Nickel (II) catalysts for the synthesis of non-alternating polyketones.

Hobbies

I like fishing, literature, and music!

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Michael Taleff

3rd Year ChBE Graduate Student

mtaleff2@illinois.edu

Education

BS in Chemical Engineering (2018-2022)

BS in Chemistry (2018-2022)

University of Texas - Austin, TX

Research

I am investigating the precise control of polymer structure using reactor engineering principles.

Hobbies

I like to ride my bike, play volleyball, and play disc golf. Whenever I am feeling less energetic, I play video games or get stuck customizing Emacs.

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Joanna Vo

2nd Year Chemistry Graduate Student

jnvo2@illinois.edu

Education

BS in Chemistry (2019-2023)

University of Texas at Dallas - Dallas, TX

Research

My research focuses on the synthesis of bottlebrush polymers with an emphasis on photonics.

Hobbies

I enjoy playing flag football, attempting to ice skate, crocheting, exploring new places, and spending time with friends and family.

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Chintan Shah

2nd Year ChBE Graduate Student

cjs17@illinois.edu

Education

BS in Chemical Engineering (2019-2023)

University at Buffalo - Buffalo, NY

Research

My project focuses on investigating the reaction kinetics for catalytically depolymerizing polyolefins using reactor design and engineering tools, with potential applications to chemical recycling and upcycling technologies.

Hobbies

During my free time, I love to drown myself in the realm of reading books, listening to music, and traveling to other places.

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Jared Rivera-Otero

2nd Year ChBE Graduate Student

NSF-GRFP Fellow

jaredjr2@illinois.edu

Education

BS in Chemistry (2018-2023)

University of Puerto Rico Rio Piedras - San Juan, Puerto Rico

Research

Jared J. Rivera-Otero (JJ) is aspiring to become synthetic chemical engineer. He is focusing on synthetic design of monomeric structures for the development of novel polymer structures for sustainable applications. Also, he is working to understand the relationship between polymer functionality and molecular design.

Hobbies

In his free time, JJ likes to do outdoor activities like hiking and kayaking. Also, he likes to play basketball, biking, and swimming. You will see him with a different pair of shoes everyday due to his obsession with sneakers and fashion.

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Elizabeth Vrana

1st Year Chemistry Graduate Student

evrana2@illinois.edu

Education

BS in Chemistry (2020-2024)

The Ohio State University - Columbus, OH

Research

My research focuses on the synthesis of shape-controlled diblock bottlebrush copolymers.

Hobbies

I love running, hiking, and anything outdoorsy. I also love reading a good book cuddled up with my cat, knitting, and hanging out with my friends!

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Kyle Kirkendall-Jones

1st Year ChBE Graduate Student

kylek6@illinois.edu

Education

BS in Chemical Engineering (2019-2023)

BS in Chemistry (2019-2023)

University of Wisconsin - Madison - Madison, WI

Research

My research focuses on the exploration of autocatalytic chemistry and its uses in chemically induced frontal polymerization.

Hobbies

My favorite pastimes are being active such as working out and when the weather permits, I love training and racing in triathlons. When I'm not being active I love watching movies and reading.

Undergraduate Students

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Yating Feng

4th Year Undergraduate Student in Chemistry

yfeng53@illinois.edu

Mentor: Keelee McCleary-Petersen and Jerry Rong

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Dareall Acheampong

3rd Year Undergraduate Student in ChBE

dache2@illinois.edu

Mentor: Damien Guironnet

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Edgar Dobra

2nd Year Undergraduate Student in ChBE

edobra2@illinois.edu

Mentor: Damien Guironnet

Celia Colucci

2nd Year Undergraduate Student in ChBE

celiciasc2@illinois.edu

Mentor: Kaitlyn Wiegand

Kael Schwarckopf

1st Year Undergraduate Student in ChBE

kaelds2@illinois.edu

Mentor: Michael Taleff

Alumni

PostDocs
  • Camille Boucher-Jacobs ('19)- Solugen

  • Muhammad Rabnawaz ('17)- Associate professor at Michigan State University

  • Scott Hicks ('15)- University of Rochester

Graduate
  • Yash Kamble ('24)- Postdoc at Texas A&M University (Hsiao Lab)

  • Susannah Miller ('23)- EcoLab

  • Brian VanDyke (Masters '22)- Crystal Pharmatech

  • Nicholas Wang ('22)- Braskem

  • Danielle Harrier ('22)- Exponent

  • Alexander Horn ('21)- 3M

  • Tianwei Yan ('21)- Postdoc at University of Delaware (Epps/Korley Lab)

  • Dylan Walsh ('20)- Postdoc at MIT (Jensen/Olsen Lab)

  • Micheal Hyatt ('20)- Postdoc at University of Minnesota (Mahanthappa/Bates Lab)

  • Jaimie Kurtz (Masters '18)- University of Illinois (College of Education)

  • Carl Schultz ('21)- Boston start-up

  • Marjorie Bridgewater ('21)- JPL National Lab

  • Lingze Wei (Masters '17)- Graduate student at Stanford University

Undergraduate
  • Ava Chen

  • Jay Lim

  • David Yang

  • Devin Schinski

  • Thomas Johnston

  • Bugra Sahin

  • Robert Schneider

  • Muneeb Ansari

  • Mikaela Dressendorfer

  • Kristen Lee

  • Pak Wing Chen

  • Chengling Qiu

  • Bryan Scheulin

  • SiiHong (Will) Lau

  • Regev Trigalo

  • Tola Okesanjo

  • Eric Su

  • Yasheen Jadidi

  • Evan Richter

  • Michael Kubacki

  • David Braker

  • Joseph Schlude

  • Brett Llewellyn

  • Rahul Gogia