June 18, 2026
Earth.com and other science outlets highlighted a University of Cincinnati professor's research examining new technology that will help protect drinking water in rivers from harmful algal blooms.
June 17, 2026
University of Cincinnati environmental engineering professor Dongmei Feng is using satellite remote sensing to study rivers around the world and protect drinking water supplies. As co-lead author of a paper in Nature Water and the recipient of two major federal grants, Feng is developing tools to monitor nutrient pollution and toxic algal blooms from space, with applications for cities like Cincinnati.
May 4, 2026
Evangelia Anna Passa was drawn to the UC by its reputation of research and department of chemical and environmental engineering. Now pursuing a PhD in environmental engineering at the College of Engineering and Applied Science, she was recently named Graduate student Engineer of the Month.
Professor Jingjie Wu has been selected to receive funding through the Michelman Green, Clean, and Sustainable Technology Research Innovation Program, which supports researchers developing practical solutions to improve environmental quality, promote responsible resource management, and advance high-value technology sectors including specialty chemicals, advanced materials, water and energy technologies, and resilient infrastructure. Professor Wu's funded proposal, Scaling Up CO₂ Electrolyzer for Ethylene Production, seeks to develop an innovative approach for converting carbon dioxide into valuable liquid fuels. By integrating a CO₂ electrolyzer with a bioreactor, the project aims to create a more efficient and scalable pathway for transforming captured carbon emissions into sustainable fuel products. This research has the potential to advance carbon utilization technologies while contributing to the development of cleaner energy systems and a more sustainable future.
Lucas Sanchez and Joshua Long, UC chemical engineering students, earned first place in North America in the 2025–2026 AVEVA Global Academic Competition, which challenged students worldwide to build AI-enabled process models and create digital twins using cloud-based data, visualization tools, and process simulation. Participants integrated machine learning models with industrial process simulations to test performance against real-world scenarios, highlighting both technical rigor and practical application.
Reflecting on their experience, the team shared, “We were thrilled to participate… This year featured a new twist with data from AVEVA Connect being utilized to train a machine learning model to combine first principles in chemical engineering with process trends. We also had the chance to build dashboards that could be used in an operational and business setting. The competition paralleled many of our internship experiences and was a fun challenge… Overall, it was a phenomenal opportunity.”
Faculty, students, alumni, friends, and family gathered on November 7, 2025, to celebrate the life and legacy of Professor Dionysios (Dion) Dionysiou of the Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering. The memorial ceremony honored Dr. Dionysiou’s profound impact as a scholar, mentor, collaborator, and leader in environmental engineering and water research.
The program opened with a warm welcome from Dr. Anastasios Angelopoulos, who reflected on Dr. Dionysiou’s enduring influence on the department and the broader scientific community. Tributes followed from Dr. George Sorial and Dr. Junhang Dong, who shared personal memories and highlighted Dr. Dionysiou’s international reputation in advanced water treatment technologies and his deep and unwavering commitment to his students.
During the ceremony, a portrait of Dr. Dionysiou was unveiled, and is now displayed in the department’s Faculty Lounge, Room 705 Mantei Center, as a lasting reminder of his presence and contributions. Paula Antoniou, Dr. Dionysiou’s wife, was in attendance and joined the department in honoring his memory.
To continue his legacy of supporting students and advancing environmental research, the department also recognized the inaugural recipients of three memorial awards established in his name:
In addition, the Dionysiou Memorial Scholarship was generously established by Dr. Dionysiou’s family. This meaningful gift reflects his lifelong passion for education and research in environmental engineering, as well as his deep care for students’ learning, well-being, and professional development.
Together, these awards embody Dr. Dionysiou’s dedication to mentoring students, fostering global collaboration, and advancing solutions to critical water challenges. Through these enduring initiatives and the memories shared, the UC community affirms that his legacy of discovery, education, and service will continue to inspire future generations.
Professor Greg Harris was honored with the Sigma Xi Young Investigator Award on March 4, 2026, at the society’s annual spring meeting, where he delivered an invited presentation titled “Engineering Biomaterials to Direct Cellular Behavior and Improve Nerve Regeneration.”
In his talk, Professor Harris highlighted how injuries to the peripheral and central nervous systems often lead to permanent loss of function because of limited natural regeneration and the formation of inhibitory scar tissue. The Harris Lab addresses this challenge by integrating biomaterials engineering, cell biology, and tissue engineering to better understand—and ultimately control—the cellular processes that govern nerve repair.
His team develops engineered hydrogel scaffolds and patterned biomaterials with finely tuned mechanical properties, surface topographies, and spatially organized signaling molecules. These platforms allow systematic study of how neurons and support cells, such as Schwann cells, sense and respond to their microenvironment, including how extracellular matrix cues influence neurite extension, cell migration, and tissue remodeling after injury.
By dissecting the interplay between key physical and biochemical parameters, Professor Harris’s work identifies factors that promote regeneration while minimizing inhibitory scarring. This research advances both fundamental knowledge of cell–matrix interactions and translational strategies for nerve repair, with the long-term goal of creating next-generation biomaterials that can stabilize injury sites, guide axonal growth, and improve functional recovery for patients with nervous system injuries.
The Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering recently hosted Dr. L.S. Fan from The Ohio State University (OSU) as part of the George Rieveschl Jr. Distinguished Seminar Series. Dr. Fan is a Distinguished University Professor at OSU and a globally recognized leader in chemical engineering. He is an elected member of the U.S. National Academy of Engineering and multiple international academies, including those of China, the U.K., Canada, India, and Australia. Dr. Fan has authored over 500 journal publications and holds more than 90 U.S. patents, many of which have been industrialized. He has received over 100 prestigious national and international awards, underscoring his exceptional impact on clean energy technologies and multiphase reaction engineering.
Dr. Fan delivered a seminar to the department on March 6, 2026, titled “Chemical Looping Technology for Clean Energy, Fuel and Chemical Production: History, Fundamentals and Commercialization.” In his lecture, Dr. Fan discussed the development of chemical looping technology as a promising pathway for low-carbon energy, cleaner fuel production, and sustainable chemical manufacturing. He traced the historical evolution of the field, explained key reaction fundamentals and reactor concepts, and highlighted progress towards commercial-scale deployment of these processes. His seminar underscored the potential of chemical looping systems to reduce emissions while enabling efficient energy and chemical production.
Dr. Fan is the third distinguished speaker to participate in the George Rieveschl Jr. Distinguished Seminar Series since its inauguration in Spring 2025, further advancing the series’ mission to bring leading researchers to UC and engage faculty, students, and staff in cutting-edge chemical and environmental engineering scholarship. His seminar was received with great enthusiasm by graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, and faculty members.