Center for Bio-Inspired Energy Science (CBES)

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Director

Samuel Stupp

Lead Institution

Northwestern University

Class

2009-2022; Known as the Non-equilibrium Energy Research Center (NERC) from 2009 - 2014.

Mission

To develop the next frontier in soft materials relevant to energy challenges by designing structures that emulate functions we see in biological systems.

Research Topics

catalysis (homogeneous), catalysis (heterogeneous), photosynthesis (natural and artificial), bio-inspired, methane and light alkanes, mesoscale science, materials and chemistry by design, mesostructured materials, synthesis (novel materials), synthesis (self-assembly), synthesis (predictive), synthesis (scalable processing)

Materials Studied

Materials: polymer, porous

Interfaces: organic/inorganic, organic/organic

Nanostructured Materials: 0D, 1D, 2D, 3D

Experimental and Theoretical Methods

X-ray diffraction and scattering, X-ray spectroscopy, electron microscopy, molecular dynamics (MD), density functional theory (DFT), dynamical mean field theory (DMFT), monte carlo (MC), finite element methods, continuum modeling, mesoscale modeling, multiscale modeling 

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Partner Institutions

  • Columbia University
  • Harvard University
  • New York University
  • Northwestern University
  • University of Michigan
  • University of Pittsburgh

BES Staff Contact

Craig Henderson