Research

We are working on the following listed research areas.

Reaction Engineering and Catalysis deals with the study of chemical reactions in the presence of catalysts to enhance the rate of chemical reactions. Catalysis and Reaction Engineering lies at the crux of many industrial chemical processes, where raw materials are transformed into useful products and energy.

Research in the field of Catalysis and Reaction Engineering is mainly focused on hydrogen production from renewable sources, different biomass conversion processes such as biomass to fuel and value-added chemicals, plastic waste to fuel conversion, carbon dioxide conversion to value-added chemicals, and the development of low-cost wastewater treatment technologies. The latter involves advanced studies related to the decomposition kinetics of azo dyes, and pharmaceutical products such as antibiotics using novel particulate approaches, namely rough particles, nano/micromotors, and oppositely charged nanoparticles that have the potential to act as Fenton-like catalysts. A key aspect that is being developed is an enhanced understanding of catalyst deactivation properties through experiments and theoretical modeling. Experimental techniques pursued include thermogravimetry, electron microscopy, and gas adsorption and other advanced methods. In addition, ab initio Density Functional Theory calculations help us to gain insights into catalyst structure, reaction mechanisms which can further help in predicting catalytic activity and product selectivity. In tune with that mentioned above, members of this research group also work on the mathematical modeling of reactive systems such as steam reforming, packed bed reactors, micro reactors, and membrane reactors. The major thrust here is to identify gaps within processes, and subsequently use optimization and classical or innovative intensification strategies to make credible process improvements. A novel reactor design based on detailed flow and concentration fields using commercial or open source CFD packages is a recent trend.

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Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) refers to the study of steady and time-dependent fluid motion as well as allied phenomena using numerical techniques. The discipline lies at the intersection of fluid mechanics, mathematics and computer science. CFD has been extensively used in oil and gas, pharmaceutical and chemical industries, in the design and trouble-shooting of thermo-fluid-chemical systems.

The major thrust is on convective heat transfer in rheologically complex fluids which is intrinsically slow due to the generally encountered laminar conditions and/or due to the yield stress. Different strategies to augment convection in these systems comprise the major area of research. Also, this provides a window into tuning of rheological properties by using additives to enhance convection. Open source codes (OpenFOAM) and commercial packages (Comsol Multiphysics) are used to carry out large-scale parallel simulations of chemical systems.

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Mechanics of living matter deals with the study of biological systems using techniques from condensed matter and statistical physics. These systems are characterized by the supply of free-energy through metabolic reactions, which is then converted into mechanical work, and hence are called 'Active Matter'. The study of active matter is focused on how the collective behavior which produces intricate spatio-temporal patterns emerges from the conversion of chemical energy to mechanical energy at the smallest scale to largest scale.

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This research area pertains to the physico-chemical treatment of water and wastewater, with a particular focus on improving various water treatment techniques such as membrane technology, adsorption, photocatalysis, and flocculation-coagulation. Researchers specializing in this area will learn engineering solutions to supply adequate quantities and quality of water for human and industrial use. The specific problems include removing microplastics from wastewater and removing pharmaceutical contaminants from the industrial effluent. The faculty members are developing novel materials such as Fenton-like catalysts for Advanced Oxidation Processes (AOPs), self-propelled particles or micro/nanomotors, hierarchical porous materials, and stimuli-sensitive polymers.

The faculty members also develop integrated technologies for a broader area of water management, such as bubble technology for water treatment, aquaculture, mineral processing, hydroponics, cleaning, Dissolved Air Floatation (DAF), advanced oxidation, sterilization, and enhanced adsorption of heavy metals.

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Granular matter is a many-body complex system and due to its large size, it does not move under the ambient thermal fluctuations unlike the colloidal particles. As the thermal fluctuations are negligible for granular matter, it cannot explore different points in phase space. External driving is required to move the system from one point to another. This system is also not conservative as it dissipates energy via friction. One of the interesting features of granular matter is that it is neither solid nor fluid. Depending on the external driving and the volume fraction of the constituent particles, the system can either undergo motion or get stuck. When the volume fraction increases above a threshold, the system jams into a disordered solid with finite yield stress. Rigidity transition of different amorphous materials is qualitatively understood in terms of a universal jamming picture. Jamming transition i.e. transition from the freely flowing state to the jammed state can easily be made by tuning various control parameters like temperature, density and stress applied to the sample.

Examples include the transition of a colloidal dispersion to colloidal glasses with increase in density, flowing foams become static when shear stress is decreased below the yield stress, and supercooled liquids forming glasses when the temperature is reduced below the glass transition temperature. The jamming transition has apparently no structural signature i.e. the structure remains the same in the jammed state as was before in the unjammed state. One of the most challenging tasks is to provide better understanding of the onset of the jamming transition in soft amorphous materials. Simulations, theory as well as experiments are employed to unravel the physics of these soft materials. The overall goal of the research is to search for universality across diverse non-equilibrium materials and formulate an equation of state if possible.

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Interfacial and Particulate Engineering deals with the study and manipulation of interfacial interactions among liquids, gases and solid particles. Many transport processes are often bottle-necked at interfaces, and designing them suitably can lead to a significant enhancement in the overall performance.

Target research problems include the self-assembly of patchy colloids, Janus colloids, water-in-water Pickering nanoemulsions stabilized by nanoparticles, emulsion gels stabilized by nanoparticles, synthesis of spherical and non-spherical microcapsules, physics of phase separation of bio-polymers, active colloidal clusters and colloidal chains, particle-particle interaction at the fluid-fluid interfaces using Langmuir trough, synthesis of nano and micron-sized particles, advanced functional materials, and removal of environmental contaminants from pharmaceutical and personal healthcare products using nano/micromotors. The main objective of Quality-By-Design (QBD) approaches is to optimize the particulate product manufacturing processes aiming the reduction in cost, product quality improvement and minimization of failed batches. Research focus lies in the determination of the optimized parameters of the particulate manufacturing processes, e.g., crystallization by QBD to tailor particulate attributes required in numerous applications. The behavior of the particulate systems will be envisaged by employing a mathematical framework in Population Balance Modeling (PBM) coupled with Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) for better understanding of the processes.

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Multiscale modeling deals with the construction of mathematical models operating at disparate length and timescales with the objective of elucidating the underlying mechanism of physico-chemical processes. Multiscale models allow us to probe phenomena at the microscale, which can be seamlessly embedded in the large scale models to predict the dynamics of the macroscopic system.

Research in multiscale modeling is focused on the design and analysis of heterogeneous catalytic processes, interfacial flows, and design of new materials and acceleration of algorithms for inverse and forward design problems. In the context of interfacial flows, several physical and chemical effects are included in the low-dimensional models, such as surface tension and its gradients, external gas flow, chemical and topographical surfaces, and hydrophobicity. For materials design problems, statistical mechanics, machine learning and parallel computing are used to develop and explore new materials or improve existing ones. In heterogeneous catalysis, ab initio Density Functional Theory calculations are utilized for a rational design of new catalyst systems with varied applications. A detailed understanding of the catalysts surface/structure under “reaction conditions” can guide experimentalists in developing novel and efficient catalysts.

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Our planet needs to accomplish its energy requirements in an affordable, efficient and sustainable manner. Minimization of environmental impacts, significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and addressing climate change related issues are of central importances which are addressed through the synthesis, design and conceptualization of low and no carbon solutions. It is also endeavored to address fuel utilization and efficiency aspects.

The design and application of Phase Change Materials (PCMs), especially focused on thermal management of lithium-ion batteries, Latent Heat Energy Storage (LHES), solar applications, thermal management of photovoltaic cells, space exploration, waste heat management, food-stuff, pharmaceutical products preservation systems, water heaters, refrigeration, and building materials forms the core of the research. In addition to working on the renewable energy options for the future (e.g. biomass, hydrogen, solar, wind, renewable electricity), focus is also laid on exploring how existing conventional energy options may be utilized in a sustainable manner (e.g. refinery integration, bio feedstock substitution, carbon capture and sequestration, natural gas management). Researchers involved in this area are also helping economically less privileged communities to address energy poverty through efficient fuel use, and towards adoption of United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s) in the education and research scenario.

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Process Systems Engineering encompasses process modeling, control and optimization, design and management which enables future researchers and emerging industry personnel to work on the design and operation of complex chemical, biochemical and energy systems.

The field of process systems engineering is primarily concerned with the design and operation of manufacturing processes. This includes collaborating with industry in this area through external doctoral degree programs, student internships with various organizations. Some of the problems being addressed are techno-economic and sustainability analyses, and energy systems integration. In this domain focus is also in developing an understanding on how operation research methods, artificial intelligence, machine learning, quantum computing may be applied to Chemical Engineering applications.

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Soft matter refers to materials that have properties between those of solids and gases, but simple fluids are commonly excluded. Some examples are polymers, micelles, foams, gels, various biofluids including blood cells and DNA. These materials are deformed easily when subjected to mechanical stresses, electric or magnetic fields, and thermal fluctuations. Microfluidics deals with the flow behavior, and its control and manipulation at sub millimeter length scales under the action of external forces. The presence of soft matter in a simple fluid like water dramatically alters the flow behavior. For instance, the addition of a minute amount of solid polymers into water significantly changes the flow characteristics of the resulting polymer solution in comparison to that seen only with pure water. These polymer solutions can generate complex flow phenomena that are extremely rich in physics. Elastic turbulence at negligible inertia is one such example that finds application in microscale flows.

Research in soft matter and microfluidics is focused on designing such soft materials and microscale fluid flow devices to meet emerging needs in areas such as biology, healthcare and petrochemicals. Micro-particle image velocimetry, high-speed imaging, and rheological techniques to analyze these soft matter systems over a wide range of the operating parameters are employed. The electrokinetic transport of soft materials in various micro and nanoscale devices such as synthetic nanopores, ion selective membranes, micromixer, and micropumps is explored. In addition, ElectroKinetic Instability (EKI) in complex fluids, with a particular interest to enhance mixing, particle trapping, DNA sequencing, single molecule detection and ion-selective transport in ion logic gates is also studied. Theoretical analysis and large-scale numerical simulations are carried out to complement and guide the corresponding experiments.

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