Chemical Engineering (Graduate Program)

For information regarding the UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAM, click here.  

Program Overview

The Cain Department of Chemical Engineering (ChE) originated from the Audubon Sugar School (1897) and our graduate program was initiated in 1908. Today, the Cain Department of Chemical Engineering is a nationally recognized leader in education and research in the areas of chemical manufacturing, fuel processing, energy, environmental engineering, biochemical engineering, advanced computation, process systems engineering, catalysis, and materials. Graduate students have access to state-of-the-art laboratory facilities and equipment, extensive experimental and diagnostic facilities, and advanced computing systems. After graduation, chemical engineering graduates engage in careers in academia or national labs and industry research.

Administration

Admission

Applications and supporting materials for all graduate study must be submitted through the online application site for the LSU Graduate School. Official transcripts (along with an English translation version for non-English speaking universities) from each and every institution attended, official GRE scores (sent directly from ETS to the LSU Graduate School code 6373), official TOEFL, IELTS, or PTE scores (for international students whose native language is not English), and other materials that come from third-party sources must be mailed to: Graduate Admissions, 114 West David Boyd Hall, Baton Rouge, LA 70803. These paper documents are stored electronically and departments have access to all materials submitted by and/or on behalf of a student applying to graduate study.

In addition to the documents and scores required by the Graduate School, the Department of Chemical Engineering requires applicants to submit the following items: a statement of purpose, a current resumé/CV, and a minimum of three letters of recommendation (no form required). A writing sample is not required by our department but may be submitted if the applicant so desires. All of these additional items should be submitted electronically through the Graduate School admission system. Direct mailing of these items is discouraged.

Applicants must adhere to the application deadlines established by the Graduate School and the department. Applications for the summer term are strongly discouraged. International students are strongly encouraged to apply earlier than established deadlines to allow sufficient time for application review and processing of I-20 paperwork. Complete applications received by January 1 will be given first consideration.

Meeting the minimum admission requirements established by the Graduate School does not necessarily ensure acceptance into the program. Applications for admission are evaluated by the department graduate admissions committee on a competitive basis. Each applicant is assessed for success at the graduate level, taking into consideration academic credentials, undergraduate preparation, research skills, industry experience, recommendations, GRE scores, TOEFL, IELTS, or PTE scores (for international students whose native language is not English), and any other information that can contribute to the review. Program admission is also dependent on the availability of department funding, office/laboratory space, and faculty interest.

Financial Assistance

Financial assistance is available to well-qualified students through the department or other units in the form of research or teaching assistantships and/or fellowships and is awarded at the discretion of the department graduate admissions committee following the complete evaluation of the student’s application record. To ensure consideration for financial aid, all application materials should be submitted in accordance with deadlines established by the LSU Graduate School and the department. Students desiring financial support should apply early, have all requested documents sent to the department, and fully communicate their own status and needs.

Graduate Faculty

(check current listings by department by clicking this link)

Christopher G. Arges (6A) • Electrochemical engineering, membrane separations, lithography, polymer self-assembly, water-energy nexus

Michael G. Benton (M) • Genomics, biochemical engineering, metabolic engineering, biosensors

Armando B. Corripio (EM) • Process control, mathematical modeling, simulation, optimization, computer-aided process design

Kerry M. Dooley (M) • Heterogeneous catalysis, high-pressure separations

James Dorman (6A) • Electron transport and recombination, surface chemistry, energy efficient materials, nanomaterials, energy conversion

John C. Flake (M) • Electrochemical processing and materials, energy conversion and storage, microelectronic device fabrication

Gregory L. Griffin (M) • Electrochemical processing and materials, heterogeneous catalysis, CO2 utilization

Douglas P. Harrison (EM) • Reaction engineering, kinetics of gas-solid reactions

Martin A. Hjortsø (M) • Biochemical reaction engineering, applied mathematics

Francisco R. Hung (M) • Nanoporous materials, confined fluids, liquid crystals, computational modeling, simulation

F. Carl Knopf (M) • Supercritical fluid extraction, ultrafast kinetics

Edward McLaughlin (EM) • Thermodynamic and transport properties, high pressure gas solubilities, statistical mechanics, properties of synfuels

Kevin Michael McPeak (6A) • Photocatalysis, plasmonic materials, nanoscale chirality

Adam T. Melvin (6A) • Biochemical engineering, biosensors, microfluidics, point of care diagnostics, single cell analysis, chemical biology

K. Nandakumar (M) • Computational Fluid Dynamics, modeling of multiphase flows, Process Innovation

Ralph Pike (EM) • Fluid dynamics, reaction engineering with chemical reactions, optimization

Geoffrey L. Price (EM) • Heterogeneous catalysis, surface chemistry, solid state spectroscopy, zeolites

Danny D. Reible (EM) • Transport phenomena in the environment and in polymers, fluid mechanics

Richard G. Rice (EM) • Mass and heat transfer, novel separation methods, applied mathematics

Jose A. Romagnoli (M) • Process Systems Engineering, optimization

William A. Shelton (M) • Catalysis, chemical dynamics, surface chemistry, alloy theory

James J. Spivey (M) • Catalysis

Arthur M. Sterling (EM) • Fluid dynamics and heat transfer, combustion, laser diagnostics, hazardous waste incineration

Louis J. Thibodeaux (M) • Chemodynamics, hazardous waste transport and management

Karsten E. Thompson (M) • Pore-scale and multiscale modeling of transport in porous media, computational methods

Kalliat T. Valsaraj (M) • Environmental chemical engineering, applied surface chemistry, environmental transport, mass transfer separation processes

Mary Julia Wornat (M) • Fuels, pyrolysis, combustion

Ye Xu (6A) • Computational heterogeneous catalysis and electrocatalysis, surface chemistry, energy conversion and storage

Programs

• Chemical Engineering, Ph.D.

• Chemical Engineering, M.S.CHE