Research Highlights
The College of Engineering has several outstanding researchers who are as passionate about teaching as they are about making discoveries that will ultimately improve the quality of life around the world. This page highlights several of our outstanding College of Engineering faculty members and their research activities. We will continue to update this page periodically to introduce you to new faces and other unique research projects in the future.
Dr. David Keffer
Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
As one of the leaders of the Computation Materials Research Group, Dr. Keffer is focused on making the next generation of fuels cells environmentally friendly and economically viable. Read more.
Dr. Dayakar Penumadu
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Although he is a member of the Civil and Environmental Engineering faculty, Dr. Penumadu is truly a multidisciplinary researcher as evidenced by his interest in the mechanics of multi-phase materials. Read more.
Dr. Hairong Qi
Min H. Kao Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Dr. Qi is an award-winning researcher developing wireless sensor networks that can collect data in potentially hazardous environments, such as military battlefields, by using an innovative collaborative signal processing technique. Read more.
Dr. Rapinder Sawhney
Department of Industrial and Information Engineering
Dr. Sawhney uses lean production techniques to develop research agendas that increase manufacturing productivity requiring less human effort, lower inventories and reduced development time while continuing to create top quality products. Read more.
Dr. Peter Liaw
Department of Materials Science and Engineering
Dr. Liaw's tireless efforts in establishing the International Materials Institute at UT is paying big dividends in the field of neutron scattering and the study of mechanical behavior for advanced structural materials. Read more.
Dr. Richard Komistek
Department of Mechanical, Aerospace and Biomedical Engineering
As the Fred M. Roddy Professor of Biomedical Engineering and co-director of the UT Center for Musculoskeletal Research, Dr. Komistek's cutting-edge research is producing long-wearing, sustainable implants to replace damaged or diseased joints in the human body. Read more.
Dr. Kenneth Kihm
Department of Mechanical, Aerospace and Biomedical Engineering
Dr. Kihm, Magnavox Professor in the Department of Mechanical, Aerospace and Biomedical Engineering, is a pioneer in the relatively new field of micro/nano fluidics and transport. His innovative techniques may provide key medical breakthroughs in cell research. Read more.
Dr. Lawrence Townsend
Department of Nuclear Engineering
Through a collaboration with NASA’s Cosmic Ray Telescope for the Effects of Radiation (CRaTER) project team, Dr. Townsend's research in space radiation protection and transport codes will be integral to the success of the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft. Read more.