Dr. Kwame Awuah-Offei
Center Director
Chair and Professor of Mining and Explosives Engineering
Research Interests
- Mining Engineering
- Sustainability
- Life cycle assessment
- Energy efficiency
Dr. Michael Moats
Chair and Professor of Materials Science and Engineering
Research Interests
- Extractive metallurgy
- Hydrometallurgy
- Electrorefining and electrowinning
- By-product recovery
Dr. Alanna Krolikowski
Associate Professor of History and Political Science
Research Interests
- Political economy of global supply chains
- International technology and innovation policy
- U.S.-China trade relations
- Diversity of regulatory and policy environments
Dr. Marek Locmelis
Associate Professor of Geology and Geophysics
Research Interests
- Conceptual exploration targeting
- Strategic mineral resources
- Transport and deposition of critical minerals
- REE from clay minerals
Dr. Lana Alagha
Associate Professor of Mining Engineering
Research Interests
- Rare earth extraction
- Froth flotation
- Mine waste management
Dr. Mark Fitch
Associate Professor of Civil Engineering
Research Interests
- Mine impacted waters
- Biochemical reactors
- Metal remediation
- Sustainability
Dr. Mahelet Fikru
Associate Professor of Economics
Research Interests
- Environmental and Resource Economics
- Energy Economics
- Industrial Organization
- Microeconomics
Dr. Maciej Zawodniok
Associate Professor of Computer Engineering
Research Interests
- Digital twins
- Energy-efficient protocols
- RF-based localization
- Wireless sensor networks
Dr. Hongyan Ma
Francisco Benavides Scholar
and Associate Professor of Civil Engineering
Research Interests
- Carbon-negative recovery of critical minerals
- Materials characterization
- Multi-scale modeling
- Solid waste upcycling
Dr. Daoru (Frank) Han
Associate Professor, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Research Interests
- Space mining
- Plasma aerospace applications
- Space propulsion
- High-performance computing
Dr. Melanie R. Mormile
Professor of Biology
Research Interests
- Environmental Microbiology
- Biomining (by Extremophilic Microorganisms)
- Bioenergy Production
- Extremophilic Bacteria.
Dr. Jonghyun Park
Professor of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering
Research Interests
- Advanced li-ion battery
- Beyond li-ion battery
- Energy storage systems
- Renewable energy systems
- Grid energy storage systems
Dr. Joel Burken
John A. and Susan Mathes Chair of Environmental Engineering, Department of Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering
Research Interests
- Biomining
- Phytoremediation
- Mine reclamation
Dr. Hunter Schroer
Assistant Professor, Department of Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering
Research Interests
- Phytomining
- Applications of biological systems for clean water, material, & energy production
Dr. Ahmed Sobhy
Assistant Research Professor, Department of Mining & Explosives Engineering
Research Interests
- Mineral Processing
- Extractive Metallurgy
- Surface Chemistry
- Nanobubble Technology
- Dry/Wet Solid Separation
- Fine/Ultra-fine Separation
Dr. Olanrewaju Fatoba
Assistant Research Professor, Department of Mining& Explosives Engineering
Research Interests
- Critical minerals including rare earth elements
- Wastewater treatment
- Nanotechnology
Teneke Hill
Program Support Coordinator