ALEX D. NIKOLOV

Research Professor

Dr. Alex Nikolov joined the IIT community (the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering) in the summer of 1990. His research interest is focused on the colloidal (nano-sized) particle self-assembly phenomenon in confined geometry (e.g. liquid films, foam and meniscuses). He observed that the liquid films formed from colloidal dispersions thin in a step-wise manner (stratifies). It has been discovered that the film step-wise thinning phenomenon is a manifestation of the colloidal particle self-layering (structuring) inside the thinning film. As a result of the of particle layering/structuring, the mean potential of interactions between the constrained film surfaces is the oscillatory decay. He elucidated that the oscillatory decay potential (the potential generated by the particle layering (structuring) determines the stability of dispersions (e.g. foam, emulsion and suspensions).

DARSH T. WASAN

Distinguished Professor
Motorola Chair Professor of Chemical Engineering
Vice President for International Affairs

Darsh Wasan leads the university's international initiative, serving as IIT's chief ambassador. Darsh is a member of the U.S. National Academy of Engineering and the Indian National Academy of Engineering. Since joining the IIT faculty in 1964, he has made wide-ranging contributions: In 1988, he secured a gift of a five- building campus from CPC International, Inc., and, with an initial grant of $3.7 million from the U.S. Food Drug Administration, founded an innovative national center for research and education in food safety (now called the Institute for Food Safety and Health), which became a model for cooperation among academe, industry, and government. In 1997, he initiated delivery of cutting-edge master’s programs to India via distance learning. He established global centers in India, Europe, China, and Korea; forged relationships with universities around the world; and increased international enrollment from 15 percent to 50 percent of IIT’s total enrollment in the fall of 2015. In his 51 years at IIT, he has also held nearly every leadership post, including department chair, dean of engineering, vice president for research and technology, provost, and senior vice president for academic affairs.