West Point Department of Chemical and Biological Science and Engineering

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West Point Department of Chemical and Biological Science and Engineering

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06/20/2025

Kicking off an inspiring summer of discovery and innovation, the CLS Team was delighted to welcome the 2025 Summer Leaders Experience (SLE) and CLD STEM (Center for Leader Development in STEM) participants to Bartlett Hall over the past two weeks. During their visit, participants engaged with department faculty to discuss research and curriculum, created propellant using off-the-shelf materials, explored fuel cell technologies, and worked in the human physiology lab. Best of luck to all the prospective candidates and students as they complete their studies. We look forward to seeing many of them again soon!

06/04/2025

Last week the Department conducted a Change of Command ceremony to mark the transition between COL F. John Burpo and COL Corey James.
COL Burpo’s service in the Department spans from his initial tour from 2002-2004 followed by his return to the Academy in 2012 when he was appointed as an Academy Professor. In 2014, He was selected as a Professor USMA and Deputy Head. He served as acting Head in 2016 before officially assuming duties as the Head in 2017.
COL James served his first tour in the Department from 2009-2012. He returned to the Department in 2017 as an Academy Professor and was selected as Professor USMA and Deputy Head in 2020.
The Department would like to thank COL Burpo for his distinguished service to the Department and the Academy. Under his leadership, the Department has established the “teaching through research” model and seen tremendous growth of the Department’s research enterprise and integration with strategic Army and DoD research institutions working to solve complex problems to make Soldiers more lethal and help our wounded warriors. We would all like to wish him the best of luck as he moves on to his future role as the Dean of the Donald P. Shiley School of Engineering at the University of Portland.
We look forward to COL James’ continued leadership as he assumes the role of Head of the Department and continues the long tradition of excellence in the Department of Chemical and Biological Science and Engineering.

05/22/2025

Today the Department of Chemistry and Life Science (CLS) recognized the outstanding achievements of this year’s graduating class. Thank you to all the family members and guests that were able to attend the ceremony, we share your pride in all that your cadets have accomplished. This year the Department celebrated our first year having both a Hertz Fellow (CDT Edward Chen, Chemical Engineering) and Rhodes Scholar (CDT Ava Spinar, Life Science); graduated with the largest cohort of Chemical Engineers (30); and saw the highest number of Cadets attending medical school (29). This will be the last class graduating from CLS, as well as the last Life Science majors to graduate from the Academy. This summer the Department name will officially change to the Department of Chemical and Biological Science and Engineering. And beginning with the Class of ’26, we will have Biology majors instead of Life Science. Congratulations to all our graduates as they move on to their future endeavors continuing their graduate education, attending medical school, or going straight to serving in a basic branch leading the great Soldiers of our nation.

Together We Thrive!

Duty, Honor, Country!

05/21/2025

Congratulations to Dr. Biaglow and the Chemical Engineering team on their recent publication, “Augmented and Cloud Computing with Chemical Process Simulators,” in the Journal of Software: Practice and Experience. The study presents two innovative methods for connecting Mathematica with chemical process simulators: one using a local PC-based setup and the other utilizing a cloud-based approach. The authors demonstrate how linking Mathematica with Excel streamlines spreadsheet calculations while enabling seamless integration with process simulation software. This work was also recognized by Wolfram as an invited contribution for its distinctive machine learning modeling components (see Functional and Machine Learning Models for Single Stage Membrane and Co-current Membrane Cascade on the Wolfram Community).

Citation:Cowart, S.V., Yuk, S.F., James, C.M., Nagelli, E.A. and Biaglow, A.I. (2024), Augmented and Cloud Computing With Chemical Process Simulators. Softw: Pract Exper. https://doi.org/10.1002/spe.3397

05/14/2025

🎉 Congratulations to our Hertz Fellowship Recipient, Cadet Edward Chen!

The Hertz Fellowship is awarded annually to the nation’s most promising graduate students in science and technology.

Cadet Edward Chen, a chemical engineering major from Madison, WI, has researched flow batteries at West Point and has interned at Lawrence Livermore National Lab and the Pentagon. He serves as 1st Regiment CSM and competes on the Army Water Polo Team. Upon graduation, he will commission as an engineer officer and plans to pursue a Master of Science and Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering at Caltech.

“I am proud to represent the Chemistry and Life Science Department, West Point, and the Army within this community of innovators to drive changes that will support our national security and defense. Receiving the Hertz Fellowship is such an amazing privilege as I am able to pursue unparalleled research opportunities through my service.”

🔗 Learn more about the Technical Scholars Program: https://www.westpoint.edu/academics/scholars-program/technical

05/09/2025

Last night, the Department of Chemistry and Life Science held a dinner to recognize the Cadets attending medical school after graduation. Impressively, this year’s 29 USMA Medical Program Advisory Committee (MPAC) endorsed Cadets, the largest pre-med cohort to date, achieved a remarkable 100% acceptance rate to medical school; with Cadets being accepted to Harvard Medical School, University of Pennsylvania, Stanford University, Boston University, University of California Los Angeles, University of Miami, University of Florida, Medical College of Georgia, Northeast Ohio Medical University, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, University of Texas-Houston, Cooper Medical School of Rowan University, Rocky Vista University-Montana, Rocky Vista University-Utah, Touro University-Nevada, and the Uniformed Service University of the Health Sciences. Thank you to Dr. Alan Beitler, the Health Professions Advisor, for mentoring the Cadets through their preparation and application process. Thanks to the faculty and staff who have advised, mentored, and assisted these Cadets through the rigors of research and the challenging academic workload that made them successful in their endeavors. We would also like to thank Brigadier General Shane Reeves, the Dean of the Academic Board, and his staff, who supported the Department in organizing the event.

We could not be prouder of these Cadets who have excelled throughout their time at the Academy and have elected to serve their country by providing the best medical care to our Soldiers and their families.

"Together We Thrive"

"Duty, Honor, Country"

05/06/2025

Congratulations to LTC Cowart and the Chemical Engineering team on their recent publication, “A Comprehensive Review of Lithium-Ion Battery Components Degradation and Operational Considerations: A Safety Perspective,” in Energy Advances. This peer-reviewed article was developed in collaboration with faculty and researchers from the University of Alabama, the U.S. Army DEVCOM Army Research Laboratory, and Hanyang University. This review provides an in-depth analysis of the degradation mechanisms and operational challenges of lithium-ion battery components, emphasizing safety considerations. Special focus is given to the unique challenges faced by first responders, particularly in military operations conducted under extreme conditions such as high and subzero temperatures, mechanical shocks, vibrations, and extended storage periods. Overall, the review highlights the critical need for advancements in battery design to enhance safety, durability, and long-term performance in demanding environments.

Article link: https://doi.org/10.1039/D5YA00065C

05/05/2025

Congratulations to Dr. McKinley, Dr. Nagelli, and Dr. Armstrong's team on their recent publication in RSC Advances. This peer-reviewed publication is in collaboration with faculty and researchers at MIT, University of Delaware, and NIST. The study investigates the intricate rheological, material, and electrochemical properties of chemically exfoliated graphene oxide (GO) suspensions, highlighting their potential as flowable electrodes for energy storage applications. Microstructural differences in primary particles, aggregates, and agglomerates revealed key factors affecting GO slurry flow and structure, showing that higher centrifugal force reduces viscosity and conductivity - insights useful for design of flowable electrodes in redox flow battery applications.

Article link: https://doi.org/10.1039/D4RA08308C

04/29/2025

On 25 April 2025, 17 Cadets conducting research on 6 different research projects under the advisement of 5 Department of Chemistry and Life Science faculty presented their work at the 25th Annual American Chemical Society Mid-Hudson Undergraduate Research Symposium at SUNY New Paltz, New Paltz, NY.

In addition to presenting stellar research conducted over several semesters, Cadet Andrew Gatzke (Chemical Engineering, '27), advised by Dr. Enoch Nagelli, submitted a winning research paper on "Hydrolyzed Polyvinyl Alcohol Coated Separators for Electrochemical Optimization of Redox Flow Batteries" and was recognized during the event's award ceremony for his exemplary work. Additionally, Cadet Brian Whitfield (Chemistry, '25) was recognized for his academic and scholarly achievements in the chemical sciences with the College Recognition Award.

Congratulations to our Cadets and faculty that shared their awesome work! Well done!

04/28/2025

Congratulations to Dr. Rosemary Calabro and her research team for their publication, “Magnetic-Field-Assisted Fe Nanowire Conformable Aerogels Galvanically Displaced to Cu and Pt for Three-Dimensional Electrode Applications” in ACS Materials & Interfaces. They developed a tunable method to form iron aerogels by varying magnetic field strength that, when combined with galvanic displacement with more noble metal ions, will enable a wide range of metal, alloy, and multi-metallic nanowires and nanotubes for Army energy storage, sensing, and catalytic applications. Undergraduate co-authors include Garret Longstaff (Chemical Engineering, 2025), Edward Tang (Computer Science, 2023; Draper Scholarship-Harvard), Veronika Xiao (Chemical Engineering, 2025), Alexa Zammit (Chemical Engineering, 2022; NSF-MIT), Felita Zhang (Life Science, 2022; Harvard Medical School), Anchor Losch (Chemical Engineering, 2020; Fulbright Scholar), Jesse Palmer (Chemical Engineering, 2019; Churchill Scholar), Alexander Ciampa (Chemistry, 2025), Ian Burpeau (Environmental Science, 2025, UMass-Amherst), and Veronica Lucian (Life Science, 2022; Rhodes Scholar). Army DEVCOM collaborators include Timothy Lawton (Soldier Center), Mark Allen (Army Research Laboratory), Stephen Bartolucci and Joshua Maurer (Armaments Center). West Point faculty include COL Peter Chapman (Physics and Nuclear Engineering), MAJ Galen Mandes and COL John Burpo (Chemistry and Life Science). The article will be published as part of the upcoming special issue, “Applied Materials and Interfaces Research at the United States Military Academy in Celebration of the 250th Birthday of US Army.”

https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acsami.5c00693

Address

Bartlett Hall, 753 Cullum Road
West Point, NY
10996

Telephone

+18459383915

Website

https://www.westpoint.edu/academics/departments/chemical-biological-science-engineering

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