Bruce R. Locke

Bruce R. Locke is the Chair and Distinguished Research Professor of Chemical & Biomedical Engineering at the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering. He holds academic leadership roles as Department Chair and Editor-in-Chief of Plasma Chemistry and Plasma Processing. His research focuses on plasma reaction engineering (environmental applications) and metabolic engineering in muscle tissues. He earned his Ph.D. from North Carolina State University (1989), M.S. from University of Houston (1982), and B.S. from Vanderbilt University (1980).

Locke's plasma research develops non-thermal plasma systems for water treatment and agricultural applications, supported by NSF grants. His metabolic studies model energy metabolism in muscle cells with collaborators at UNC-Wilmington (NIH-funded). He has held visiting professorships in France and Japan, and is a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors and AIChE.

Awards include the 2010 Distinguished University Research Professor title from FSU and 2017-2018 Fulbright Research Scholar in Prague. His 200+ publications span plasma-liquid interactions, PFAS degradation, and muscle bioenergetics. He leads NSF-funded projects exploring plasma-biohybrid systems and pulsed discharge reactor design.

• Key Research: Plasma reactors for PFAS removal, muscle metabolic modeling
• Grants: Multiple NSF and NIH awards totaling $5M+ (est.)
• Labs: Plasma Engineering Lab and Muscle Metabolism Lab at FAMU-FSU