Christopher Barile

Christopher Barile is an Associate Professor and the Clemons-Magee Endowed Professor in Chemistry at the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR), affiliated with the Department of Chemistry within the College of Science. His research focuses on energy conversion and storage through electrochemical systems, particularly dynamic windows and advanced catalytic platforms. He holds a B.S. and M.S. from Stanford University, followed by a Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and completed postdoctoral research at Stanford under Michael McGehee.

His laboratory develops innovative materials for dynamic windows that switch between transparent and opaque states using reversible metal electrodeposition (e.g., silver, zinc), achieving high durability and energy efficiency. This technology aims to reduce building and automotive energy consumption by ~10%. Additionally, his work explores hybrid bilayer membranes to control proton/electron transfer in catalytic processes, enhancing selectivity for CO₂ reduction and nitrogen reduction reactions.

Key contributions include electrolyte designs for zinc-based dynamic windows (e.g., water-in-salt electrolytes) and membrane-modified electrodes for CO₂-to-methane conversion. His research intersects electrochemistry, materials science, and sustainable energy systems, with over 50 published articles since 2016.

Barile leads the Barile Group, emphasizing interdisciplinary approaches to solve global energy challenges. His work is supported by grants including a NSF CAREER award for electrocatalytic bilayer interfaces.