Pankaj Sharma

Pankaj Sharma, Ph.D., MBA, is a Courtesy Professor at Purdue Polytechnic Institute (Purdue University). He concurrently serves as Project Manager and Co-Investigator for Biomass Feedstock Systems and Modeling at the Laboratory of Renewable Resources Engineering (Agricultural and Biological Engineering). Previously, he held progressive leadership roles at Discovery Park since 2002—including Inter-center Research Director, Assistant Director, Associate Director, and Managing Director—where he drove strategic planning, international partnerships, and research infrastructure development.

Education:

• Ph.D. in Physics
• Master’s in Solid-State Physics
• MBA

Research Focus: His interdisciplinary work spans:

• Biomass systems modeling for renewable resources
• Innovations in power and energy research
• Pedagogical advancements in STEM education
• Sustainable technology solutions
• Radioisotope applications in geology/biomedicine
• Data science integration (as former Managing Director of Purdue's Integrative Data Science Initiative)

Awards:

• Fulbright New Century Scholar (honoring universities as innovation drivers)

Leadership: Facilitated large-scale research, commercialization, and entrepreneurship ecosystems at Discovery Park. Additional affiliation as Visiting Professor at National Chung Hsing University (Taiwan).