Joel L. Plawsky

Joel L. Plawsky is a Professor and Department Head in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) within the School of Engineering. He earned his BS from the University of Michigan and MSCEP/ScD from MIT. His research spans interfacial phenomena, transport processes, thin films, and their applications in microelectronics, photonics, and microgravity environments.

• BS: Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan
• MSCEP/ScD: Chemical Engineering, MIT

Plawsky's work focuses on interface science, including thin film dynamics, contact line behavior during evaporation/condensation, and microgravity fluid mechanics. His innovations address challenges in semiconductor materials, concrete curing, and thermal management for space missions, supported by over $5 million in grants and collaborations with NASA, Semiconductor Research Corporation, and the Department of Transportation.

His research impacts diverse fields, from microelectronics cooling to pollution prevention, as evidenced by 250+ publications in Physics, Engineering, and Materials Science. Recent studies explore chiral tiling transport, bubble nucleation in microgravity, and dielectric breakdown mechanisms.

Scientific Awards and Recognitions

• Fellow of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE)
• Herb Epstein Award from AIChE
• NASA Faculty Fellow (1999-2000)
• Max Jakob Memorial Award Paper (2020)

Plawsky has mentored 26 PhD and 6 Master’s students, authored over 135 peer-reviewed articles, and holds seven patents. He served as a visiting professor at Delft University of Technology (2002) and contributed to resolving the Challenger shuttle disaster through material analysis. His work is affiliated with RPI's Center for Future Energy Systems (CFES) and Center for Materials, Devices, and Integrated Systems (CMDIS).