Karthish Manthiram

Karthish Manthiram is a Professor of Chemical Engineering and Chemistry at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), where he holds the William H. Hurt Scholar title. His research focuses on electrified molecular systems for sustainable chemical synthesis, leveraging renewable energy to decarbonize industrial processes. The Manthiram Lab develops electrocatalytic materials and electrode systems to convert CO₂, nitrogen, and water into valuable chemicals, aiming to create devices powered by solar energy and air/water inputs.

**Education**: B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Stanford University (2010), Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from UC Berkeley (2015), followed by postdoctoral research at Caltech (2015–2016). He was an Assistant Professor at MIT (2017–2021) before joining Caltech as a full Professor in 2021.

**Research Interests**: The lab’s work spans two core areas: (1) electrifying heterogeneous catalysis for CO₂/N₂/H₂O conversions and (2) electrifying microbial metabolism to control cellular energy carriers. Key projects include sodium- and lithium-mediated ammonia synthesis, CO₂ electroreduction, and electrochemical modulation of gene expression in living cells.

**Awards**: Recipient of the ECS Energy Technology Division Subramaniam Srinivasan Young Investigator Award (2025), recognizing contributions to electrochemical synthesis.

**Teaching**: Instructs advanced courses like ChE 103c (Transport Phenomena) at Caltech, emphasizing fluid dynamics and mass transfer principles.

**Lab & Team**: The Manthiram Lab operates as “molecular chefs,” using five core ingredients (electricity, CO₂, H₂O, N₂, microbes) to design scalable, sustainable chemical production pathways. Collaborations focus on bridging electrochemistry with biology and material science.