Valerie Welborn

Valerie Welborn is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemistry within the College of Science at Virginia Tech. Her research program focuses on multiscale simulation of condensed phase systems, particularly examining the role of electric fields in biological interfaces and biological-like systems. She leads an active research group that bridges computational chemistry with experimental validation through multiple collaborations.

Dr. Welborn's research interests span protein dynamics and function, characterization of structural and functional water, polysaccharides in solution, and polymer design for metal chelation. Her work combines morphological, structural, dynamic and electronic factors to develop new models of biological interfaces, with particular emphasis on how water interacts at a fundamental molecular level with biological entities such as proteins and bone tissues. She specializes in electric field calculations to understand protein flexibility in catalysis and ion transport, seeking to reconcile protein dynamics with electrostatic preorganization theory.

Her recent publications demonstrate strong activity across multiple domains, with particular emphasis on electric field analysis in protein function, water dynamics at biological interfaces, and polymer design for metal chelation. Her work shows a consistent trajectory toward increasingly complex biological systems and more sophisticated computational approaches, including polarizable force field methods and multiscale modeling techniques.

• Centre for Doctoral Training (CDT) on Theory and Simulation of Materials (TSM) Ph.D. Prize for Research Excellence, 2014
• Outstanding Contribution to Outreach and Public Engagement, CDT TSM, 2014
• Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) fully-funded Ph.D. Fellowship, CDT TSM, 2011
• Editor-selected as '2021 Hot PCCP article'
• Front cover article in Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys.

Dr. Welborn actively mentors a diverse group of researchers, including multiple postdoctoral associates, graduate students across chemistry and related disciplines, and undergraduate researchers. Her lab participates in the NSF Materials Innovation Platform GlycoMIP (DMR-1933525), focusing on polysaccharide research. She collaborates extensively with experimental groups, particularly with Professor Michael Schulz on polymer design for metal chelation projects. Her lab develops computational tools like the ELECTRIC software package for electric field calculations in biomolecular systems.

The Welborn group maintains active research programs in four main areas: protein dynamics and function, characterization of structural and functional water, polymer design for metal chelation, and polysaccharides in solution. Each program employs specialized computational approaches to address fundamental questions in biological chemistry, with particular emphasis on how electric fields govern molecular behavior at biological interfaces.