Amanda B Marciel, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor and William Marsh Rice Trustee Chair
Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering | Rice
MS 306 | 231 Space Science and Technology Building
am152@rice.edu | 713-348-7231
@MarcielLabRice
POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCHERS
TANIYA M.S.K. PATHIRANAGE
Taniya M. S. K. Pathiranage received her bachelor’s degree in Chemistry (2011) from the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka and then Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of Texas at Dallas (UTD) in 2017 under the supervision of Dr. Mihaela C. Stefan. Her Ph.D. research is based on designing, synthesis, and characterization of block copolymers with semiconducting and liquid crystalline properties. After graduating she joined Dr. Kevin Noonan’s group in Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania as a postdoctoral researcher where she worked on designing and synthesizing monomers/polymers with chain transfer polycondensation using Suzuki coupling and the synthesis of phosphonium cation-based polymers for anion exchange membranes for alkaline fuel cells. After joining Verduzco lab in Rice she worked on liquid crystalline elastomeric materials, fabrication/ measurements of electronic devices for bioelectronic applications and synthesizing ladder polymers with a controlled polymerization approach. Also, Taniya has worked as a visiting researcher at Dr. Krzysztof Matyjaszewski’s lab at Carnegie Mellon University to investigate the applicability of different atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) techniques for semiconducting polymer synthesis.
In Dr. Amanda Marciel’s lab, her research is mainly focused on synthesizing brush polymers with controlled sequence for the fundamental understanding of dynamics and transport properties within a charged polymer interface.
GRADUATE STUDENTS
Winnie Shi
Undergraduate degree in bioengineering-biotechnology at UC San Diego. Currently studying how electrostatic interactions affect polymer solution behavior through biomimetic models. Often makes lab memes on Friday nights and cooks a mean bowl of cereal.
Mo Samani
I did my bachelors in Chemical Engineering where I worked on improving mechanical properties of fibrin-based bio-adhesives (Sharif UT, class of ’18). I’m leveraging unique properties of peptoids to crack the behavioral code of comb and bottlebrush polymers, and I also enjoy doing some microscopy and light scattering. In my free time I usually hang out with friends, read books, play video games, and listen to some indie and country music.
Nataira M. Pagán Pagán
Nataira M. Pagán Pagán graduated from University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez with a B. S. degree in Chemical Engineering in 2015 and a M. S. degree in Chemical Engineering in 2018. Her M. S. research work focused on the synthesis and characterization of sulfonated polymer metal nanocomposites membranes with bacterial disinfection activity in water purification applications. In 2019, she joined Prof. Marciel research group as a Ph. D. student. Her research focuses on the investigation of interfacial film dynamics in asphaltene-stabilized water-in-oil emulsions at the single molecule level.
Shahryar Ramezani
I did my undergrad in Sharif University of Technology, where I earned my BSc. in Chemical Engineering with a minor in Chemistry. For my undergrad research I worked on simulation of microfluidic channels as a way of enhancing tissue culture oxygenation. Currently I’m working on the synthesis of polymer brushes, which are chains of polymers attached to a surface from one end. Also, I’m studying dynamics and interactions of polymer brushes with particles at a single-molecule level, using fluorescent microscopy and spectroscopy. In my free time I enjoy catching a show, watching sports or reading a book from time to time.
Anupama Gannavarapu
I did my undergraduate degree in Chemical Engineering at National Institute of Technology, Karnataka, India (Class of 2019). My major interest lies in soft matter – currently working with modeling of Collagen and making artificial prototypes using peptides and peptoids to study rheology and other properties. During my free time, I love drawing, reading books, singing and just an eco-friendly freak!