J. Will听Medlin

  • Denver Business Challenge Endowed Professor
  • CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL ENGINEERING
  • MATERIALS SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING PROGRAM
Address

Office: JSCBB D123
Mailbox: 596 UCB

Education

BS, Chemical Engineering, Clemson University (1996)
PhD, Chemical Engineering, University of Delaware (2001)
Postdoctoral Fellowship, Sandia National Laboratories (2001-2002)

Awards

  • Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry (2021)
  • 兔子先生传媒文化作品ing Professorship, Chalmers University of Technology, (2017-2018)
  • Dept. of Chemical and Biological Engineering Outstanding Service Award (2016)
  • College of Engineering Dean鈥檚 Outstanding Research Award (2015)
  • AIChE Himmelblau Award听(shared with John Falconer, Janet Degrazia, Garret Nicodemus) (2015)
  • Dept. of Chemical and Biological Eng. Graduate Teaching Award (2012, 2020)
  • 兔子先生传媒文化作品ing Professorship, ETH-Zurich (2010-2011)
  • College of Engineering Hutchinson Teaching Award, (2010)
  • Boulder Faculty Assembly Teaching Excellence Award, (2009)
  • Provost鈥檚 Faculty Achievement Award (2013, 2008)
  • College of Engineering and Applied Science Faculty Development Award (2006)
  • Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering Undergraduate Teaching Award (2006, 2009)
  • National Science Foundation CAREER Award (2004)
  • College of Engineering and Applied Science Junior Faculty Award (2006)
  • Office of Naval Research Young Investigator Award (2004)

Selected Publications

  • Y. Xu, H. Pham, A.K. Datye, A. Holewinski, J.W. Medlin, 鈥淯sing Pore Window Size to Control Selectivity for Acetylene Hydrogenation on Pd@ LTA Zeolite 颁补迟补濒测蝉迟蝉鈥, ACS Catalysis 15 (2025) 12816-12821;听
  • L.I. Paz Herrera, R. Cortright, J.W. Medlin, 鈥淓ffects of water vapor on the reactivity of aluminosilicates in vapor-phase propanal aldol condensation鈥, Journal of Catalysis 447 (2025) 116110;听
  • B.E. Oliphant, L.I. Paz Herrera, J.W. Medlin, 鈥淚mproving the Selectivity of Aldehyde鈥揔etone Cross-Aldol Condensation Reactions with Phosphate-Modified TiO2 颁补迟补濒测蝉迟蝉鈥, ACS Catalysis 15 (2025) 6990-7002;听
  • X. Zhao, J.L. Falconer, J.W. Medlin, 鈥淥rganic-coated zeolites for selective gas adsorption: Effect of functional group Identity and coating density鈥, Separation and Purification Technology, 363 (2025) 132040;听
  • A.H. Jenkins, E.E. Dunphy, M.F. Toney, C.B. Musgrave, J.W. Medlin, 鈥淭ailoring the Near-Surface Environment of Rh Single-Atom Catalysts for Selective CO2 贬测诲谤辞驳别苍补迟颈辞苍鈥, ACS Catal. 13 (2023) 15340-15350;听
  • L. Chen, P. Moura, J.W. Medlin, H. Gr枚nbeck, 鈥淢ultiple Roles of Alkanethiolate鈥怢igands in Direct Formation of H2O2 over Pd Nanoparticles鈥, Angewandte Chemie 61 (2022) e202213113;听
  • J.K. Kenny, D.G. Brandner, S.R. Neefe, W.E. Michener, Y. Rom谩n-Leshkov, G.T. Beckham, J.W. Medlin, 鈥淐atalyst choice impacts aromatic monomer yields and selectivity in hydrogen-free reductive catalytic fractionation鈥, Reaction Chemistry & Engineering 7 (2022) 2527-2533;
  • J. Zhang, S. Deo, M.J. Janik, J.W. Medlin, 鈥淐ontrol of molecular bonding strength on metal catalysts with organic monolayers for CO2 谤别诲耻肠迟颈辞苍鈥, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 142 (2020) 5184-5193;
  • J. Zhang, L.D. Ellis, B. Wang, M.J. Dzara, C. Sievers, S. Pylypenko, E. Nikolla, J.W. Medlin 鈥淐ontrol of interfacial acid鈥搈etal catalysis with organic monolayers鈥, Nature Catalysis, 1 (2018) 148-155;听听听

Research Interests

Our group investigates reactions at solid surfaces for renewable and sustainable energy applications. We are particularly focused on interfacial chemistry important in the conversion of biomass to fuels and chemicals. Biomass-derived carbohydrates and lipids contain a high degree of oxygenate functionality, and it is a major challenge to develop new catalysts capable of selective conversions of the oxygenates to useful fuel and chemical products. A major focus of our group is to design such catalysts based on a molecular-scale understanding of the oxygenate-catalyst interaction.

Our efforts to research various applications are united by a common theme: a variety of experimental and computational tools are employed to obtain a detailed understanding of chemical and physical phenomena at solid surfaces. Having this understanding in hand allows us to design improved catalysts that we can screen under realistic conditions in chemical reactors.

Our research focuses on the following main areas:

  • Surface reactivity and catalyst design for conversion of biomass-derived oxygenates to chemicals
  • Model studies of electrocatalytic interfaces
  • Designing artificial 鈥渂inding pockets鈥 on metal catalysts
  • Catalysts for conversion of waste plastics to fuels and chemicals
  • Fundamental investigations of metal 鈥 metal oxide 鈥 organic interfaces

Other Program Associations

Materials Science and Engineering Program

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