Chan Group

Professor Chan's group is interested in the synthesis and design of polymers for applications in sustainable materials, separations, and soft robotics. The primary focus of the lab is to develop synthetic and processing approaches for harnessing molecular level self-assembly in polymeric materials, and developing structure-property relationships. We are particularly interested in biopolymer-based materials, block polymers, and stimuli-responsive materials.

7 adults pose for a group photo in front of Doherty Hall

Faculty

Daphne Chan

Daphne Wui Yarn Chan

Assistant Professor, Chemical Engineering

Daphne Wui Yarn Chan is an assistant professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University. Chan's research interests center around designing polymers to address global sustainability challenges. She earned her BS in chemical and biomolecular engineering from Johns Hopkins University in 2013 and her Ph.D. in chemical engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 2019. Under the supervision of Bradley Olsen at MIT, she developed strategies for designing engineering plastics from renewable protein feedstock and approaches for recycling waste tire rubber. From 2019 to 2022, she served as a postdoc with Marc Hillmyer at the University of Minnesota, where her research focused on self-assembled block polymers and their applications in ultrafiltration membranes.

Chan has earned several awards recognizing her research contributions, including the University of Minnesota's President's Postdoctoral Fellowship and the MIT Tata Center for Technology and Design Fellowship.

Office
3120 Doherty Hall
Email
wydchan@cmu.edu
Google Scholar
Daphne Wui Yarn Chan
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Projects

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Research video

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Research team

Sunny Surprenant

Sunny Surprenant

Doctorate

Email
ssurpren@andrew.cmu.edu
Andrew Ashmar

Andrew Ashmar

Doctorate

Email
aeashmar@cmu.edu
Edwin Lebron Perez

Edwin Lebron Perez

Doctorate

Email
elebronp@andrew.cmu.edu
Aaron Cross

Aaron Cross

Masters

Email
across@andrew.cmu.edu
Eleanor David

Eleanor David

Undergraduate

Email
esdavid@andrew.cmu.edu
Claire Su

Claire Su

Undergraduate

Email
cjsu@andrew.cmu.edu
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Join our team

Want to join our team? We are looking for undergraduates, graduate students, and postdoctoral fellows just like you! If you have questions, please send an introductory email with a description of interest and a resume/CV to Professor Chan.

Graduate students: All graduate students (MS or Ph.D.) will only be considered through the official CMU application system. Please apply online. If you are an admitted graduate student and would like to learn about available projects, please email Professor Chan.

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Media mentions

Foong poster in the top 10 at ACS CERM

Undergraduate student Yansi Foong was recognized for presenting one of the Top 10 Posters at the American Chemical Society (ACS) Central Regional Meeting (CERM) 2024 Undergraduate Research Poster Session.

Umscheid honored at oSTEM national conference

ChemE student Abigail Umscheid was awarded Best Undergraduate Poster at the Out in Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics (oSTEM) national conference. Umscheid, who works with ChemE's Daphne Chan, presented "Proteins as Renewable and Biodegradable Fillers in Polymer Composites."

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