Dr. Nikhil K. Kothurkar

Biography

Dr. Nikhil K. Kothurkar joined Amrita in 2007 after completing postdoctoral work in the USA. He received a B. E. in Polymer Engineering from Maharashtra Institute of Technology, University of Pune. In 1999, he moved to Gainesville, Florida, USA, to pursue graduate studies in the University of Florida's Materials Science and Engineering Department where he worked as a graduate research assistant under the guidance of Dr. Anthony B. Brennan developing inorganic-organic particulate nanocomposites for ultrafast infrared optical sensor protection from destructive laser attacks. He graduated with a Ph. D. in 2004, after defending his dissertation entitled, "Solid State Cadmium Sulfide-Polymer Nanocomposites." After graduation, he accepted a position as a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the Solar Energy and Energy Conversion Laboratory, University of Florida, for two years. There he developed rugged and crack-free sol-gel photocatalyst coatings on metal and ceramic substrates. He also worked on a project to develop lower cost hydrocarbon polymer electrolyte membranes for fuel cells. He then worked for a year as a Research Scientist at the Clean Energy Research Center, University of South Florida in the fields of photocatalysis and its applications in biomedical devices, and hydrogen production by biomass gasification.

Research Interest

Dr. Kothukar's fields of interest are nanomaterials, photocatalysis, biomedical materials and devices, low cost water treatment and alternative energies. Currently he is teaching Environmental Science and Engineering and Materials Science at Amrita