Bryan Goldsmith

Biography

PhD Chemical Engineering, University of California Santa Barbara, 2015 BS Chemical Engineering, University of California Riverside, 2010 Professional Experience University of Michigan Chemical Engineering Department Ann Arbor, Michigan Assistant Professor, University of Michigan, Department of Chemical Engineering, 2017- Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society Theory Department Postdoctoral Research Fellow, 2015-2017 PIs: Matthias Scheffler and Luca M. Ghiringhelli Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics Chinese Academy of Sciences Dalian, China Visiting Doctoral Fellow in Wei-Xue Li’s Group, Summer 2012 and 2013 Naval Air Warfare Division China Lake, CA Naval Research Enterprise Intern, 7/2010-9/2010 University of California Los Angeles Amgen Scholar, 7/2009-9/2009 Miguel Garcia-Garibay’s Group University of California Riverside Research Assistant, 1/2008-7/2010 Nosang V. Myung’s Laboratory

Research Interest

The development of novel catalysts and materials has never been more needed than today. The world is facing a growing population, mass consumerism, and rising greenhouse gas levels, all the while people strive to increase their standard of living. Computational modeling of catalysts and materials, and making use of its synergy with experiments, facilitates the process to design new systems since it provides a valuable way to test hypotheses and understand design criteria. Our research team focuses on obtaining a deep understanding of catalytic systems and advanced materials for use in sustainable chemical production, pollution abatement, and energy generation. We use first-principles modeling (e.g., density-functional theory and wave function based methods), molecular simulation, and data analytics tools (e.g., statistical learning and data mining) to extract key insights of catalysts and materials under realistic conditions, and to help create a platform for their design. Professor Goldsmith’s research interests span topics such as: Heterogeneous and homogeneous catalysis; Amorphous materials; Complex metal oxides; Big-data analytics; First-principles modeling; Molecular simulation; and Descriptor identification. The Goldsmith Research Group is involved in collaborations around the world, including Germany and China. Current research thrusts include: (i) Disordered and amorphous materials used as catalysts or catalyst supports; (ii) Atomically dispersed metal-complexes and nanoclusters supported by metal oxides for natural gas conversion; (iii) Homogeneous organometallic catalysis for specialty chemical production, especially for carbon-hydrogen activation reactions; and (iv) Developing and applying big-data analytics tools to discover patterns and descriptors in materials-science and catalysis data.