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Peter J. Rossky
Professor
Chemical Engineering
Phone:(512) 471-3555
Fax:(512) 471-1624
Email:rossky@mail.utexas.edu
Dr. Rossky's Web site
Dr. Peter Rossky earned his Ph.D. in Chemical Physics from Harvard University in 1978. He joined the faculty of The University of Texas at Austin in 1979. In 2004, he was elected a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Dr. Rossky’s research seeks to discover the fundamental molecular-level origins of chemical behavior in condensed phases, such as water’s influence on biological assembly, the mechanism of energy migration in polymers, and the factors controlling reaction rates in solution. Rossky’s lab emphasizes realistic atomistic descriptions of molecular systems, focusing on theoretical and computational approaches to understanding chemical events. One current project focuses on the chemistry in supercritical solvents, which are hot enough that they do not form separate liquid and vapor phases, but rather can be tuned by applied pressure to a desired solvating power. Specifically, Rossky is studying supercritical carbon dioxide as a clean solvent for nanoscience. He is also investigating the effect of a molecule’s surroundings on the flow of energy that has been deposited by the absorption of light.
Research interests:
- Biological and nanoscale hydration
- Supercritical solvents
- Electronic dynamics; photochemistry