Doctor of Philosophy in Chemical Engineering - Nanomaterials and Soft Matter

For novel materials to be useful to society, they must be economical to manufacture. This is the reason why our departmental research efforts focus not only on the design and synthesis of materials at the molecular and nanometer scales, but also on the development and optimization of processes to manufacture these materials for commercial applications.

The behavior of liquid-phase reactors and the rheological properties of nanostructured fluids are very important for large-scale production and processing of nanomaterials like quantum dots or carbon nanotubes. Because many of the applications involve interfacial behavior, it is also important that we study the behavior of fluids at interfaces to improve separations, to enhance or limit molecular transport, and to develop chemical sensors for various applications.

Unofficial transcripts of grades from all undergraduate and graduate schools attended
At least three letters of recommendation from teachers or advisers
TOEFL scores are required for any student requiring a visa or whose native language is not English. Test-takers should score at least 90 on the iBT (internet-based) TOEFL, at least 600 on the paper-based TOEFL or score 250 on the computer-based TOEFL. Only the best composite TOEFL score is accepted, myBest scores are not accepted. In lieu of the TOEFL the IELTS test will be accepted with a required score of 7 or greater. The ETS Reporting code for Rice University is 6609. Note: Waiver of the English language proficiency requirement is applicable to a candidate with proof of degree from a university whose official language of instruction is English (US universities and applicable international universities and/or countries). Applicants may upload unofficial scores. If an offer of admission is made and accepted the official scores will then be required.
A statement of purpose
GRE or other applicable test scores**
**For 2021, Rice is eliminating the Graduate Records Examination (GRE) standardized test requirement for its graduate programs.