Chemical Engineering

Carnegie Mellon University’s Department of Chemical Engineering (ChemE) stands at the forefront of education, research, and innovation. Specializing in critical areas like health and medicine, air quality, autonomous science, process systems engineering, and decarbonization, CMU Chemical Engineers are leading the charge toward a healthier, cleaner, and more efficient future for all.

Creating a better future

Programs

Undergraduate

Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering

Master’s

Ph.D.

Doctor of Philosophy in Chemical Engineering

Meet ChemE faculty and students

ChemE graduates go on to...

Work at companies like:

Accenture
Amazon
Anheuser-Busch
Deloitte
Dow
Eli Lilly and Company
Exxon Mobile
Intel
Merck
Procter & Gamble
PPG

Pursue graduate degrees or careers in academia at universities like:

Carnegie Mellon University
Duke University
Georgia Institute of Technology
University of California Berkeley
University of Florida
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
University of Minnesota
University of Notre Dame
University of Pennsylvania

Research areas

Air quality and climate

Autonomous and data-drive sciences

Biotechnology and pharmaceutical engineering

Catalysis and surface science

Energy, decarbonization, and sustainability

Process systems engineering

Soft materials and complex fluids

News

Feb 20

News & Events

New tool brings vector search to the scientific literature

John Kitchin created litdb, a Python package that helps researchers curate and use their own literature database.

Chemical engineering Ph.D. student Abraham Polanco is part of the inaugural cohort of CMU Rales Fellows.

CMU Rales Fellows Harness Unique Perspectives To Drive Innovation

Feb 14

News & Events

Student, scholar, teacher, researcher

As a Fifth Year Scholar, Gabe Mendez-Sanders (‘24) is preparing for a career in engineering education research.

Feb 10

News & Events

Lifting the fog on air pollution-weather interactions

The Gordon Group uses case studies from Delhi and Paris to realistically simulate fog droplet concentrations in a weather forecasting model.

Feb 6

News & Events

Student spotlight: Megan Walsh

Through her research with a large pharmaceutical company and her internship in the hospitality and decarbonization sector, Ph.D. student Megan Walsh is working to make processes more efficient.

Jan 31

News & Events

Alum spotlight: Stephanie Butler Velegol

A pioneer of flipping the classroom, Stephanie Butler Velegol (‘00) has dedicated her career to training chemical engineering students how to think.

Jan 28

News & Events

Instrument teaches skills for automated experimentation

John Kitchin built Claude-Light to teach students and researchers how to control a remote instrument and how to analyze the data that comes from it.

Ph.D. student mentors welcomed Ali Asger to the department. He’s now become a mentor so that students from a variety of backgrounds have the opportunity to join him.

Student spotlight: Ali Asger

Jan 16

News & Events

Studying the chemistry of cloud formation at CERN

Neil Donahue is interested in the way that organic compounds participate in making the molecular clusters that grow into atmospheric particles.

Jan 10

News & Events

Student spotlight: Teresa Myrthil

Through the National Society of Black Engineers, undergraduate Teresa Myrthil has found research and internships that allow her to balance her technical skills with social sciences and psychology.

Jan 6

News & Events

Carl Laird named head of Chemical Engineering

Carl Laird has been selected to be the next head of the Department of Chemical Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University’s College of Engineering.

Jan 3

News & Events

Probing non-equilibrium patterns in active complex fluids

Researchers are advancing the understanding of how non-reciprocal systems self-organize into predictable patterns without external forces like magnetic or electrical fields.

Yingkai Song (‘16) applies mathematical optimization to help decision-makers in the aviation industry determine when to fly, delay, or cancel certain flights while meeting customer demand.

Alum spotlight: Yingkai Song

Dec 11

News & Events

Cui, Foong, and Park named Berg Scholars

As Berg Scholars, undergraduates Irene Cui, Yansi Foong, and Juhee Park received funding from the department to present their posters at the American Institute of Chemical Engineers conference.

Dec 5

News & Events

Isoprene from rainforests drives new particle formation

The molecules and processes that contribute to atmospheric particle formation are underrepresented in climate models. Experiments at CERN are filling in missing information.

Nov 29

Artificial Intelligence

Multimodal machine learning model increases accuracy

Researchers have developed a novel ML model combining graph neural networks with transformer-based language models to predict adsorption energy of catalyst systems.

Nov 26

Artificial Intelligence

David and Lin honored as Andrew Carnegie Society Scholars

Eleanor David and Jing Lin are recognized for leadership, service, and academic success.

Nov 22

News & Events

ChemE alumna’s fleet decarbonization solution wins hackathon

Saaksshi Jilhewar (ChemE ’23) applied her training in chemical engineering and AI to lead her team to victory in a global hackathon for sustainable and affordable energy.