My research activities in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering are in mechanics, materials, and structures. At WPI, my favorite teaching aspect is working one-on-one with graduate and undergraduate students on research projects. I like to excite students’ curiosity toward discoveries and creative scientific advancements. In our research group, we focus on the fundamental principles that control the behavior of materials in engineering and biology at multiple scales. I am particularly interested in the bioinspired design of materials and structures. In this field, studying biological materials leads to the design of high-performance materials and structures. For example, we have created a new paradigm in self-healing concrete using an enzymatic mechanism. Using the same mechanism, we have now produced a Carbon-Negative Enzymatic Construction Material (ECM), which sequesters 18 lbs of CO2 per cubic yard in comparison to concrete which emits around 700 lbs of CO2 per cubic yard. ECM also holds the record in compressive strength as a carbon-negative alternative structural material at around 15 MPa.  I encourage you to see the details of our research activities on my group's website.