Professor Benedetto Marelli is Associate Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering in the Sustainable Materials & Infrastructure, Food & Water Security faculty. His research group works in the area of structural biopolymers, biomineralization and self-assembly. By using biofabrication strategies, the research group designs bio-inspired materials that work at the biotic/abiotic interface to prevent or mitigate environmental impact.

Dr. Muchun Liu’s work focuses on transforming biopolymers into multifunctional structures for sustainable technologies. She is currently developing spiny, biodegradable silk- based microcapsules to replace microplastics in agriculture and cosmetics.