Adam C. Powell, IV is a Professor in the Mechanical & Materials Engineering department who joined the WPI faculty in August 2018. His field is materials processing, and research focuses on greenhouse gas emissions reduction, elimination, and drawdown. Current projects aim to produce magnesium metal at aluminum smelters, generate electricity from biomass at high efficiency with negative overall emissions, reduce or eliminate aviation greenhouse gas impact, power ships and trains with zero emissions, and improve grid stability as we drive toward 100% renewables. The primary tools for achieving these goals are mathematical and techno-economic modeling of metal processes, particularly electrochemical processes, validated by key experiments.

Powell’s research has resulted in 22 patents and 113 publications across materials classes: metal extraction/refining and product development, thin films, ceramic coatings, polymer membranes, batteries, and electromagnetic propulsion. He is Chief Scientific Advisor at Thalon Materials, a startup company working on making magnesium in aluminum smelters, and helped to start Solcoa Industries, a rare earth metal manufacturer. He is the author of nine open source computational tools in materials processing, microstructure and thermodynamics modeling. He is an enthusiastic proponent of international R&D collaboration, and is the Founding Director of two Major Qualifying Project (senior team capstone) sites in Japan: Kyoto-KUAS, and Tokyo.

Visit Digital WPI to view student research and projects advised by Professor Powell.