Ali Dhinojwala PhD

Dr. Ali Dhinojwala, H.A. Morton Professor of Polymer Science, has been a part of the School of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering (SPSPE) for over twenty years, first serving as a professor and then as the Department Chair from 2008-2012. He has served as the co-Principal Investigator of the Biomimicry Research Innovation Center (BRIC) since its inception in 2011, and during his time at the university has helped to hire several faculty members who teach here still today. His participation in the School as well as his dedication to building a successful team of faculty and staff made him a perfect fit as director.

Dr. Dhinojwala obtained a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from Northwestern University and spent two years as a research scientist at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. After spending one year at GE Plastics, he joined The University of Akron in 1997. His current research is in the areas of adhesion, friction, and wetting. His group has developed a unique surface technique to study buried polymer interfaces. His recent interest is in understanding how geckos and spiders use adhesives for locomotion and prey capture. These studies have led his team to develop synthetic adhesives using aligned carbon nanotubes. His latest passion is on developing structural colors, a strategy inspired by bird colors.