By: Taylor Caron
The Chemical Engineering Department is pleased to announce Matt Stuber as an Assistant Professor whose research focus will be on process systems and optimization.
Professor Stuber received his PhD in Chemical Engineering from MIT, and co-founded a company called WaterFX which is about making conventional approaches to water desalination more efficient and powered by renewables. He said that his work in the private sector was great experience as Director of Process Systems Engineering, and that he is excited to make the shift to academia to continue working on important challenges concerning sustainability and energy.
“WaterFX has been very successful, but I didn’t really find passion in its administration. I’m a scientist and an engineer,” Stuber said. “Sometimes too much of the tech industry is based on growth trajectories and not solving real problems. I decided to refocus my efforts on research and am very pleased to become a member of UConn’s CBE faculty.”
WaterFX, where Stuber led the efforts in all things technical, has gained much attention from national outlets like PBS, National Geographic, and even involvement with The White House, helping shape their efforts in addressing national water challenges. However, Professor Stuber is excited to work with UConn’s Institute for Advanced Systems Engineering which aligns with his experience and interests.
“The new institute has emphasized the kind of research values I consider really important. It’s a great up -and -coming institute which will be a massive force to be reckoned with,” he said.
Professor Stuber’s work at MIT focused on researching and developing theoretical mathematical tools for chemical and energy processes. His research was highly mathematical and he developed algorithms for advanced formal methods in robust and optimal design under uncertainty problems.
Professor Stuber’s research at UConn will continue to focus on process systems engineering, and in particular, rigorous design under uncertainty.
“Process systems is sort of a broad buzz word. It’s a subject of applied mathematics, computer science, and engineering. It applies systems-level thinking to engineered processes,” he said.
Professor Stuber said that his research will be somewhat similar to his work with WaterFx where he developed models and used advanced optimization methods to innovate processes for enhancing efficiency and augmenting them for renewable energy. The company’s ultimate goal is to reduce costs and enhance access to scarce natural resources through sustainable means.
“I’m definitely interested in solving real world problems. Water scarcity is directly related to issues of climate change which is a big part of what attracted me to the issue,” he said. “I’m incredibly glad to be a part of the CBE department to continue to progress this work which has timely and significant benefits to most industries as well as the natural environment.”