Personnel
The Laboratory of Soft Materials & Green Chemistry NCSU Members
Graduate Students
Hanna Rogers
Bio
Hi! I am a second-year Ph.D. student in the Department of Chemistry. I completed my Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry with a minor in History at Goucher College in Towson, Maryland. I am originally from the Raleigh area, and outside of the lab, I love reading fantasy books, playing video games (right now I am playing It Takes Two), and skiing whenever I get the chance. I am also a big fan of both the NC Courage and the Carolina Hurricanes. On weekends, I enjoy visiting my family, spending time with my twin sister, and getting lots of attention from our four dogs.
Research
My research focuses on developing sustainable, bio-based coatings for paper packaging applications. I am also exploring ways to integrate self-healing into these systems and investigating more accurate ways to characterize self-healing beyond efficiency-based metrics. Broadly, my work aims to create environmentally friendly packaging solutions that reduce reliance on traditional plastics while improving the functionality of paper-based products. I am also trying to answer questions like: How can we quantify self-healing in other ways than self-healing efficiency? How more accurately define the water resistance of coatings by factoring in paper properties?
- Email: hrogers2@ncsu.edu
Chloe Taylor
Bio
I am a Ph.D. student in the Department of Chemistry working in the Lucia group and the Dickey group in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. I was born and raised in Melbourne, Australia, and completed my Bachelor’s degree in Sustainable Biomaterials with a minor in Chemistry at Virginia Tech. In my spare time, I enjoy going to the gym, doing my nails, and cooking vegan recipes! I also love attending workout classes – my favorite classes are Les Mills Bodypump and Yin yoga.
Research
My research interests include bio-based materials, soft matter, polymer science, and advanced functional materials. My research at NC State focuses on advanced gel materials, such as hydrogels and ionogels, and the incorporation of bio-based composite or nanofiller materials to achieve unique properties through molecular-scale assembly.
- Email: cmtayl28@ncsu.edu
Cynthia Victor-Oji
Bio
I was born and raised in Lagos, Nigeria, and hold an extensive academic background in Industrial Chemistry (B.Sc.), Petroleum Chemistry and Petrochemicals (M.Sc.), and green chemistry, with training in oilfield chemistry through a World Bank–supported research fellowship at the Africa Centre of Excellence for Oilfield Chemicals Research (ACE-CEFOR) at the University of Port Harcourt, Nigeria. I am currently a graduate research assistant and a Ph.D. student in the Department of Chemistry, with a co-major in Forest Biomaterials. I conduct my research jointly in Dr. Lucian Lucia’s and Dr. Jim Martin’s laboratories, respectively.
Beyond research, I am a mum of two toddlers, and I enjoy cooking, spending quality time with my kids, going to the park, and enjoying the natural scenery. I am also actively engaged in community service and professional leadership roles. I serve as an evaluator for international scientific competitions, contributing to research outreach and mentorship initiatives, and participate in interdisciplinary leadership training programs and workshops at NC State University. My long-term career goal is to advance sustainable chemical technologies that bridge fundamental chemistry, materials innovation, and real-world industrial deployment.
Research
My doctoral research emphasizes the use of green chemistry strategies, molecular interaction design, and controlled-release technologies to reduce volatility, improve surface persistence, and enhance environmental compatibility of biologically active compounds. This research integrates organic (supramolecular chemistry), physical, and sustainable chemistry principles to address critical challenges encountered in the formulation of agrochemicals with a focus on improving the stability and performance of these semiochemicals for use in integrated pest management systems. It is expected that these systems would improve pheromone retention on plant surfaces, regulate release kinetics under ambient and elevated temperatures, and minimize off-target atmospheric loss, leveraging upon their unique supramolecular behavior in solution mixtures.
- Email: covictor@ncsu.edu
Mingyu Cho
Bio and Research
I am a Ph.D. student at North Carolina State University, advised by Dr. Lucian Lucia. Before joining NC State, I completed a Master’s degree at North Dakota State University. I began my Ph.D. studies in Fall 2023, and my research focuses on biomass pretreatment.
- Email: mcho22@ncsu.edu
Gavin Gaynor
Bio and Research
I received my B.S. and M.S., both in Chemical Engineering from NC State University, in 2020 and 2021, respectively, as part of the Accelerated Master’s Program. I am currently a graduate research assistant and Ph.D. candidate in Forest Biomaterials in
Dr. Lucian Lucia’s group at NC State University with an expected graduation date of June 2026. In addition to my research, I am an avid distance runner and enjoy hiking, especially in the mountains. I was a member of the NC State track and cross country teams from 2017-2023 with highlights from my time on the team include being named the 2022-2023 ACC Scholar Athlete of the Year, earning 7 Academic All-American honors, and breaking 4 minutes in the mile.
Research
My research is focused on the development of a biorefinery based around the uniquecombination of miscanthus, butanol/water chemistry, and a novel solvent recovery scheme. Miscanthus has shown promise in both industry and the literature as a raw material for biorefinery applications across a range of chemistries. Butanol/water delignification chemistries, first reported in the 1930s, have numerous potential advantages over more traditional delignification chemistries. The use of vapor stripping-vapor permeation (VSVP) leverages the butanol-enriching properties of stripping in combination with a membrane separation to recover butanol from aqueous systems which simultaneously purifies one of the product streams and minimizes butanol losses.
- Email: jggaynor@ncsu.edu
Past Laboratory Members
- Shiyao Hong, Ph.D., graduate student
- Cullen Burke, MSc, graduate student