The John and Marcia Price College of Engineering’s Department of Chemical Engineering welcomes its newest associate professor: Himanshu Jayant Sant.
An expert in biomedical microfluidics, Sant’s research involves developing novel ways to deliver drugs, conduct diagnostics, and precisely direct the flow of molecules and buffers in healthcare and food safety applications. Such applications often require a mix of microscopic needles, filters, and computer-chip-sized devices with finely etched channels that move liquids instead of electrons. The features of these microfluidic devices are small enough that engineers must take the chemical makeup of the individual molecules they transport into account.
This interdisciplinary field draws on Sant’s connections to multiple departments in the Price College of Engineering. Sant earned his Ph.D. from the Department of Biomedical Engineering in 2008. Recently, he served in the Department of Mechanical Engineering as a research associate professor. Sant is deeply involved with the U’s commercialization and technology transfer efforts through the National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps Program (I-Corps™). As Utah I-Corps™Hub West node Program Director, he helps researchers transform their discoveries into products and services that can benefit society within a community of entrepreneurs, educators, and mentors.
Earlier this year, Sant received a Small Business Innovation Research Award; his proposal aims to develop a rapid test for PFAS, fluorine-based chemicals that were once ubiquitous in “non-stick” food packaging and preparation but which are now being phased out due to health concerns.
“I’m excited to work more closely with my colleagues in Chemical Engineering as we have complimentary interdisciplinary research interests, highly motivated undergraduate and graduate students with some of the best facilities in the country for cutting edge research at the interface of engineering, biology and medicine,” says Sant.