Matthew Weisenberger, PhD
- Materials Engineering
Materials for Energy and Defense Applications
Carbon Fiber Manufacturing
Thermal Management in Composite Structures
Nano-carbons in Energy Harvesting
Polymer Coatings, Membranes and Fibers
Matthew Weisenberger, PhD, is Associate Director of the University of Kentucky’s Center for Applied Energy Research (CAER) where he leads the Materials Technologies Research Group. He is also Adjunct Professor of Materials Science and Engineering in UK’s Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering. Dr. Weisenberger has been at UK’s CAER since 2001, and served as Associate Director since 2014.
Since 2012, he has served as a principal investigator on over $10 million in research funding across 30 research projects, with funding from the US Departments of Energy, Defense, Homeland Security, Agriculture, Commerce, The Commonwealth of Kentucky, NSF, and industrial sponsors. Dr. Weisenberger is also active in the Manufacturing USA initiative, involving a multitude of industrial and university members, and serves as the KY Director for DOE’s IACMI (Institute for Advanced Composites Manufacturing Innovation), and DOD’s AFFOA (Advanced Functional Fabrics of America).
His research interests center about materials for energy and defense applications, and include structure-property-processing relationships in the manufacturing of carbon fiber, thermal management in composite structures, nano-carbons in energy harvesting, polymer coatings, membranes & fibers; and a host of industrial carbons applications. Additional emphasis in his research group leads the utilization of coal combustion by-products, notably for the development of low-energy, high performance cementitious materials.
Recent work has centered on the development of low cost carbon fiber manufacturing for automotive applications, and on the conversion of coal to carbon fiber. UK’s CAER is globally recognized as a leader in carbon fiber research and development.
Dr. Weisenberger has served on the American Carbon Society’s Executive Committee since 2010, and is a leader in the organization of its international conferences and workshops. He received his Bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Georgetown College and MS & PhD degrees from the University of Kentucky in Materials Science and Engineering. Dr. Weisenberger has two issued US Patents, three book chapters, and his publications have over 1000 peer citations in the refereed literature.