Research in this area applies chemical engineering and materials science tools to understand and engineer interactions between synthetic materials and living plant and environmental systems, with the goal of improving agricultural sustainability and reducing chemical inputs. A central theme is the development of nanomaterial- and biopolymer-based delivery platforms that transport nutrients, hormones, RNA, and other bioactive agents across plant cell barriers to promote disease resilience, stress tolerance, and improved yields — reducing dependence on conventional agrochemicals and their associated environmental and antibiotic-resistance risks. Closely related is the study of extracellular communication between plants, microbes, and their environment, including RNA and extracellular vesicle trafficking, which is being engineered to control microbial communities for biocontrol and bioremediation. A parallel thread addresses environmental remediation directly, using engineered biopolymer nanomaterials and membranes to capture emerging contaminants such as PFAS from water systems, alongside integrated approaches to sustainable food and energy production that link agriculture with bioenergy generation.
