Originally from Egypt, Prof. Omar Abdelrahman grew up in the United Arab Emirates, where he developed his passion for chemical engineering and went on to receive his BSc in Chemical Engineering (American University of Sharjah, 2011). Driven by the desire to be involved in scientific research, Omar moved to upstate NY for his PhD in chemical engineering at Syracuse University (2016), followed by a postdoctoral position at the University of Minnesota. In 2018, Omar joined the University of Massachusetts Amherst as an assistant professor and is now an associate professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of Houston.

The Abdelrahman lab is focused on heterogeneous catalysis and reaction engineering, with an emphasis on understanding and controlling non-ideal thermodynamic environments for selective chemical transformations. Omar is a team leader for the center for programmable energy catalysis (CPEC), a DOE Energy Frontier Research Center, where efforts in his team target the programmable control of active site electronic charge distribution. The group is also committed to advancing accessible and affordable science, through developing and disseminating experimental designs aimed at lowering the barrier to entry into catalysis research. When he gets a chance to spend time in the lab, Omar loves nothing more than tinkering alongside his students to come up with new and fun reactor designs. Outside the lab, Omar enjoys exploring the city of Houston on bike, a fan of everything food & drink, and travelling for that next outdoor adventure. It is our great pleasure to welcome Omar to PodCAT!