Austin Lieber
Graduate Student (PhD Track)
Austin Lieber began working with Dr. Hornbostel’s group and pursuing a PhD in Mechanical Engineering during the fall of 2019. His current research includes the modeling and simulation of metal-organic frameworks and membranous systems for the separation and storage of carbon dioxide. Before this point, Austin attended Dickinson READ MORE
College where he graduated cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in Chemistry in 2017. Here, he enjoyed the secondary pursuit of both philosophy and ceramics, but his primary research focused on characterizing activity rates of recombinant heat-shock protein 70 with electrophilic adduction modifications in a DH5α E. coli system. Additionally, he aided in the development of an open-source Arduino software for a multi-reaction titration system and used this system to evaluate zinc oxide nanoparticle formation size with various rates of addition. After graduation, he started work as a R&D technician at Vitro Architectural Glass where he developed several prototypes of thermally advanced glazings and co-patented a new type material application process for windows. In 2018, he began working as a research technician and lab manager in the Renal-Electrolyte division of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Colleges (UPMC), where he help with the investigation of sodium, magnesium and calcium electrolyte handling in the distal convoluted tubule of the nephron. His desire to create, innovate, and help on a community scale are what led him to the Hornbostel group, where these motivations culminate in a sustainable technology development hub that hopes to answer some of the looming challenges of our environment.