Rigoberto “Gobet” Advincula is a leading figure in the realm of advanced materials, polymers, and nanomaterials.

His areas of research include utilizing the structure and functionalities of materials on a near-atomic scale, characterizing and developing new materials sensors, optics, biotechnology, biomedicine, energy production, and advanced manufacturing.

At UT, Advincula joins Thomas Zawodzinski and Arthur Ragauskas as the third Governor’s Chair in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, and he is the 15th Governor’s Chair overall.

Under his dual appointment at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Advincula will lead ORNL’s macromolecular nanomaterials group in the Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences, which specializes in the conception and design of new materials.

He joins UT and ORNL after serving as a professor at Case Western Reserve University’s Department of Macromolecular Science and Engineering.