Boxin Zhao

Boxin Zhao is a professor in the department of Chemical Engineering and member of the Waterloo Institute of Nanotechnology, Institute for Polymer Research, Centre for Bioengineering and Biotechnology at the University of Waterloo.

His research focuses on surface science and bionanomaterials, including smart polymers, biopolymers, sustainable polymers, antimicrobial coatings and composites, hydrogels, bionanomaterials, soft materials and interface, biomimetic adhesion, soft robotic devices, advanced manufacturing, etc. He has 100+ peer-refereed papers in top journals, including Macromolecules, Advanced Materials, Nature Materials and Progress in Polymer Sciences.

Professor Zhao is interested in the smart polymers that can change shape and colour and even conduct electrical current and heat. Due to their long-chain structure, polymers are highly flexible and can be readily filled with components such as nanoparticles and nanowires, enabling many innovative applications (e.g. flexible electronics, smart windows and soft robotic fingers).

One particular interest is in the adhesion phenomena at the micro and nano scales. Effective adhesion between similar or dissimilar material components has become one of the most critical prerequisites for advanced manufacturing at ever-smaller scales. As a result, Professor Zhao concentrates on the optimization of polymer adhesive materials.

Professor Zhao studies biomimicry, which involves biological systems such as lotus leaves, gecko adhesive pads, mussel adhesive plaque and biofilms. He has been studying reversible adhesive properties of gecko footpads. He has conducted theoretical and experimental investigation into the adhesion and friction forces that characterize the gecko’s foot hairs and developed a Johnson-Kendall-Roberts friction model to interpret the dynamic behaviour. This biomimetic research has applications in biomedicine, as the adhesive can be used as an alternative to stitches, as well as a reconstructive material to reduce scarring when treating burn and cancer patients.

Professor Zhao develops advanced polymer composites and coatings as self-cleaning surfaces. One development is a superhydrophobic self-cleaning surface that can prevent the deposition and adhesion of liquid droplets. This includes the tiny respiratory droplets, expelled when talking and sneezing, that might contain infectious virus. Another development is antimicrobial coatings that can actively kill bacterial, fungi and virus.

• Surface science and bionanomaterials

• Adhesives and coatings

• Biomimetic micro and nano fabrication

• Nanotechnology

• Biomechanics

• Biolubrication

• Polymer Science

• Hydrogels

• Interfacial Phenomena

• Colloids & Porous Media

• Micro- and nano-tribology

• Bionanomaterials

• Soft Interfaces

• Biomimetic Adhesion

• Bio-integrated Devices

• Nanoparticles synthesis

• Interfacial materials engineering

• Biomimicry

• Biomimetic materials and devices

• Multifunctional polymers and nanocomposites

• Biopolymer and healthcare materials

• Advanced coating and adhesive bonding technology

• Additive Manufacturing

• Nanotechnology

• Nanotechnology, Soft Materials and Interface

• Polymers and soft robotics

(1)Participation of panel discussion and had individual discussion with Xerox visitors through the Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology, November, 2008.

(2) Participation of collaborative research with Proctor & Gamble (Cincinnati, USA) on Fabric Enhancer Stability, 2007 - 2008

(2) Technical consultation on paper surface strength measurements in the Australia Pulp and Paper Institute, Melbourne, Australia, 2005 March - April

(3) Visiting and delivering technical presentations to the KCL paper research institute (Helsinki, Finland)and UPM Raflatac (Tampere, Finland), 2003 September

(4) Working on a 3M-funded project to understand the paper/adhesives interactions and developing a new peeling-based paper surface strength measurement, 2000-2004

(5) Participation in two team projects with North China Pharmaceutical Corporation (ShijiaZhuang, China) to develop new products: a new flocculant to remove water-soluble proteins from Penicillin fermentation froths and an intelligent polymeric gel for water adsorption, 1996-1999

• 2004, Doctorate Chemical Engineering, McMaster University, Canada

• 1999, Master's Institute of Chemical Metallurgy, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China

• 1996, Bachelor's Mineral Engineering, Central South University, China

• 1996 IET (International Engineering Technology Inc., USA) Scholarship (20 out 10000) from the Central South University, China

• 1999 Master's Thesis Award for best dissertations from Chinese Academy of Sciences

• 2001 Clifton W. Sherman Graduate Scholarship

• 2002 Clifton W. Sherman Graduate Scholarship

• 2005 NSERC (National Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada) Postdoctoral Fellowship

• 2007 IMMS (the Institute for Multiscale Materials Studies) Research Fellow, an honorary position held jointly at the University of California at Santa Barbara and the Los Alamos National Research Laboratory

• CHE 102 - Chemistry for Engineers
  • Taught in 2025
• CHE 313 - Applications of Heat and Mass Transfer
  • Taught in 2020, 2021, 2022, 2024, 2025
• CHE 612 - Interfacial Phenomena
  • Taught in 2020, 2021, 2022

* Only courses taught in the past 5 years are displayed.

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