Placidus B. Amama

Professor

Tim Taylor Chair in Chemical Engineering

Contact information

Education

Ph.D., Environmental Engineering, Yokohama National University, 2002
M.S., Environmental Engineering, Yokohama National University, 1999
B.Sc., Chemistry, University of Calabar, Nigeria, 1992

Professional experience

Placidus Amama received a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from the University of Calabar, Nigeria, in 1992. He received the Japanese government scholarship (Monbukagakushō) for graduate students in 1996 and pursued an integrated program at Yokohama National University, Japan, where he completed his master’s and doctoral degrees in environmental engineering in 1997 and 2002, respectively. Following his doctorate, he conducted postdoctoral research at the Department of Chemical Engineering, Yale University (2002 – 2004) and the Birck Nanotechnology Center, Purdue University (2004 – 2007) as a NASA-INaC fellow. Amama spent the summer of 2006 working for Nanoconduction Inc., a Silicon Valley startup. From 2007, he worked as a research engineer at the Materials and Manufacturing Directorate, Air Force Research Laboratory at WP-AFB, until he joined the faculty at K-State in August 2013.

Research

Amama’s research program focuses broadly on harnessing the unparalleled properties of low-dimensional materials—particularly carbon nanotubes (CNTs), graphene, and MXenes—to address critical energy and environmental challenges. His group designs hybrid catalytic systems derived from these nanomaterials for both photocatalytic and thermo-catalytic applications, including pollutant degradation, dry reforming of methane, methane pyrolysis, and Fisher-Tropsch synthesis (FTS).

The applications of low-dimensional materials require precise control of their properties. A major thrust of Amama's research is the controlled synthesis of CNTs using chemical vapor deposition. A key theme is understanding the fundamental mechanisms governing CNT nucleation and growth, to enable the design of efficient catalysts for precise structural control. In addition, his group explores strategies to utilize FTS byproduct streams as carbon sources for scalable synthesis of CNTs with tailored properties, contributing to sustainable materials development and carbon management.

Academic highlights

Amama has co-authored more than 70 peer-reviewed journal papers, over 100 conference papers, one book chapter, and a pending patent application. As of 2025, his publications have received more than 3,700 citations and an h-index of 29, according to Google Scholar. His research has been supported by major funding agencies, including the National Science Foundation (NSF), the American Chemical Society Petroleum Research Fund (ACS-PRF), and the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL). His research and teaching have been recognized by several awards, including the Alumni Award for Faculty Excellence in Chemical Engineering, the “Most Approachable Professor” Award from chemical engineering undergraduate students, the Tim Taylor Chair in Chemical Engineering, and the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) Fellowship.