Randolph Kirchain

Assistant Professor of Materials Science and Engineering

BS Materials Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, 1993
PhD Materials Engineering, MIT, 1999

Rooms E40-421 (preferred mailing address) and 8-202A, 77 Mass. Ave., Cambridge, MA 02139
617-253-4258 (phone)
kirchain@mit.edu

Prof.Kirchain conducts research concerning the resource intensity of the materials economies, including the robustness of material recovery infrastructures and instruction of engineers in technology decision making, especially in assessing the economic and environmental consequences of such decisions. Prior to joining the DMSE faculty in Fall 2002, Prof. Kirchain served as Associate Director of MIT’s Materials Systems Laboratory.

Selected Publications

“Technical Cost Analysis for PEM Fuel Cells,” Journal of Power Sources 109 71–75, 2002 (with others).

“Cost Modeling of Materials and Manufacturing Processes,” Encyclopedia of Materials Science and Engineering 1718–1727, 2001.

“Fabrication , Microstructure, and Mechanical-Properties of TaC Particulate and SiC Fiber-Reinforced Lithia-Alumina-Silica Composites,” Journal of Materials Research 10 (1) 602–608, 1995 (with others).

Teaching Involvements

Fall 2006 3.080 Economic and Environmental Materials Selection
Fall 2006 3.57J Materials Selection, Design, and Economics
Spring 2007 3.044 Materials Processing
Spring 2007 3.207 Technology Development and Evaluation
Spring 2007 3.560J Industrial Ecology

Professor Kirchain's work with electronic recycling was reported in the March 2004 issue of Technology Review.