Announcing Hongfei Lin as the Arthur W. Zafiropoulo Professor of Chemical Engineering
Hongfei Lin, who has dedicated his professional career to advancing sustainable energy systems, is joining Northeastern in July 2025 as the Arthur W. Zafiropoulo professor of chemical engineering.
Hongfei Lin, who has dedicated his professional career to advancing sustainable energy systems, is joining Northeastern in July 2025 as the Arthur W. Zafiropoulo professor of chemical engineering. Endowed professorships are exclusively bestowed on faculty for their excellence in research, teaching, and service. They also provide faculty with funding to support their research.
Lin’s research focuses on finding more efficient methods for storing renewable energy and producing clean fuel. Renewable energy comes from naturally replenishable sources like wind or solar, but the current technology used to convert these sources into energy is costly and not always efficient.
Over the past two decades, Lin has focused on designing advanced catalytic materials and chemical processes that enable the sustainable production of fuels and chemicals. His expertise is in catalysis and reaction engineering to convert a wide range of carbon feedstocks, including biomass, waste plastics, and natural gas, into value-added products, such as sustainable fuels.
“We want to enhance sustainable practices, and we want to promote a circular economy that aims to reduce waste and carbon emissions. Through our research, we really want to tackle the technical challenges to achieve sustainable and cost-effective energy systems,” says Lin.
As part of this, Lin seeks to find a solution for the intermittency of renewable energy inputs. Renewable energy sources, like solar or wind, don’t provide a consistent source of energy because of fluctuating weather conditions and difficulties in storing it for later use. He is investigating the intermittency of renewable energy and mechanisms for long-term storage of renewable electricity in liquid hydrocarbon products like gasoline or diesel.
Lin is joining Northeastern after nine years at Washington State University, where he is a professor of chemical engineering and bioengineering. He also conducts research at Pacific Northwest National Labs and has been a researcher in the industry for three years. Lin earned his PhD in chemical engineering from Louisiana State University.
The endowed professorship he was awarded was established with a $2.5 million gift from Arthur W. Zafiropoulo, E’61, founder, CEO and chairman of Ultratech, Inc., which is now a subsidiary of Veeco Instruments, Inc., a thin-film process equipment company. A visionary innovator and philanthropist, he is also director emeritus for Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International, a global trade association representing the semiconductor, flat panel display equipment and materials industry.
“This opportunity is very exciting,” says Lin. “I look forward to leveraging my expertise in catalysis and reaction engineering while collaborating with Northeastern faculty to drive impactful research that benefits the country and the world. This endowment enables me to explore new directions that would not have been possible otherwise.”
One such direction is the intersection of artificial intelligence and chemical engineering. Lin is eager to collaborate with faculty in Northeastern’s Institute for Experiential AI to explore how AI can accelerate catalyst discovery and optimize chemical processes. He sees the university’s multidisciplinary research environment as an ideal setting to advance his work.
Beyond research, Lin has a deep passion for education and mentorship. He values Northeastern’s renowned co-op program as a powerful tool for equipping students with real-world experience before graduation.
“The co-op program is so vital in building practical skills and experiences for students before they graduate,” says Lin. He views his multifaceted background in industry and academics as a great teaching resource for students. There are skills learned in industry research that he can teach students to prepare them for co-op and help them reflect on their experiences.
Lin frequently tells his students, “To be a good researcher, the most important qualities you need are passion and persistence.”
Endowed professorships are among the highest recognition that an institution of higher education can bestow on its faculty and among the most powerful tools Northeastern has for recruiting and retaining top faculty. Donors like Zafiropoulo, who establish an endowment, create a lasting legacy that links their name to excellence in research and teaching in perpetuity.