Andres Bolanos Cacho Escobedo

Hey, I'm Andres Bolanos. I am a rising senior chemical engineering student at the University of Delaware, pursuing minors in materials science engineering, and data science and mathematics. This summer, I am part of the YSSRP at the NanoSep Lab at CU Boulder, where I am fabricating nanofluidic devices to study how ions and fluids move through extremely small channels under highly controlled conditions. This work aims to isolate fundamental transport mechanisms that are difficult to study in complex real-world materials like polymer membranes, with potential implications for desalination, energy storage, electrolysis, and resource recovery. Sustainability is a huge pillar of who I am and a main driving force for purpose and meaning in my life. I have been conducting research for over a year and a half as part of the Bayles group at UD. My project, "Leveraging Performance Metrics for Biosurfactant Design," quantifies three coupled properties — interfacial tension, octanol-water partitioning, and emulsion stability — to rigorously benchmark green, microbially-derived surfactants against synthetic baselines under matched experimental conditions. What began as a study of PFAS analog surfactants has now evolved into my senior thesis, focused on rational biosurfactant design. I absolutely love being an undergraduate researcher. Chasing leads and falling into niche rabbit holes has been the most exciting part, which is why I plan to pursue a PhD in chemical engineering after graduation. Outside the lab, I am a huge cinephile (Trainspotting), love reading (Ulysses by James Joyce), swimming, thrifting, and listening to a lot of Andrew Bird.