The University of Wyoming (UW) School of Energy Resources (SER) welcomed Hoon Choi as the newest faculty member under the SER umbrella.
Within SER’s unique structure, faculty have a primary appointment in a home department with an affiliation to SER. This structure allows SER to work across the university to recruit and retain faculty with instruction, research, and service interests relevant to Wyoming and its energy sector.
Choi joins the Department of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering as an assistant professor where he will teach Thermodynamics and provide research expertise in the areas of separations, including bioprocessing, downstream process development, lithium and rare earth element (REE) extraction, and lignin valorization.
“We are thrilled to welcome Hoon Choi to our faculty,” says SER Senior Assistant Dean Kami Danaei. “I have no doubt that he will provide an incredible education to UW students, bringing real-world innovation directly into the classroom. By housing experts like Dr. Choi within a home academic department, our dual-appointment structure bridges foundational education with applied research, allowing faculty to elevate the student experience while contributing directly to Wyoming’s energy economy.”
Earning his Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from Purdue University, Choi has amassed a research portfolio focused on materials separations. While at Purdue, he worked on extracting REEs from coal fly ash and purifying the individual elements out of the mixture.
By revitalizing ligand-assisted displacement chromatography—a mid-century technology platform originally studied from the Bureau of Mines—Dr. Choi successfully developed and patented a constant pattern design method for purifying rare earth elements (REEs). This process is now commercialized, providing a scalable, robust alternative to the industry-standard solvent extraction method.
Most recently, he worked as a separations engineer at the National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR)—formerly NREL— where he led applied research on real feedstocks to develop economic and energy-efficient processes for real-world material separations. He was recognized with both NREL’s President’s Award and Director’s Award for his contributions to sustainable energy systems, critical mineral recovery, and the circular economy.
Among his many accolades, Choi was most recently named a President’s Distinguished Scholar at UW in recognition of his outstanding research contributions and leadership in sustainable chemical engineering and material separations.
“I am excited to teach chemical engineering students and collaborate with other faculty and researchers on SER-focused initiatives,” says Choi. “Wyoming possesses the vital resources needed to develop new processes, and I look forward to applying my expertise to create technologies that support the state’s extractive industries.”
