Milad Abolhasani

North Carolina State University | NCSU · Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering

The optimal synthesis of advanced nanomaterials with numerous reaction parameters, stages, and routes, poses one of the most complex challenges of modern colloidal science, and current strategies often fail to meet the demands of these combinatorially large systems. In response, an Artificial Chemist is presented: the integration of machine‐learnin...

Continuous Manufacturing In article number 2000245, Milad Abolhasani and co‐workers present the second generation of “Artificial Chemist”, that is, a modular robo‐fluidic material synthesizer operated by artificial intelligence for data‐driven discovery, formulation optimization, and scalable nanomanufacturing of printable photonic materials with m...

Autonomous robotic experimentation strategies are rapidly rising in use because, without the need for user intervention, they can efficiently and precisely converge onto optimal intrinsic and extrinsic synthesis conditions for a wide range of emerging materials. However, as the material syntheses become more complex, the meta-decisions of artificia...

Metal cation‐doped lead halide perovskite (LHP) quantum dots (QDs) with photoluminescence quantum yields (PLQYs) higher than unity, due to quantum cutting phenomena, are an important building block of the next‐generation renewable energy technologies. However, synthetic route exploration and development of the highest‐performing QDs for device appl...

Closed-loop, autonomous experimentation enables accelerated and material-efficient exploration of large reaction spaces without the need for user intervention. However, autonomous exploration of advanced materials with complex, multi-step processes and data sparse environments remains a challenge. In this work, we present AlphaFlow, a self-driven f...

In this work, we present a facile and scalable hydrolysis-based route for the synthesis of copper-doped TiO2 particles for highly effective light-activated antiviral and antibacterial applications. The performance of the synthesized Cu-doped TiO2 particles is then evaluated using solution-phase antimicrobial photodynamic inactivation assays. We dem...

With the rise of self-driving labs (SDLs) and automated experimentation across chemical and materials sciences, there is a considerable challenge in designing the best autonomous lab for a given problem based on published studies alone. Determining what digital and physical features are germane to a specific study is a critical aspect of SDL design...

Lead-based metal halide perovskite (MHP) nanocrystals (NCs) have emerged as a promising class of semiconducting nanomaterials for a wide range of optoelectronic and photoelectronic applications. However, the intrinsic lead toxicity of MHP NCs has significantly hampered their large-scale device applications. Copper-base MHP NCs with composition-tuna...

We report a digital framework for accelerated exploration and optimization of transition metal-based homogeneous catalytic reactions through autonomous experimentation and Bayesian Optimization (BO). Specifically, we utilize a machine learning model...

Article Sustainable materials acceleration platform reveals stable and efficient wide-bandgap metal halide perovskite alloys A sustainable research platform, RoboMapper, is introduced here, which miniaturizes material libraries to the scale of a chip. By integrating materials on the same chip, it increases the quantity and quality of information th...

Although the pharmaceutical and fine chemical industries primarily utilize batch homogeneous reactions to carry out chemical transformations, emerging platforms seek to improve existing shortcomings by designing effective heterogeneous catalysis systems in continuous flow reactors. In this work, we present a versatile network-supported palladium (P...

Colloidal Quantum Dots In article number 2201119, Hamed Morshedian and Milad Abolhasani present a modular microfluidic platform for accelerated photostability studies of quantum dots 3.5x faster and 100x more material efficient than conventional flask-based studies, enabling real-time in-situ access to the optical properties of quantum dots through...

Photostability of colloidal quantum dots (QDs) is one of the major criteria determining their long‐term applicability in energy and chemical technologies. Yet, photostability studies of QDs are extremely sensitive to experimental conditions, lack a detailed mechanistic understanding, and are time‐, material‐ and labor‐intensive. Herein, we introduc...

Over the past five years, artificial intelligence (AI) has grown significantly in different aspects of our daily lives, including health, transportation, and the digital world, all by leveraging data. Inspired by these success stories, materials researchers have started to adopt AI in experimental materials science to accelerate materials discovery...

The contradiction between the importance of materials to modern society and their slow development process has led to the development of multiple methods to accelerate materials discovery. The recently emerged concept of intelligent laboratories integrates the developments in fields of high-throughput experimentation, automation, theoretical comput...

Flow Reactors In article number 2201845, Shinae Jun, Milad Abolhasani, and co‐workers present a modular flow chemistry strategy for intensified multi‐stage manufacturing of metal‐free quantum dots (QDs). The plug‐and‐play flow chemistry platform enables one order of magnitude faster InP QD synthesis times than batch reactors by utilizing a tunable...

Accelerating the discovery of new molecules and materials, as well as developing green and sustainable ways to synthesize them, will help to address global challenges in energy, sustainability and healthcare. The recent growth of data science and automated experimentation techniques has resulted in the advent of self-driving labs (SDLs) via the int...

Development and scalable nanomanufacturing of high‐quality heavy metal‐free quantum dots (QDs) with high‐dimensional experimental design spaces still remain a challenge. In this work, a universal flow chemistry framework for accelerated fundamental and applied studies of heavy metal‐free QDs with multi‐stage chemistries is presented. By introducing...

The urgency of finding solutions to global energy, sustainability, and healthcare challenges has motivated rethinking of the conventional chemistry and material science workflows. Self‐driving labs, emerged through integration of disruptive physical and digital technologies, including robotics, additive manufacturing, reaction miniaturization, and...

“…continuous production of high‐purity hydrogen from liquid organic hydrogen carriers…” This and more about the story behind the research that inspired the Cover image is presented in the Cover Profile. Read the full text of the corresponding research at 10.1002/cssc.202200733. View the Front Cover here: 10.1002/cssc.202201173. image

The Front Cover shows an energy‐efficient strategy for on‐site and room‐temperature hydrogen release from liquid hydrogen carriers. The photocatalytic route developed in this work enables tetrahydroquinoline to be continuously and selectively dehydrogenated to high‐purity hydrogen using visible light, without needing catalyst separation or recyclin...

The Front Cover shows a versatile flow synthesis strategy for continuous manufacturing of single‐ and mixed‐metal oxide particles with a high degree of size monodispersity. The flow‐focusing microreactor equipped with an online photo‐crosslinking module enables facile production of a broad range of monodispersed metal oxide particles (ZnO, SnO2, Ce...

Microfluidic devices and systems have entered many areas of chemical engineering, and the rate of their adoption is only increasing. As we approach and adapt to the critical global challenges we face in the near future, it is important to consider the capabilities of flow chemistry and its applications in next-generation technologies for sustainabi...

Recent advances in machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence have provided an exciting opportunity to computerize the fundamental and applied studies of complex reaction systems via self-driving laboratories. Autonomous robotic experimentation can enable time-, material-, and resource-efficient exploration and/or optimization of high-dimens...

Despite the potential of hydrogen (H2) storage in liquid organic carriers to achieve carbon neutrality, the energy required for H2 release and the cost of catalyst recycling have hindered its large‐scale adoption. In response, a photo flow reactor packed with rhodium (Rh)/titania (TiO2) photocatalyst was reported for the continuous and selective ac...

A generalizable and versatile microfluidic approach for facile synthesis of a wide range of metal oxide microparticles using atypical metal‐organic precursors is reported. Microparticles of three single oxide materials, zinc(II) oxide, tin(IV) oxide, and cerium(IV) oxide, as well as a binary rare earth mixed oxide, lanthanum(III) praseodymium(III)...

Synthesis of hindered amines using the atom-efficient hydroaminomethylation (HAM) route remains a challenge. Here, we report a general and accelerated HAM in segmented flow, achieved via a cooperative effect between rhodium (Rh)/N-Xantphos and a co-catalyst (2-Fluoro-4-methylbenzoic acid) to increase the reactivity by 70 fold when compared to Rh/Xa...

Self‐Driving Fluidic Micro‐Processors In article number 2200017, Milad Abolhasani and co‐workers present a self‐driving lab using artificial intelligence‐guided fluidic blocks for accelerated fundamental and applied studies of emerging clean energy materials. Autonomous doping of metal halide perovskite quantum dots is demonstrated as a material te...

Tuning aldehyde regioselectivity via homogeneous hydroformylation of olefins using the same catalyst system remains a challenge. Here, we present flexible rhodium (Rh)-catalyzed hydroformylation of 1-octene and propylene with a bulky cyclic monofluorophosphite ligand L. Hydroformylation of 1-octene with Rh/L catalyst achieves, for the first time, t...

Lead halide perovskite (LHP) nanocrystals (NCs) are considered an emerging class of advanced functional materials with numerous outstanding optoelectronic characteristics. Despite their success in the field, their precision synthesis and fundamental mechanistic studies remain a challenge. The vast colloidal synthesis and processing parameters of LH...

CsPbI3 Nanocrystals In article number 2108687, Milad Abolhasani and co‐workers feature a modular flow chemistry strategy for synthesis science studies of CsPbI3 nanocrystals (NCs). The reconfigurable flow reactors enable on‐demand selection of the NC synthetic route and provide in‐situ access to the optical properties of the in‐flow synthesized NCs...

The Cover Feature illustrates a Spin Transfer Automated Reactor (STAR), which produces a continuous stream of nuclear spin hyperpolarization. In the STAR, parahydrogen diffuses through a semi‐permeable membrane to hyperpolarize small molecules in solution, including the antibiotic drug metronidazole and the metabolite pyruvate. The STAR also produc...

Autonomous experimentation and chemical discovery strategies are rapidly rising across multiple fields of science. However, closed-loop material development approaches have not been widely employed in colloidal nanoscience mainly due to the challenges in synthesis space size, sensitivity to reaction conditions, and the complexity of monitoring mult...

Despite the groundbreaking advancements in the synthesis of inorganic lead halide perovskite (LHP) nanocrystals (NCs), stimulated from their intriguing size‐, composition‐, and morphology‐dependent optical and optoelectronic properties, their formation mechanism through the hot‐injection (HI) synthetic route is not well‐understood. In this work, fo...

We introduce a Spin Transfer Automated Reactor (STAR) that produces continuous parahydrogen induced polarization (PHIP), which is stable for hours to days. We use the PHIP variant called signal amplification by reversible exchange (SABRE), which is particularly well suited to produce continuous hyperpolarization. The STAR is operated in conjunction...

We present an integrated flow chemistry strategy using two membrane-based flow reactors to enhance the extraction and recovery rates of switchable hydrophilicity solvents (SHSs) by five times compared to batch...

Self-driving laboratories are quickly growing in capability, making research in the exploration of advanced functional materials and molecules on the edge of a new era of productivity. As researchers near the widespread adoption of these powerful tools, we must assess their trajectory and the impact of their future developments.

Autonomous flow reactors offer access to unique chemical synthesis conditions and characterizations with extremely low reagent consumption, tunable/reproducible heat- and mass-transfer rates, and high sampling rates, without the need for user intervention. Broader implementation of these self-guided, robo-fluidic technologies will accelerate the pa...

Among all-inorganic metal halide perovskite quantum dots (PQDs), cesium lead chloride (CsPbCl3) with its large band-gap energy is an excellent candidate for enhancement of PQD radiative pathways through incorporation of additional internal energy transfer within its exciton band gap. In this study, we introduce a post-synthetic chemistry for ultraf...

Green solvent utilization and recovery enabled by switchable hydrophilicity solvents (SHSs), using carbon dioxide as the switching trigger, offer intriguing advantages in sustainable chemistry. To further elevate SHSs, an intensified...

Recently, slug-flow crystallizers (SFCs) have been proposed for continuous manufacturing of colloidal quantum dots (QDs). Despite the intriguing advantages of SFCs for controlled manufacturing of QDs, it has been difficult to account for the wide crystal size distribution (CSD) caused by slug-to-slug (S2S) variation, and the absence of a modeling a...

A quaternary segmented flow regime for robust and flexible continuous biphasic chemical processes is introduced and characterized for stability and dynamic properties through over 1,500 automatically conducted experiments. The flow...

Identifying the optimal formulation of emerging inorganic lead halide perovskite quantum dots (LHP QDs) with their vast colloidal synthesis universe and multiple synthesis/postsynthesis processing parameters is a challenging undertaking for material‐ and time‐intensive, batch synthesis strategies. Herein, a modular microfluidic synthesis strategy,...

Inorganic lead halide perovskite quantum dots (QDs) have emerged as a promising semiconducting nanomaterial candidate for widespread applications, including next-generation solar cells, displays, and photocatalysts. The optoelectronic properties of colloidal QDs are majorly dictated by their bandgap energy (related to their size). Thus, it is impor...

Developing luminescent materials with tunable emission colors provides exciting opportunities for application in the display, anti-counterfeiting, and optical sensors. Here, we report a convenient, versatile approach to synthesize color-tunable, up/down-conversion luminescence in an inorganic host material. The emission color can be tuned by varyin...

In recent years, microfluidic technologies have emerged as a powerful approach for the advanced synthesis and rapid optimization of various solution‐processed nanomaterials, including semiconductor quantum dots and nanoplatelets, and metal plasmonic and reticular framework nanoparticles. These fluidic systems offer access to previously unattainable...

Controlled synthesis of semiconductor nano/microparticles has attracted substantial attention for use in numerous applications from photovoltaics to photocatalysis and bioimaging due to the breadth of available physicochemical and optoelectronic properties. Microfluidic material synthesis strategies have recently been demonstrated as an effective t...

Over the past 5 years, lead halide perovskite quantum dots (PQDs) have received significant attention due to their unique size-, composition-, and process-dependent optoelectronic properties, as well as their applications in energy and chemical technologies. However, the development pace of this remarkable class of semiconductor nanocrystals is hin...

Colloidal quantum dots (QDs) have lately been pursued with intense vigor for optoelectronic applications such as photovoltaics (PV), flexible electronics, displays, mid-infrared photodetectors, lasers, and single photon emitters. These nanometer-sized semiconducting crystals can be suitably mass-produced and size-tuned via cost-effective solution-b...

Metal-mediated chemical reactions have been a vital area of research for over a century. Recently, there has been increasing effort to improve the performance of metal-mediated catalysis by optimizing the structure and chemical environment of active catalytic species towards process intensification and sustainability. Network-supported catalysts us...

Over the past decade, continuous flow reactors have emerged as a powerful tool for accelerated fundamental and applied studies of gas-liquid reactions, offering facile gas delivery and process intensification. In particular, unique features of highly gas-permeable tubular membranes in flow reactors (i.e., tube-in-tube flow reactor configuration) ha...

In article number 2001626, Milad Abolhasani and co‐workers present an “Artificial Chemist”: a machine‐learning‐guided, self‐driving robot for on‐demand quantum dot synthesis. Flow chemistry is integrated with artificial‐intelligence‐driven experiment‐selection algorithms to autonomously conduct over 1400 unassisted experiments for accelerated synth...

We present a reconfigurable flow chemistry strategy for facile transition between accelerated screening and continuous synthesis of linear aldehydes through homogeneous rhodium-catalyzed hydroformylation of 1-octene. The intensified mass and heat transport rates of the utilized membrane-based flow reactor enable access to safe and desirable reactio...

Anhydrous microparticles, including a wide variety of organic and inorganic microspheres (e.g., silicone elastomers, metal oxides, metal organic frameworks), are attracting substantial attention for applications ranging from drug delivery to photocatalysis. Microfluidic materials synthesis techiques are an ideal approach for controlled synthesis of...

Although a vital parameter in many colloidal nanomaterial syntheses, precursor mixing rates are typically inconsistent in batch processes and difficult to separate from reaction time in continuous flow systems. Here, we present a flow chemistry platform that decouples early-stage precursor mixing rates from reaction time (residence time) using sole...

Developing light‐harvesting materials with tunable emission colors is highly desirable in applications requiring a specific color on‐demand. The modulation in material composition, structures, and polymerization can provide a useful tool for producing a wide range of emission colors. However, controlling the color gamut in a ready‐made material rem...

Titania microspheres have attracted substantial attention for a variety of applications, including ion scavenging, catalysis, and energy generation, though most synthetic techniques are limited to a few basic morphologies and narrow size ranges. Here, an intensified microfluidic strategy for continuous synthesis of anatase titania microspheres is p...

Tube-in-tube flow reactors are emerging as a highly efficient flow chemistry strategy for performing various types of gas-liquid reactions due to their unique characteristics, such as high specific interfacial area, enhanced mass transfer and mixing, reduced material consumption, and safe handling of toxic and flammable gases. In this article we di...

In most chemical industries, solvent removal and recovery processes are heavily dependent on hazardous volatile solvents and energy-intensive distillation process due to its ease of separation. An emerging promising alternative is implementing switchable solvents with on-demand and reversible switching of their physiochemical properties triggered b...

Recently, focus has turned towards increasing chemical process safety and sustainability for fundamental and applied research as well as manufacturing of pharmaceuticals and specialty chemicals. Flow chemistry techniques have attracted significant interest as a way to implement and improve chemical processes in order to satisfy the growing demand f...

In article number 1900712, Milad Abolhasani and co‐workers introduce a modular microfluidic platform, QDExer (Quantum Dot Exchanger), which enables high‐throughput in situ monitoring of the massive parameter space associated with anion exchange reactions of colloidal perovskite quantum dots. QDExer offers a time‐ and material‐ efficient approach fo...

Opportunities for accessible microfluidic device integration have sharply grown with the rise of readily available lab-in-a-tube strategies. Herein, we present a facile, non-invasive, plug-and-play phase velocity and length measuring strategy for rapid deployment onto tube-based microfluidic systems, enabling quick and accurate residence (reaction)...

In an effort to produce the materials of next‐generation photoelectronic devices, postsynthesis halide exchange reactions of perovskite quantum dots are explored to achieve enhanced bandgap tunability. However, comprehensive understanding of the multifaceted halide exchange reactions is inhibited by their vast relevant parameter space and complex r...

A microfluidic strategy is developed for continuous synthesis of monodisperse yolk-shell titania microspheres. The continuous flow synthesis of titania microparticles is achieved by decoupling the microdroplet formation and interfacial hydrolysis reaction steps by utilizing a polar aprotic solvent as the continuous phase in the microreactor. The de...