Prof. Wendelin J. Stark

Wendelin Stark (1976) is an Associate Professor at the Institute for Chemical and Bioengineering of the ETH Zurich and heads the chair in Functional Materials Engineering. He studied Chemistry at the ETH with a stay at the UC Berkeley in 1999 and pursued a Ph.D. in Mechanical and Process Engineering at ETH. He has written over 140 papers and 17 patents and cofounded 4 spin-off companies (3 running, one stopped).

His research has made multicomponent oxide, salt and metal nanoparticles available through a scalable flame spray synthesis making classical commodities obtainable as nanoparticles [1], including nano-limestone, nano-gypsum, nano-salt [2] and nano-glass [3]. Making inverted flames running under oxygen deficient conditions, even metal nanoparticles became available as low cost commodity products [4][5][6].

The bioactive glasses and amorphous calcium phosphates today provide a key tool for biomaterials development where the corresponding mineral nanoparticles convey bioactivity (tissue bonding) to virtually all medically useful polymers [7][8].

Metal nanomagnets with a well-defined, covalently attached chemical surface now enable the use of “magnetic chemical reagents” as a powerful tools for accelerating organic synthesis. In medicine, such metal nanomagnets enable in vivo extraction of toxic intermediates or compounds out of living blood [9][10].

Most recently developed “living materials” include a microorganism as part of a material composition and can tackle very complex functions, such as “eating” [11].

The group further developed covalent, pattern resolved chemical derivatisation of graphene as a basic tool to alter electrical conductivity and as a starting point for the preparation of 2D polymers [12].

Prof. Stark has developed method and risk evaluation concepts for safe nanoparticles since 2003 and identified key concepts in nanotox, such as the role of particle agglomeration, diffusion and sedimentation [13], solubility, and catalytic activity [14]. His group experimentally pioneered investigations on nanoparticles in wastewater treatment plants [15] and quantitative translocation studies in plants [16]. He has assisted Swiss Government agencies in developing regulatory evaluation tools for nanoparticle containing products and served as the chairman of the 2^nd International Conference in Nanotoxicology. His work has led to fundamental understanding on the behavior of nanoparticles in biological systems and the recognition that persistent nanoparticles should not be used in consumer goods [17].

[1] Aerosol. Sci. Tech., 44(2), 161-72 (2010)

[2] Chem. Commun., 14, 1767-9 (2005)

[3] Chem. Commun., 13, 1384-6 (2006)

[4] J. Mater. Chem., 16, 1825-30 (2006)

[5] Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., 46, 4909-12 (2007)
Featured in Nature Nanotechnology as a Research Highlight

[6] Advanced Materials, 20, 3044-3049 (2008)

[7] J. Mater. Chem., 17, 4072-8 (2007)

[8] Acta Biomater., 5(5), 1775-84 (2009)

[9] Small, 6(13), 1388-92 (2010)

Featured in Nature Nanotechnology as a Research Highlight

[10] Ind. Eng. Chem. Res., 49(19), 9355-62 (2010)

[11] Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 109(1), 90-94 (2012)

[12] Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., 48(1), 224-7 (2009)

[13] Environ. Sci. Technol., 39(23), 9370-76 (2005)

[14] Environ. Sci. Technol., 40 (14), 4374-81 (2006)

[15] Environ. Sci. Technol., 41, 4084-9 (2007)

[16] Environ. Sci. Technol., 2008, 42, 5828–5833 (2008)

Featured in Nature Nanotechnology as a Research Highlight

[17] Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., 50(6), 1242-58 (2011)

Contact Info

Institute for Chemical and Bioengineering
Wolfgang-Pauli-Str. 10
ETH Zurich, HCI E 107
CH-8093 Zurich
Tel: +41 44 632 09 80
Fax: +41 44 633 10 83

E-Mail: Prof. Wendelin J. Stark