Our Team

RESEARCH LEADER

Ramaswamy Nagarajan

Distinguished University Professor, Group Lead

Ramaswamy Nagarajan is a Distinguished University Professor (Fall 2022 - Summer 2025) of Plastics Engineering at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. Ramaswamy Nagarajan is a professor of Plastics Engineering at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. He is the co-director of the Center for Advanced Materials (CAM), co-founder and co-director of the Harnessing Emerging Research Opportunities to Empower Soldiers (HEROES) Initiative. He is also the co-Director of the Fabric Discovery Center at Lowell. He has a combination of science and engineering background with bachelor degrees in chemistry and rubber technology and a doctoral degree in polymer science from the University Massachusetts.

His current research interests include greener advanced functional materials, multifunctional fabrics, greener flame retardant additives and surfactants, materials for energy conversion/storage and roll-to-roll manufacture of flexible electronic products. Working at the interface of science and engineering his research group has been involved in utilizing fundamental materials research and engineering solutions for addressing problems and advancing technology in new and emerging areas. He is the Co-editor of Journal of Renewable Materials and has published 70 papers in peer-reviewed journals and holds 20 US Patents.

Meet Our Team

Postdocs

Krishna Suleria

Postdoctoral Research Associate

May 2025 — Ongoing

I’m a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the Department of Plastics Engineering at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. I earned my Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from the University of Delhi in 2022 and completed postdoctoral research at the City College of New York (2023) and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (2025). My previous work contributed to drug discovery programs in nanocarrier development, neuropathic pain, RPE-65 inhibition, COVID-19, and PROTAC-based protein degradation, as well as nucleotide and nucleoside modifications. My research has been published in journals by ACS, Elsevier, and Wiley. Currently, I’m developing flame-retardant and antimicrobial coatings for high-performance fabrics such as nylon, NyCo, and cotton.

Lasya Maganti

Postdoctoral Researcher

August 2024 — Ongoing

My research is focused on advancing multifunctional materials that integrate solar energy harvesting, physiological signal sensing, and fire-retardant capabilities for e-textiles. I hold a background in analytical chemistry from the National Institute of Technology (NIT) Warangal, India, and earned my Ph.D. in Materials Science from the University of Hyderabad, India. Prior to my current appointment, I completed postdoctoral research at Vanderbilt University, USA, where I worked in the field of colloidal science.

Graduate

Kedar Bagewadi

Doctoral Candidate

January 2022 — Ongoing

I am a Doctoral Candidate in the Department of Plastics Engineering at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, working with Prof. Ram. My current research topic is ‘dry electrodes for physiological monitoring,’ and I have also made a significant contribution to the development of antiviral face masks. I earned my B. Tech. in Surface Coating Technology from the Institute of Chemical Technology, Mumbai, which provided me with a strong foundation in polymers and coatings. At UMass Lowell, I have also expanded my expertise in polymer processing techniques such as injection molding, extrusion, blow molding, and thermoforming.

Bahareh Rahimi

Graduate Research Assistant, Doctoral Candidate

Koteswar Rayachur

Doctoral Candidate

Sep 2023 — Ongoing

I’m a doctoral student in Plastics Engineering at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, working with Prof. Ramaswamy Nagarajan. My research focuses on developing multifunctional fabrics using cotton, polyester, nylon, and NyCo substrates, with emphasis on antimicrobial, flame-retardant, and chem-bio protection. I earned my B.Tech. in Chemical Engineering from Sri Venkateswara University, where I built a strong foundation in polymers and process engineering. At UMass Lowell, I’m advancing textile finishing and polymer processing strategies to transform lab-scale chemistries into durable, field-ready materials.

Alumni

Tejasri Remma

Doctoral Candidate

Liquid repellent Fabrics without PFAS and Silanes? My answer is YES. Hey there! I am Tejasri Remma, a textile engineer driven by sustainability, focusing on fluorine-free liquid-repellent fabrics that deliver performance without using toxic chemicals.

Krishnamurthy Munusamy

Postdoctoral Researcher

I earned my Ph.D. from the CSIR–Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI), Chennai, in 2020 under the supervision of Prof. Debasis Samanta. In 2022, I joined Prof. Todd Emrick’s group at UMass Amherst as a postdoctoral researcher, where I worked on flame-retardant additives, functional polymers, and corrosion-resistant coatings. In 2025, I moved to UMass Lowell, where I am currently working with Prof. Ramaswamy Nagarajan and Prof. Kumar. My research focuses on developing eco-friendly, halogen-free flame-retardant coatings for textiles such as cotton, nylon, and NyCo blends, with the goal of creating durable, high‑performance, and sustainable protective fabrics.

Jainam Shah

Graduate Student

I am a Graduate student currently in third semester pursuing Masters in Plastics Engineering from University of Massachusetts Lowell currently working in Professor Ram’s research group on developing sustainable and durable multi-functional fabrics. I have earned my Bachelors in Polymer Science and Engineering degree from ICT Mumbai. Along my degree, I have gained very good experience with twin-screw extruders and their screw designs.

Punit Sharma

Postdoctoral Researcher

I’m a Postdoctoral Fellow at UMass Lowell and a former Fulbright Fellow. I earned my PhD Energy Science and Engineering from IIT Delhi, where I worked on hybrid semiconductors for optoelectronic devices. My research covers perovskite and organic photovoltaics, flexible electronics, and wearable tech, with multiple publications in ACS, Wiley, and IEEE journals. Right now, I’m exploring textile-based energy solutions and physiological monitoring.

Vishal Suresh

Postdoctoral Research Assistant

I hold a Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from UMass Lowell, with a focus in Design & Manufacturing and a secondary concentration in Energy Engineering. I currently work as an Assistant Researcher in Prof. Ramaswamy Nagarajan’s group, contributing to projects on organic photovoltaic (OPV) wire-based textiles and advanced barrier-film development. My research involves polymer systems, OPV active materials, and exfoliated mica fillers, with hands-on experience in fabrication and characterization techniques such as SEM and XRD. I’m building a strong foundation in clean-energy materials and advanced manufacturing, with a growing interest in scalable, practical engineering solutions.

Chuntao Wang

Postdoctoral Researcher

I am a postdoctoral researcher in Professor Ram’s research group at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. I earned my Ph.D. in Chemistry from UMass Lowell under the supervision of Professor Michael Ross, where my doctoral work focused on plasmonic noble metal nanoparticle synthesis, advanced spectroscopic characterization, and the detection, degradation, and analysis of PFAS using techniques such as LC–MS/MS, Raman/SERS, NMR, and electron microscopy. In Professor Ram’s group, my current research centers on functional polymeric and nanocomposite materials, including the development of flame-retardant phase change materials for battery thermal management, silica-based and polymeric nanoparticle systems, and silica-based flame-retardant coatings for textile and polymer applications. My work emphasizes the relationships between nanoparticle dispersion, coating morphology, thermal behavior, and flame-retardant performance, using a combination of spectroscopic and thermal analysis methods (FTIR, Raman, DSC, TGA/TGA-IR).