Dr. Hao Fong's Homepage

Department of Chemistry and Applied Biological Sciences
South Dakota School of Mines and Technology

Hao Fong, Ph.D.
Professor
Department of Chemistry and Applied Biological Sciences
Graduate Program of Materials Engineering and Science
Graduate Program of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering
Graduate Program of Biomedical Engineering
South Dakota School of Mines and Technology
501 East Saint Joseph Street
Rapid City, South Dakota 57701-3995
U.S.A.

Phone: 605-394-1229
Fax: 605-394-1232
E-mail: Hao.Fong@sdsmt.edu

Education

Ph.D. (Polymer Science) — The University of Akron, Akron, OH — 12/1999
Title of Dissertation: The Study of Electrospinning and the Physical Properties of Electrospun Nanofibers
(Advisor: Professor Darrell H. Reneke, Ph.D.)
B.S. (Polymer Chemistry) — University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, P. R. China — 07/1993

Professional Experience

Professor – Department of Chemistry and Applied Biological Sciences (CABS), Multidisciplinary Graduate Programs of Materials Engineering and Science (MES), Nanoscience and Nanoengineering (NANO), and Biomedical Engineering (BME), South Dakota School of Mines and Technology (SDSM&T), Rapid City, SD 57701 (7/1/2013 – Present)
Co-Founder and Vice President – Nanofiber Separations, LLC, Rapid City, SD 57701 (11/1/11 – Present)
Associate Professor – Department of CABS, Multidisciplinary Graduate Programs of MES, NANO, and BME, SDSM&T, Rapid City, SD 57701 (7/1/2008 – 6/30/2013)
Sabbatical (Adjunct Professor) – College of Materials Science and Engineering, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing, China, 100029 (1/1/2012 – 6/21/2012)
Assistant Professor – Department of Chemistry, Multidisciplinary Graduate Programs of MES, NANO, and BME, SDSM&T, Rapid City, SD 57701 (6/1/2003 – 6/30/2008)
Staff Research Scientist – Paffenbarger Research Center of the American Dental Association (PRC-ADA) and/or Polymer Division of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Gaithersburg, MD 20899 (11/1/2001 – 5/31/2003)
Guest Research Scientist (Contract through Universal Technology Corporation, Fairborn, Ohio) – Polymer Branch, Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), Dayton, OH 45433 (7/1/2000 – 10/30/2001)
Postdoctoral Fellow – Department of Polymer Science, University of Akron, Akron, OH 44325 (10/1/1999 – 6/302000)

Research Interests

The Materials-processing Technique of Electrospinning and Various Applications of Electrospun Polymer, Ceramic, Carbon/Graphite, Metallic, Composite, and Hierarchically-structured Nanofibers and/or Nanofibrous Materials

Dr. Hao Fong is one of the pioneers and renowned scientists nationwide/worldwide in the field of “Electrospinning and Nanofibers”. Presently, he is a Full Professor (with Tenure) in the Department of Chemistry and Applied Biological Sciences at the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology (SDSM&T); he is also an important faculty member in the SDSM&T’s multidisciplinary graduate programs of Materials Engineering and Science (MES), Nanoscience and Nanoengineering (NANO), and Biomedical Engineering (BME). His highest degree is a Ph.D. earned in 1999 from the Department of Polymer Science at the University of Akron (in Ohio), and his Ph.D. advisor is Dr. Darrell H. Reneker. Prior to joining the faculty at the SDSM&T in June 2003, he worked as a guest research scientist (i.e., on-site contractor) in the Polymer Branch at the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) in the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, and as a staff research scientist in the Paffenbarger Research Center of the American Dental Association (PRC-ADA) and/or the Polymer Division at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in Maryland, for a total of three years. From July 2013 to June 2015, Dr. Hao Fong was the youngest Full Professor at the SDSM&T; in 2017, he was awarded the “Presidential Award for Outstanding Professor” (the most prestigious award at the SDSM&T, one awardee per year).

In the recent sixteen years, besides teaching numerous undergraduate and/or graduate courses including “Chemistry Survey (CHEM 106)”, “Organic and Biochemistry (CHEM 108) and its associated lab (CHEM 108L)”, “Fundamentals of Organic Chemistry (CHEM 316)”, “Polymer Chemistry (CHEM 426/526)”, “Chemistry of Materials (MES 604)”, “Polymeric Nanomaterials (NANO 715), “Nanochemistry (NANO 717)”, and “Biopolymers (BME 724)”, he has also managed to establish a vigorous research program on “Electrospun Polymer, Ceramic, Carbon/Graphite, Metallic, Composite, and Hierarchically-structured Nanofibers and/or Nanofibrous Materials and Their Applications”. His research has been supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Army Research Laboratory (ARL), the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), the Department of Energy (DOE), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and the State of South Dakota with the total funding amount (until April 2019) over $8,000,000. His research activities at the SDSM&T alone have resulted in ~150 peer-reviewed journal articles, 18 books and/or book chapters, 8 patents and/or patent applications, and numerous symposium proceedings/presentations. Eighteen students have earned their graduate degrees in MES, NANO, or BME under his supervision. Additionally, he organized two international symposia at the “American Chemical Society (ACS) National Meeting” and “Materials Research Society (MRS) National Meeting”, edited a book, served as a reviewer for numerous scientific journals and/or funding agencies, and served as a member in several high profile committees/councils at the SDSM&T and/or in the State of South Dakota.

Presently, Dr. Hao Fong’s research endeavors are primarily focused on the preparation, characterization, and evaluation of electrospun polymer, ceramic, carbon/graphite, metallic, composite, and hierarchically-structured nanofibers and/or nanofibrous materials for various applications including, but not limited to, (1) filtration/separation applications (e.g., the separation of biomacromolecules such as proteins and nucleic acids, air/water purification, and reverse osmosis), (2) energy-related applications (e.g., solar cells, batteries, fuel cells, and supercapacitors), (3) biomedical applications (e.g., tissue engineering, drug delivery, and wound dressing), (4) microelectronics-related applications (e.g., sensors/detectors and transistors), and (5) composite applications (e.g., hybrid multi-scale composites and dental restorative composites).

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