Richards Research Group
Principal Investigator
Prof. Ryan Richards | rrichard@mines.edu
Ryan Richards is a Professor of Chemistry at the Colorado School of Mines with a joint appointment at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory both in Golden, Colorado USA. Prof. Richards received his BS from Michigan State University, MS Central Michigan University and PhD from Kansas State University. During his Phd studies he was a visiting scientist at the Boreskov Institute of Catalysis in Novosibirsk, Russia. From 2000-2002 he was Max Planck Fellow at the MPI in Muelheim, Germany. In 2002 Ryan joined Jacobs University Bremen where he was promoted to associate professor before moving to Mines in 2007. The Richards group has made a broad range of contributions to the field of inorganic nanoscience in the areas of nanoparticle preparations (metal and metal oxides), in situ spectroscopy, and catalysis. Prof. Richards has published more than 150 papers, 7 patents and has served as editor/co-editor of 3 nanoscience books. He has been elected by his peers for numerous awards throughout his career including being selected as a Fellow of the American Chemical Society and 2016 ACS Colorado Section Research Award.
Graduate Students
Raiven Balderas | raivenbalderas@mymail.mines.edu
Breanne Hammett | bhammett@mymail.mines.edu
After completing a B.S. in Chemistry at Mines in 2019 I got sucked back in. I’m currently pursuing a Ph.D in Materials Science researching phase-engineered materials for potential application in neuromorphic computing. An undergraduate internship at NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory, right down the road from Mines) in 2017 introduced me to researchers who I continue to work with today in addition to the faculty at Mines. In my free time (lol) I enjoy reading, hiking, and playing video games. My ultimate goal is a career in research, but I’m open to the various forms that may take and forks in the road that I may encounter along the way.
Liam Witteman | lwitteman@mymail.mines.edu
After graduating from University of Wisconsin – Madison with a BS in Chemical Engineering I decided to chase the mountains of Colorado. I initially moved to Golden in 2018 to work at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory where I did modeling work on electrochemical devices such as PEM electrolyzers. After working for a year I decided to go back to graduate school in the Advanced Energy Systems program. My research in the Richards group currently centers around finding cheap catalyst alternatives for splitting water to produce hydrogen. In my free time I enjoy hiking, snowboarding, cooking, and generally exploring beautiful Colorado.
Visiting Students
Thomas Souchez | thomassouchez@mymail.mines.edu
Undergraduate Students
Frank Schrama | frankschrama@mymail.mines.edu