Sourojeet Chakraborty, Ph.D., EIT

Chemical Engineer . Strategy & Business Innovator . Indian Classical Vocalist

About Me

I develop practical, scalable, sustainable, business-centered solutions to real-life engineering problems. My niche lies in an unique intersectionality of chemical engineering, business (finance, strategy), and environmental sustainability.

I am a postdoctoral fellow, at the University of Toronto's Stable Isotope Lab, with Prof. Barbara Sherwood Lollar, and am a Junior Fellow of Massey College.

I hold a Ph.D. from the University of Toronto (2023), an MSc. & DIC from Imperial College London (2016), a Diploma in business from HEC_Paris (2015), and a BTech. from Jadavpur University (2015).

Research & Interests

My research interests are centered on: fluid mechanics and transport phenomena, chemical engineering, and engineering education.

Here's a list of some my peer-reviewed journal publications.

Concentrated suspension flows across a Hele-Shaw geometry: here
Education 4.0 - Incorporating Codes, Standards and Regulations into the UofT ChemE curriculum: here
A mathematical framework (the Chakraborty-Galatro equation) to tackle doctoral attrition: here
Optimization of biodiesel production using infra-red irradiation: here
Resource-induced conflicts, the future of fracking and concerns: here

Awards & Fellowships

Here is a summary of the awards and fellowships I have received, across various academic institutes:

From Massey College: Junior Fellowship, Evelyn Catherall Scholarship, Catherall Travel Bursary, Massey Bursary, Food Bursary, Non-Resident Bursary, 5th Year Bursary. Elected Board Member-Finance & Risk Committee.
From University of Toronto: Differential Fee Waiver (DFW), Doctoral Completion Award (DCA) (issued in Fall 2021, Winter 2022, Fall 2022), School of Graduate Studies (SGS) Conference Grant, SGS Summer Bursary, GAW Bursary, OTOF Bursary.
Past awards: MSc. Honors (Imperial College London), Merit Scholarship (HEC Paris), Outreach Fellowship (IISc. Bangalore), UGC India Grant, H.L. Roy Memorial Medal (Jadavpur University), Principal's Award for Debating and Music (Loyola School, Jamshedpur).

Invited Talks

Presenting content is a great way to strengthen one's understanding. I've been invited to talk about my research/life experiences, at some very unique events.

A novel hydrodynamic drainage between an emulsion drop and a surface to predict key surface wetting rates. [AIChE Meeting (2022)]. Abstract: here
Hydrodynamic scaling theory succinctly captures emulsion wetting [Massey College JFLS (2022)].
A macrotransport equation for the Hele-Shaw flow of concentrated suspensions [Massey College JFLS (2021)].
Coalescence based wetting of a surface by an emulsion drop. [ACS Colloids (2019)].
3-dimensional hierarchical surface architecture of piliostigma reticulatum and its seasonal variation characteristics in biomimetics [ACS Colloids (2019)].
On the fundmentals of fluid mechanics and transport phenomena [DEEP Summer Learning Academy].
Flow behaviour and transitions in surfactant-laden gas-liquid vertical flows [APS DFD (2016)].

Work Experience / Volunteerism

I've been extremly fortunate to work across multiple collaborative projects, with different cultures and nationalities.

Key technical roles:

Head Teaching Assistant for Plant Design (2019-present): Plant Design involves leading industrial projects for clients. My prior projects have been with BASF, Hatch, Evoco, SNC-Lavalin, Dow, etc. I have led teams for BFD/PFD/P&ID review, PSA/HAZOP analysis, finance (CAPEX/OPEX/CFD), profitability (breakeven/product pricing) and competitive strategy (Porter's Five Forces, Teece Models, etc.) analysis.
Graduate Chemical Engineer at OLG Consulting (2015-2016): Scaled up GlaxoSmithKline's operations in Brentford, UK, liasing with Brydenwood. Involved in process design, HAZOP, document control, technical review, etc.
RA (Strategy & Entrepreneurship) at London Business School: I worked with Dr. Michael Bikard (now at INSEAD) and Dr. Keyvan Vakili to identify and develop strategic development pathways for some confidential clients.

Key volunteer roles:

Member of the Finance & Risk Committee - Massey College (2021-present): As an elected member, I am part of a 5-6 member team that distributes the College's annual budget across its various operations, with a strategy to aggressively expand the College's collaborations and growth, beyond Canada.
President/VP-Finance of WEAO-UofT (2019-present): Actively networked with clients to host panel discussions/invited lectures/receptions about Ontario's wastewater sector (WEAO), and future potential. I also served as a Chapter Buddy, for the Student Development Committee, mentoring other university chapters in Canada.

Contact

Let's get in touch, hopefully over a nice cup of tea/coffee, or virtually! Or, if you also wish to chat about Indian classical music (here's a sample performance), or art, write to me.