Ricardo Castro is an Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering & Material Science and a faculty affiliate of the Peter A. Rock Thermochemistry Laboratory and the Nanomaterials in the Environment, Agriculture, and Technology (NEAT) Research Center.  This NEAT center is a multidisciplinary research and education program which links the fundamental physics, chemistry, and engineering of small particles and nanomaterials to several challenging areas of investigation.

He coordinates research in the thermochemistry of nanoparticles controlling the nanoscale via interface energetics using specially designed procedures, and in the development of nanotech applications. Dr. Castro was recently honored as 2013-2014 Chancellor’s fellow. He was also awarded an NSF Career Award and the Department of Energy Early Career Award (2011), and received the Young Faculty Award from the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers and the 2012 Outstanding Junior Faculty Award from the College of Engineering at UC Davis. Castro has active projects with Brazil and collaborations with other U.S. institutions and Chinese universities. He received his Ph.D. from the University of São Paulo.