Karen Lozano

Karen Lozano is a Mexican American researcher who is the Professor and Julia Beecherl Endowed Chair Mechanical Engineering at the University of Texas System. She studies carbon nanofiber-reinforced thermoplastic composites, and is the Director of the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Nanotechnology Center of Excellence. She was elected Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors in 2020 and the National Academy of Engineering in 2022.

Karen Lozano
Alma materUniversity of Monterrey
Rice University
AwardsElected Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors
Elected Fellow of the National Academy of Engineering
Scientific career
InstitutionsUniversity of Texas–Pan American
University of Texas System
ThesisSocial support and adaptive coping in African American adolescents with mild intellectual disability (1998)

Early life and education

Lozano was born in Mexico. Her mother was a seamstress. She studied mechanical engineering at the University of Monterrey and the year she graduated, she was the only woman to earn a degree in mechanical engineering. Researchers from Rice University visited Monterrey as part of an outreach project, and recruited Lozano to join for a doctoral position. She was the first Latin American woman to earn a PhD from Rice.[1]

Research and career

Lozano joined the faculty at the University of Texas–Pan American, where she worked on new approach to mass-produce nano nanofibers.[2] In 2012 she launched FibreRio, a company that could mass-produce cheap nanofibers from minimal quantities of material.[3] Fiberio makes use of Cyclone ForceSpinning Systems, which uses centrifugal forces to pull nanofibers for industrial and medical applications.[3] She took part in a roundtable discussion with Barack Obama about entrepreneurs in the United States.[4]

In 2021, Lozano was awarded a National Science Foundation (NSF) award to build a partnership between the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley and University of Minnesota to create a materials science research center.[5] The center looks to train undergraduate and graduate students from Hispanic backgrounds to pursue careers in materials science.[6]

Awards and honors

Selected publications
  • Zhu, J.; Peng, H.; Rodriguez-Macias, F.; Margrave, J. L.; Khabashesku, V. N.; Imam, A. M.; Lozano, K.; Barrera, E. V. (2004). "Reinforcing Epoxy Polymer Composites Through Covalent Integration of Functionalized Nanotubes". Advanced Functional Materials. 14 (7): 643–648. doi:10.1002/adfm.200305162. ISSN 1616-301X. S2CID 93699161.
  • Shofner, M. L.; Lozano, K.; Rodríguez‐Macías, F. J.; Barrera, E. V. (2003-06-27). "Nanofiber‐reinforced polymers prepared by fused deposition modeling". Journal of Applied Polymer Science. 89 (11): 3081–3090. doi:10.1002/app.12496. ISSN 0021-8995.
  • Lozano, K.; Barrera, E. V. (2000). "Nanofiber-reinforced thermoplastic composites. I. Thermoanalytical and mechanical analyses". Journal of Applied Polymer Science. 79 (1): 125–133. doi:10.1002/1097-4628(20010103)79:1<125::aid-app150>3.0.co;2-d. ISSN 0021-8995.

References
  1. "Meet Dr. Karen Lozano". www.hercampus.com. 2017-10-10. Retrieved 2023-02-09.
  2. Sheetz, Tanya; Vidal, Jorge; Pearson, Thomas D.; Lozano, Karen (2005-08-01). "Nanotechnology: Awareness and societal concerns". Technology in Society. 27 (3): 329–345. doi:10.1016/j.techsoc.2005.04.010. ISSN 0160-791X.
  3. Mattei, Eileen (2012-01-03). "FibeRio Spins a Future of Nanofibers". VBR. Retrieved 2023-02-09.
  4. "Obama Administration Announces New Steps to Welcome International Entrepreneurs | Homeland Security". www.dhs.gov. Retrieved 2023-02-09.
  5. "UTRGV awarded national PREM grant to broaden cutting-edge materials research". www.utrgv.edu. Retrieved 2023-02-09.
  6. "NSF Award Search: Award # 2122178 - UTRGV-UMN PARTNERSHIP to Strengthen the PREM Pathway". www.nsf.gov. Retrieved 2023-02-09.
  7. "The third woman - The Rider Newspaper". 2015-09-30. Retrieved 2023-02-09.
  8. "Regents' Outstanding Teaching Awards".
  9. "UTRGV mechanical engineering professor named one of the 2018 'Mexicanos Distinguidos'". www.utrgv.edu. Retrieved 2023-02-09.
  10. Influence, Latinas of. "2018 Latina of Influence | Dr. Karen Lozano | Hispanic Lifestyle". Retrieved 2023-02-09.
  11. "Nominate a Mentor for the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring – Hispanic Engineer & Information Technology". Retrieved 2023-02-09.
  12. "Lozano earns distinguished National Academy of Inventors Fellow status". www.utrgv.edu. Retrieved 2023-02-09.
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