Caitlin Adams
Ms. Caitlin Adams
Ph.D. Program
School of Materials Engineering
Purdue University
B.A. Chemistry, Smith College
Project: Superabsorbent polymers for internally cured concrete
Bio: Caitlin grew up in West Lafayette, IN and graduated from Smith College in Northampton, MA with a B.A. in Chemistry in 2016. Prior to joining the School of Materials Engineering as a graduate student, she was a business systems analyst in the Purdue University Development Office. As an undergraduate, she characterized biofilm adsorption to silicon and protein-coated silicon surfaces in Prof. Kate Queeney’s lab at Smith College. During her junior year, Caitlin interned with the Smithsonian Institution Archives Institutional History Division where she researched the history of the Smithsonian’s meteoritic chemistry research. Caitlin joined the Soft Materials Mechanics Group (SMMG) in Fall 2019 and is researching the use of superabsorbent polymer (SAP) hydrogels as internal curing admixtures in concrete based on previous work in the SMMG on SAP-cement systems. Sustainability is a guiding principle in Caitlin’s work; she is interested in using SAP internal curing to improve concrete durability and in developing methods for using recycled SAP in the production of structurally valuable concrete. Outside of her research and academic pursuits, Caitlin enjoys singing with the Purdue All-Campus and Community Chorale, cooking, and traveling.