Frank Leibfarth

Royce Murray Distinguished Term Professor of Chemistry

   Caudill Laboratories 239
   919-962-3418
   frankl@email.unc.edu
  Group Website
  Curriculum Vitae

Polymer science, organic synthesis, continuous flow chemistry, and PFAS remediation

Our research seeks to develop new methods for the synthesis of functional polymers with the goal of discovering and studying their emergent macromolecular behavior. The approach is rooted in the belief that the convergence of organic, continuous-flow, and polymer chemistries holds the key to making materials smarter, more functional, and more sustainable. The group is currently focused on developing methods to control stereochemistry in ionic polymerizations, uncovering enhanced function in commodity polymers through selective C–H functionalization, and creating automated approaches for the synthesis of unique polymer architectures with novel functions.

2025 – Present Professor, Department of Chemistry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2024 – Present Royce Murray Distinguished Term Professor of Chemistry, 2022 – 2024 Associate Professor, Department of Chemistry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2016 – 2022 Assistant Professor, Department of Chemistry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2013 – 2016 NSF Postdoctoral Fellow with Professor Timothy F. Jamison, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2013 Ph.D. University of California Santa Barbara, Professor Craig J. Hawker 2008 B.A. in Chemistry and Physics, University of South Dakota

Honors and Awards

• Blavatnik National Award for Young Scientists Finalist (2025)
• Polymer Chemistry Lectureship Award (2025)
• Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (2025)
• UNC Hettleman Prize for Artistic and Scholarly Achievement (2022)
• University of South Dakota Spring Commencement Speaker (2022)
• Journal of Polymer Science Innovation Award (2022)
• University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Winter Commencement Speaker (2021)
• Popular Science Brilliant 10 (2021)
• ACS POLY Division Fellow (2021)
• UNC Tanner Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching (2021)
• Camille Dreyfus Teach–Scholar Award (2020)
• Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellow (2020)
• Cottrell Scholar (2020)
• Herman F. Mark Young Scholar Award, ACS POLY Division (2020)
• Selected as one of the Chemical & Engineering News Talented 12 (2019)
• Beckman Young Investigator (2019)
• NSF CAREER Award (2019)
• Army Research Office Young Investigator Program (2019)
• PMSE Young Investigator Award (2019)
• Air Force Office of Scientific Research Young Investigator Program (2018)
• 3M Non-Tenured Faculty Award (2017)
• Emerging Leader Award; University of South Dakota Alumni Association (2017)

Our research program spans each stage from molecular design to material function and will provide students with a diverse and competitive skill set bridging organic and polymer synthesis, small molecule and macromolecule characterization, and applied studies in material science and biotechnology. The goals of the research are inherently interdisciplinary and students will routinely work collaboratively both within and outside of the group to accomplish their scientific and professional goals. We envision our research efforts providing new and potentially useful solutions to challenges in sustainability and human health.