OUR PEOPLE
Academic Credentials
- Ph.D., Materials Science, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, 2020
- B.S., Chemical Engineering, North Carolina State University, 2016
Additional Education & Training
- Polyethylene Pipe Large Diameter Fusion Operator Qualification (Butt Fusion per ASTM F2620), McElroy Universityâ„¢, 2022
- Polyethylene Pipe Fusion Inspector Qualification (Socket Fusion, Saddle Fusion, Butt Fusion, Data Logging, Joint Integrity Testing per ASTM F2620 and ASTM F3124), McElroy Universityâ„¢, 2022
- 20th National School on Neutron and X-Ray Scattering, Argonne National Laboratory and Oak Ridge National Laboratory, 2018.
Professional Honors
- Department of Energy Office of Science Graduate Student Research (DOE SCGSR) Fellowship, 2019
Professional Affiliations
- American Chemical Society (ACS)
- Society of Rheology (SOR)
Dr. Fox is a materials scientist and chemical engineer specializing in the analysis of the physical and chemical properties of polymer materials and complex fluids, including engineering thermoplastics, crosslinked thermosets, high-performance polymers, liquid crystal polymers, hydrogels, organogels, emulsions, polymer nanocomposites, carbon nanomaterials (i.e., graphene, carbon nanotubes, carbon black), surfactants, polyelectrolytes, polymer electrolyte membranes, solid-state battery membranes, shear thickening fluids, colloidal suspensions, self-assembled nanostructures, nanoparticle dispersions, bioadhesive membranes, foams, and antifoams.
Dr. Fox assists clients in understanding the structure-function-property relationships and failure modes of such materials in a wide variety of industries and applications, such as oil, gas, and water pipelines, high voltage (HV) cables and electrical wiring, construction materials (adhesives, sealants, coatings, membranes), medical devices, sporting equipment, automotive components, and consumer electronic devices, among others.
Dr. Fox routinely investigates failures of piping systems manufactured from polyethylene (e.g., MDPE, HDPE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC, CPVC), and many other polymeric materials. He is a certified pipe fusion inspector and large diameter pipe butt fusion operator with a deep working knowledge of material property testing and industry standards for pipe joining methods. Moreover, he is able to employ his extensive experience applying physical and chemical analytical techniques to solve materials-related questions and to perform root-cause investigations, including oscillatory and steady-shear rheology, dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA), tensile testing, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), capillary viscometry, small- and wide-angle x-ray scattering (SAXS/WAXS), small-angle neutron scattering (SANS), dynamic and static light scattering (DLS/SLS), Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, UV/Vis spectrophotometry, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), polarized optical microscopy (POM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM).
Prior to joining Ä¢¹½tv, Dr. Fox was a graduate research assistant at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in the Department of Applied Physical Sciences. His research focused on the structure, rheology, and nanocomposites of liquid crystal polymers. As part of his doctoral research, Dr. Fox was funded by the Department of Energy as a visiting researcher at Oak Ridge National Laboratory employing rheo-SANS to investigate the structure and alignment of liquid crystal polymers under shear.