About

Kirill Efimenko is an Associate Research Professor in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at NC State University. The page text does not provide specific details about his research focus, background, or key contributions.

Research topics

• Chemistry
• Artificial Intelligence
• Organic chemistry
• Computer Science
• Materials science
• Chromatography
• Biochemistry
• Business
• Biochemical engineering
• Chemical engineering
• Biology
• Engineering
• Polymer science
• Ecology
• Nanotechnology
• Process management

Selected publications

• PDMS aqueous leachates cause acute toxicity in <i>C. elegans</i>

  Lab on a Chip · 2026-01-01 · 1 citations

  articleOpen access

  as a whole-animal model. We demonstrate that uncrosslinked vinyl-terminated PDMS (v-PDMS) chains, which comprise the majority of a PDMS network and are known to diffuse into aqueous environments, cause acute, environmentally-dependent toxicity. Low-molecular-weight v-PDMS (6 kDa) caused mild lethality in nutrient-rich S-medium (SM) but significantly higher mortality in minimal S-buffer (SB), showing that media composition strongly influences toxic effects. Adding cholesterol, calcium, or magnesium notably reduced v-PDMS-induced lethality, whereas trace metals increased it. Using a DAF-16::GFP reporter strain, we show that cholesterol influences organismal stress responses to v-PDMS exposures. Progeny from starved parents showed full resistance to v-PDMS, suggesting transgenerational stress memory plays a role in reducing PDMS toxicity. We also find that linear siloxanes cause modest but significant lethality, whereas cyclic siloxanes do not. The crosslinker TDSS, however, provides partial protection when present with v-PDMS, revealing diverse biological effects among PDMS network precursors. Overall, these results show that PDMS-derived components are not universally harmless and that susceptibility depends greatly on environmental conditions, sterol levels, and physiological history. Our findings emphasize the importance of carefully evaluating PDMS formulations for biomedical use and offer a framework for assessing polymer leachate toxicity in living organisms.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Phosphate Recovery and Selective Desorption with a PEI/PMVEMA Hydrogel in a Column Study

  ACS Applied Engineering Materials · 2025-12-30

  articleSenior authorCorresponding

  The continuous depletion of nonrenewable phosphate rock reserves as a sole source of fertilizers and ineffective agricultural practices undermine efforts to achieve the goal of global food security. The existing practices to address sustainable nutrient management fall short due to the complex nature of inorganic phosphorus recovery. This study reports on an advanced phosphate capture and release system based on a polyethylenimine/poly(methylvinylether-alt-maleic anhydride) (PEI/PMVEMA) cross-linked hydrogel. This system enables inorganic phosphate binding with a maximum capturing capacity of ∼100 mg of phosphate per gram of hydrogel in a broad pH range between 3 and 8 in a packed-bed configuration under continuous flow conditions. Upon exposure to mild alkaline conditions (∼pH 11), the phosphate-loaded hydrogel instantaneously releases bound phosphate, allowing for a complete sorbent regeneration (97–99%). The released phosphate can be converted readily into an agriculture-ready fertilizer during regeneration. The studied system retaines its performance over three capture–regeneration cycles under various flow conditions and phosphate loading. Additionally, we investigate the selectivity of the system in mixed anion flows. Anion affinity followes the SO42– ≥ H2PO4– ≫ NO3– trend at various pH conditions of the flow, with a competitive displacement of phosphate anions with sulfate at the later stages of sorbent saturation. Adjusting the effluent pH from 13 to 11 improves the temporal separation of sulfate and phosphate during the hydrogel recovery. The studied hydrogel system delivers a continuous, efficient, selective, and stable platform to address current challenges in sustainable phosphate recovery from wastewater and surface eutrophic water while reclaiming nutrients for fertilizer use in a circular economy framework.

  PublisherDOI

• Investigation of Adhesion in Extruded PET/PA Bicomponent Polymer Systems

  ACS Applied Polymer Materials · 2025-01-13 · 2 citations

  articleSenior authorCorresponding

  Adhesion plays a critical role in the formation of intricate multicomponent fiber morphologies, which has become a standard in the manufacturing of nonwoven mats. In this study, we investigate the effect of the introduction of an interfacial modifier comprising poly(octadecene-alt-maleic anhydride) (POMA) into poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) and various polyamides (PA) (i.e., PA66, PA6, PA12, and PA12) during the extrusion process of nonwoven bicomponent fibers and bicomponent polymer films by utilizing a specially designed die setup. The asymmetric double cantilever beam and peel tests were used to quantify the effect of modifier addition on the fracture energy between PET and PAs during the extrusion. The study examined various fiber production operating conditions (temperature, throttle pressure, and POMA concentration) and composition feed of polymer pairs, observing consistent trends in fracture energy reduction. We established that during the fiber extrusion process, POMA rapidly segregates to the PET/PA interface and interferes with the formation of amide bonds between extruded polymers, reducing adhesion for all tested modifier concentrations. Additionally, the mechanical properties of the extruded fibers remained unaffected by the presence of POMA. These findings hold significant implications for researchers and practitioners in the packaging, automotive, and medical industries, aiding the design of optimal fiber production processes.

  PublisherDOI

• Transdisciplinary Collaborations for Advancing Sustainable and Resilient Agricultural Systems

  Global Change Biology · 2025-04-01 · 13 citations

  articleOpen access

  Feeding the growing human population sustainably amidst climate change is one of the most important challenges in the 21st century. Current practices often lead to the overuse of agronomic inputs, such as synthetic fertilizers and water, resulting in environmental contamination and diminishing returns on crop productivity. The complexity of agricultural systems, involving plant-environment interactions and human management, presents significant scientific and technical challenges for developing sustainable practices. Addressing these challenges necessitates transdisciplinary research, involving intense collaboration among fields such as plant science, engineering, computer science, and social sciences. Five case studies are presented here demonstrating successful transdisciplinary approaches toward more sustainable water and fertilizer use. These case studies span multiple scales. By leveraging whole-plant signaling, reporter plants can transform our understanding of plant communication and enable efficient application of water and fertilizers. The use of new fertilizer technologies could increase the availability of phosphorus in the soil. To accelerate advancements in breeding new cultivars, robotic technologies for high-throughput plant screening in different environments at a population scale are discussed. At the ecosystem scale, phosphorus recovery from aquatic systems and methods to minimize phosphorus leaching are described. Finally, as agricultural outputs affect all people, integration of stakeholder perspectives and needs into research is outlined. These case studies highlight how transdisciplinary research and cross-training among biologists, engineers, and social scientists bring diverse expertise to tackling grand challenges in sustainable agriculture, driving discovery and innovation.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Assessing PDMS Biocompatibility in Microfluidic Applications: Toxicity and Survival Outcomes in <i>C. elegans</i>

  bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) · 2025-12-15

  articleOpen access

  as a whole-animal model. We demonstrate that uncrosslinked vinyl-terminated PDMS (v-PDMS) chains, which comprise the majority of a PDMS network and are known to diffuse into aqueous environments, exhibit acute, environmentally-dependent toxicity. Low-molecular-weight v-PDMS (6 kDa) caused mild lethality in nutrient-rich S-Medium but significantly higher mortality in minimal S-Buffer, showing that media composition strongly influences toxic effects. Adding cholesterol, calcium, or magnesium notably reduced v-PDMS-induced lethality, whereas trace metals increased it. Using a DAF-16::GFP reporter strain, we show that cholesterol influences organismal stress responses to v-PDMS exposures. Progeny from starved parents showed full resistance to v-PDMS, suggesting transgenerational stress memory plays a role in reducing PDMS toxicity. We also find that linear siloxanes cause modest but significant lethality, whereas cyclic siloxanes do not. The PDMS crosslinker TDSS, however, provides partial protection when present with v-PDMS, revealing diverse biological effects among PDMS network precursors. Overall, these results show that PDMS-derived components are not universally harmless and that susceptibility depends greatly on environmental conditions, sterol levels, and physiological history. Our findings emphasize the importance of carefully evaluating PDMS formulations for biomedical use and offer a framework for assessing polymer leachate toxicity in living organisms.

  PublisherDOI

• Bismuth Metallo(co)polymers as Tailored High Refractive Index and Thermoplastic Materials

  Journal of Inorganic and Organometallic Polymers and Materials · 2025-05-07 · 3 citations

  articleOpen access

  This study investigated the synthesis and characterization of bismuth metallo(co)polymers of 4-(di-p-tolylbismuth)styrene (DTBS) and 4-(diphenylbismuth)styrene (DPBS) with 4-methylstyrene and 4-bromostyrene. The copolymers derived from DTBS have improved solubility in organic solvents relative to DPBS copolymers; the low solubility is a common limitation of metallopolymer-based materials. The refractive indices of the copolymers were proportional to the content of the bismuth-bearing monomer, with a maximum value of 1.67 at 589 nm corresponding to the DTBS homopolymer. The synthesized copolymers had low Mw values ranging from 1.6 to 5.5 kDa. The materials showed good thermal stability up to 199 °C. The synthesized copolymers are suitable for optical applications due to good solubility, high refractive index, and thermal stability.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Controlled delivery of phosphate to plants with optimized chemical and physical factors

  Quantitative Plant Biology · 2025-01-01 · 2 citations

  articleOpen access

  Sustainable phosphorus fertilization is a growing challenge in agriculture. Phosphorus is necessary for plant growth, but it is typically only bioavailable in its orthophosphate form. Phosphate fertilizers contribute to environmental damage as they leach into aquatic ecosystems. Therefore, it is imperative to develop new fertilization techniques such as controlled-release small-scale phosphate fertilizers. However, iteratively optimizing various new fertilizers using a comparable method is difficult. Here, we use three-dimensional bioprinting as a high-throughput screening platform to evaluate cellular phosphate uptake of various phosphate sources, including triple super phosphate, diammonium phosphate and struvite, which are composed of different chemistries and scales. As a result, we identified ideal phosphate fertilizer sources for the development of controlled-release phosphate fertilizers. Then, we evaluated whether plant growth and root architecture responded differently to the ideal controlled-release fertilizers. This study demonstrates the utility of this screening platform in developing a controlled-release phosphate fertilizer that effectively provides phosphate to plants at the microparticle scale.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Functional Hydrogels for Selective Phosphate Removal from Water and Release on Demand

  Langmuir · 2025-06-03 · 3 citations

  articleCorresponding

  Commercial overuse and soaring prices of phosphate fertilizers have resulted in an adverse economic and environmental impact, threatening human health, clean water, and food security. In response to the phosphorus (P) cycling challenge, we developed a novel polyethylenimine (PEI)/poly(methyl vinyl ether-co-maleic anhydride) (PMVEMA) hydrogel system capable of efficient capture and release of inorganic phosphates with high selectivity in the presence of nitrate. This study investigated the synergistic effect of PEI and PMVEMA within the hydrogel for a broad range of eluent pH conditions and P loadings to establish the capturing capacity and selectivity of the system toward nitrate. The PEI-enriched hydrogel system was characterized by a high P capturing capacity between pH 2.0 and 7.0 with a maximum P capture of 65 mg of P/g of sorbent at an equilibrium pH of 4.5. Desorption studies indicated that the system could efficiently release captured inorganic phosphate with an efficiency of 96% under mild conditions (<0.001 M NaOH), independent of the preloaded phosphate amount and system history. This is the lowest base concentration for P desorption reported. The separation factor (α) was dependent on the pH of the eluent and was equal to approximately 50 when in the presence of nitrates.

  PublisherDOI

• Transdisciplinary collaborations for advancing sustainable and resilient agricultural systems

  arXiv (Cornell University) · 2024-09-18 · 3 citations

  preprintOpen access

  Feeding the growing human population sustainably amidst climate change is one of the most important challenges in the 21st century. Current practices often lead to the overuse of agronomic inputs, such as synthetic fertilizers and water, resulting in environmental contamination and diminishing returns on crop productivity. The complexity of agricultural systems, involving plant-environment interactions and human management, presents significant scientific and technical challenges for developing sustainable practices. Addressing these challenges necessitates transdisciplinary research, involving intense collaboration among fields such as plant science, engineering, computer science, and social sciences. Here, we present five case studies from two research centers demonstrating successful transdisciplinary approaches toward more sustainable water and fertilizer use. These case studies span multiple scales. Starting from whole-plant signaling, we explore how reporter plants can transform our understanding of plant communication and enable efficient application of water and fertilizers. We then show how new fertilizer technologies could increase the availability of phosphorus in the soil. To accelerate advancements in breeding new cultivars, we discuss robotic technologies for high-throughput plant screening in different environments at a population scale. At the ecosystem scale, we investigate phosphorus recovery from aquatic systems and methods to minimize phosphorus leaching. Finally, as agricultural outputs affect all people, we show how to integrate stakeholder perspectives and needs into the research. With these case studies, we hope to encourage the scientific community to adopt transdisciplinary research and promote cross-training among biologists, engineers, and social scientists to drive discovery and innovation in advancing sustainable agricultural systems.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Water Droplet Equilibration on Silicone Elastomer Substrates Containing Mobile Silicones

  Langmuir · 2024-10-30 · 1 citations

  article

  Understanding interfacial behavior at the water/silicone elastomer interface is vital in many applications, including microfluidics, antibiofouling, and self-cleaning surfaces. Silicone elastomers are not always static systems, however. Unreacted silicone molecules within a substrate may change the water-wetting behavior compared to fully reacted substrates. To investigate the impact of free silicone species at the interface, we systematically studied water wettability as a function of contact time with various silicone elastomer substrates. One set of Sylgard 184 substrates was prepared from curing at optimal stoichiometry and included doses of silicone molecules of varying molecular weights. Another set of substrates was made by mixing Sylgard 184 in imbalanced ratios to provide incomplete cross-linking. In the absence of added silicone oils, we observe a linear decrease in contact angle with time due to the evaporation of water. However, within certain molecular weight and loading levels of additional inert oils, nonlinear wetting behavior occurs as oils migrate to the interface and the system stabilizes. Similar nonlinear wetting behavior occurs without including silicone oils by mixing pure Sylgard 184 in very imbalanced mixing ratios, resulting in incomplete cross-linking. Such substrates contain unbound mobile silicone species that diffuse to the water-substrate interface. We show how the water contact angle technique can elucidate the presence of unbound silicone oils in the substrate.

  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Jan Genzer

  North Carolina State University

  120 shared

• Daniel A. Fischer

  Material Measurement Laboratory

  38 shared

• A. Evren Özçam

  11 shared

• Ruben G. Carbonell

  National Institute for Innovation in Manufacturing Biopharmaceuticals

  9 shared

• Nicholas L. Abbott

  Cornell University

  9 shared

• Tami Lasseter Clare

  Portland State University

  9 shared

• Joseph M. DeSimone

  L V Prasad Eye Institute

  8 shared

• W.E. Wallace

  BioMarin (United States)

  7 shared

Education

• Ph.D., Chemical Engineering

  University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

  2005

• M.S., Chemical Engineering

  University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

  2002

• B.S., Chemical Engineering

  University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

  2000