Anatoly Frenkel has been appointed chair of the Department of Materials Science and Chemical Engineering at Stony Brook University, effective September 24, 2026, after serving as deputy chair for the last two years. He also chaired the Department of Physics at Stern College for Women, Yeshiva University, from 2001 to 2016.
Frenkel is a professor in the Department of Materials Science and Chemical Engineering, an affiliate professor in the Department of Chemistry and an affiliate faculty member in both the AI Innovation Institute and the Institute for Advanced Computational Science. In addition, he is a senior chemist (joint appointment) at Brookhaven National Laboratory, where, for more than 20 years, he has served as co-director of the Synchrotron Catalysis Consortium.
Andrew Singer, dean of the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences, noted that “Anatoly knows this department, he knows Brookhaven, and he knows what MSCE needs to do next. He has served the department ably as deputy chair, and I’m delighted he has agreed to lead it. I look forward to working with him.”
Frenkel joined Stony Brook University in 2016. Previously, he was a professor at Yeshiva University and held research positions at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, University of Washington, Tel Aviv University and the Institute of Acoustics in St. Petersburg.
Frenkel’s areas of research include the physico-chemical properties and mechanisms of functional nanomaterials; heterogeneous and photocatalysis; multimodal methodologies for materials characterization; machine learning methods for materials research and discovery; and the development of synchrotron-based techniques and data analysis methods.
Frenkel’s group received a recent Genesis award that will develop an AI-enabled “digital twin” framework. In collaboration with Penn State University, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Georgia Tech and ExxonMobil, this will accelerate the discovery and optimization of catalysts that convert domestically available alkane feedstocks, such as propane, into higher-value chemicals.
“The MSCE Department has been my home since I joined Stony Brook 10 years ago,” said Frenkel. “I am truly inspired by the talent and energy of our faculty, staff and students. I am looking forward to working with my colleagues to keep our momentum going and create new opportunities for research and education.”
The winner of numerous grants and author of nearly 500 peer-reviewed articles, Frenkel holds four patents and is highly cited.
Frenkel earned his Bachelor of Science and Master of Science from St. Petersburg University, his doctorate from Tel Aviv University and his post-doctoral fellowship from the University of Washington, all in physics.
Some of his other notable honors include the American Ceramic Society’s Ross Coffin Purdy Award (2025); the Schulich Visiting Professor Lectureship Award from Technion in Israel (2025); and being named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (2023) and the American Physical Society (2017). The International X-ray Absorption Society recently honored him with its highest award named after the founder of X-ray spectroscopy, Edward Stern.
Stony Brook’s College of Engineering and Applied Sciences has nine academic departments. The college offers 13 undergraduate majors, consisting of nine ABET-accredited undergraduate programs, as well as 13 master’s degree programs and 12 doctoral degree programs. Its faculty body includes distinctions such as 68 NSF CAREER awards, recipients of the National Medal of Science and the National Medal of Technology, and members of the National Academy of Engineering. Faculty and students work together on interdisciplinary topics in many research centers and institutes, including Brookhaven National Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, New York State institutions and industry. Students may study within traditional engineering disciplines, participate in interdisciplinary research through the Vertically Integrated Projects program, and find work in the industry or pursue graduate study.
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