Swanson School’s Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering Welcomes Three New Faculty Members
The University of Pittsburgh Swanson School of Engineering Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering has hired three new assistant professors whose research spans oil and gas, renewable, and clean energy. Alejandra Torres-Velasco joined Pitt in January 2026, and Md Nahin Mahmood and Brian Tackett (BS ChemE ’13) began this August.
“With the launch of our new Natural Gas, Renewables, and Oil Engineering program [GRO] and with the Swanson School’s strategic focus on energy research, we’re excited to have Alejandra, Nahin, and Brian join our department. Together, their expertise will perfectly complement our new program, the department, and the school,” said Susan Fullerton Shirey, professor and interim chair of chemical and petroleum engineering and Bicentennial Board of Visitors Faculty Fellow.
Alejandra Torres-Velasco
Torres-Velasco, who has already begun teaching the inaugural GRO program cohort, received her PhD in chemical engineering from the University of Kansas and her bachelor’s in chemical engineering from Universidad del Valle in Cali, Colombia. With expertise in renewable energy, she researches heterogeneous catalysis, in situ/operando spectroscopy, and reaction kinetics.
A teaching-track assistant professor, Torres-Velasco is especially interested in engineering education, student-centered teaching, and curriculum development. While at the University of Kansas, she designed and led discussion sessions for thermodynamics and heat/mass transfer courses. To make difficult concepts more tangible, she created a library of tutorial videos that became widely used beyond her classroom, and she even built a chemical engineering escape room.
"I am excited by how forward-thinking the GRO program is,” Torres-Velasco said. “It's exactly the kind of energy education our students need right now, bridging traditional hydrocarbons with the renewable technologies shaping the future. Being able to teach the inaugural cohort, while joining a department that clearly prioritizes great teaching, made Pitt the perfect place for me to contribute and keep growing as an educator. I look forward to helping students connect these energy concepts to real-world challenges and providing them with the engineering tools to address them."
Md Nahin Mahmood
Mahmood, who also serves as the GRO undergraduate program director, received his PhD in systems engineering and his master’s degree in petroleum engineering from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, where he served in many leadership positions for the International Student Council, including president. He earned his bachelor’s degree in petroleum and mining engineering from Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology (CUET) in Bangladesh.
Mahmood has served as a lecturer and an assistant professor at CUET, teaching numerous petroleum engineering courses such as Rock and Fluid Properties and Reservoir Engineering. The first author of many peer-reviewed journal publications and conference papers, Mahmood investigates carbon dioxide storage in subsea formations, hydrocarbon production from unconventional reservoirs, and optimization of critical parameters for Enhanced Geothermal Systems. He will teach courses in oil and gas engineering.
“I’m excited to join Pitt at such an important stage in the development of the new and unique GRO undergraduate program. I look forward to helping build an industry-focused curriculum that gives students a strong foundation in natural gas, petroleum, and subsurface engineering while also preparing them for emerging areas of renewable energy and the broader energy transition. My goal is to connect rigorous engineering education with hands-on, real-world applications and help prepare students for the evolving needs of the energy industry,” Mahmood said.
Brian Tackett
Tackett earned his bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Pitt and his master’s degree and PhD in chemical engineering from Columbia University. He has also completed an NRC Postdoctoral Fellowship at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), a governmental agency dedicated to measurement science and standards research.
Prior to beginning at Pitt, Tackett was the Robert & Sally Weist Assistant Professor of chemical engineering at Purdue University, where he developed an active and award-winning research program. Tackett is currently involved in five active research projects funded by, among others, the National Science Foundation and the U.S. Department of Energy. His research seeks to help the chemical industry transition to electricity instead of relying on inefficient and fossil-fuel intensive thermal processes.
“I'm grateful for the opportunity to return to Pitt and work alongside faculty who were so important to my development as an engineer and researcher. The department has continued to emphasize innovation and excellence in chemical engineering education, and I'm excited to join that effort. My teaching style is heavily influenced by the great instructors I had here, so I hope I can measure up to that standard,” Tackett said. “I've also learned a lot over the past 12 years — from Columbia, to NIST, to Purdue — that has allowed me to build a strong research program, and it's neat to bring that back to where I started along this path.”