Dr. Marco J. Castaldi is a Professor of Chemical Engineering and Director of the Earth System Science and Environmental Engineering (ESE) Program at The Grove School of Engineering at The City College of New York (CUNY). He is also Director of the Earth Engineering Center and the U.S. branch of the Waste-to-Energy Research and Technology Council (WTERT), leading efforts to advance waste-to-energy technologies and sustainable energy recovery from biomass and waste materials.
Before joining CCNY, Dr. Castaldi was an Associate Professor in the Earth and Environmental Engineering Department at Columbia University. He has published extensively, with over 90 peer-reviewed journal articles, 40 peer-reviewed conference papers, 11 patents, 3 book chapters, and 2 textbooks in the fields of catalysis, combustion, and gasification. His research has been featured in The New York Times, CNN, and other national and industry media outlets.
Dr. Castaldi's expertise spans air emissions, chemical kinetics, catalysis, and waste-to-energy systems. His research group is recognized by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) as a leading team in the study of waste conversion to energy. He also serves as a consultant for international projects in these areas. He has held editorial and leadership roles, including Editor of the North American Waste to Energy Conference (NAWTEC) series, Co-Editor of Waste to Energy (Woodhead Publishing), and Editorial Board Member for Waste and Biomass Valorization and Catalysts.
Dr. Castaldi is a Fellow of both the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) and the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE), and has held leadership positions in each, including Chair of ASME’s Materials and Energy Recovery Division and Chair of AIChE’s Research and New Technology Council. He also served as Chair of the New York Metropolitan Section of the North American Catalysis Society.
Prior to academia, he worked in industry as Manager of Fuel Processor Component Development at Precision Combustion Inc., overseeing $5 million in applied energy technology projects.
Dr. Castaldi earned his B.S. in Chemical Engineering (magna cum laude) from Manhattan College and his M.S. and Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from UCLA, where he also minored in Advanced Theoretical Physics and Astrophysics.