Through her research, Padak is working to curb the environmental impact of generating electricity from fossil fuels, focusing on emissions of carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides, sulfur oxides, and trace metals. She sees her research group’s work applying to oxy-combustion of coal, chemical looping combustion, and high-hydrogen-content fuel combustion in gas turbines.
Padak didn’t just stumble into her career. Becoming a professor has been a lifelong dream of hers, and her interest in chemistry was sparked in high school. A chemical reaction engineering course during her undergrad studies set her on the path to combustion kinetics. Now that she has achieved much, she has set a new goal for herself: “to be recognized both nationally and internationally with my contributions to the field.”