Julia Shamshina, Ph.D.

Background

After gaining relevant experience during her doctoral (2008, PhD in Organic Synthesis) and postdoctoral studies (2010, Analytical Chemistry) at The University of Alabama, Dr. Shamshina joined Streamline Automation, LLC (Huntsville, AL), a small business where she worked on the development and commercialization of advanced technologies for aerospace and defense markets. This research was supported by the US Air Force, Army, and NASA. She is a recipient of the NASA Tech Brief Award for her work on the replacement of hydrazine fuel with energetic ionic liquids (2011).

In 2012, Dr. Shamshina joined the start-up company 525 Solutions, Inc. as a Research Chemist and later promoted to Chief Scientific Officer (SCO). She gained extensive experience in developing the company’s technological backbone ‘from the ground up’, providing technical leadership, and ensuring the implementation and commercialization of many technological solutions. Among other areas, Dr. Shamshina conducted development of new processes for high-quality bio-based functional materials from a wide range of natural feedstocks. Many of these technologies are based on ionic liquids and have wide-reaching applications in biotechnology, pharmaceutical, and materials industries.

In 2016 — 2017, Dr. Shamshina moved to Canada (McGill University, Department of Chemistry) to work as an Academic Associate in Green Chemistry where she was responsible for the projects related to the design and development of new products from renewable polymers, — from testing various feedstocks, to biopolymers isolation, to the production of biomaterials with specific characteristics. The nature of her assignment at McGill was to bridge the academic and industrial environments, to help commercialize academic innovation. During her engagements at McGill, she continued to be involved with 525 Solutions, and when the joint venture, Mari Signum Mid-Atlantic, LLC was formed to build a chitin extraction plant in the USA, based on sustainable zero waste shrimp farming, Dr. Shamshina accepted its management position, as a CSO.

At Mari Signum Mid-Atlantic, LLC, Dr. Shamshina oversaw of the development of marketable, patentable concepts involving chitin to generate intellectual property, and thus revenue, for the company. Dr. Shamshina is a recipient of the American Chemical Society Green Chemistry Challenge Award Focus Area 2, Greener Reaction Conditions for “A Practical Way to Mass Production of Chitin: The Only Facility in the U. S. to Use Ionic Liquid-Based Isolation Process”.

In 2021, she joined Fiber and Biopolymer Research Institute (FBRI) at Texas Tech University as a Research Assistant Professor. To date, Dr. Shamshina has published 70 papers, 11 book chapters, and is a named inventor on multiple patents and patent applications. Two technologies she is an inventor of have been licensed.

Research Interests

Dr. Shamshina’s current research interests focus on all aspects of ionic liquids and biopolymer processing, from fundamental properties to overall material preparation to industrial applications. She is particularly interested in potential industrial uses of biopolymers in high-value materials, with an ultimate goal of elimination of synthetic plastics.

Related Links

• Curriculum vitae
• Personal website

Recent Publications

• Shamshina, J. L.; Rogers, R. D. Ionic Liquids: New Forms of Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients with Unique, Tunable Properties. Chem. Rev. 2023, accepted.
• Hoque, E.; Tran, P.; Jacobo, U.; Bergfeld, N.; Acharya, S.; Shamshina, J. L.; Reid, T. W.; Abidi, N. Antimicrobial Coatings for Medical Textiles via Reactive Organo-selenium Compounds. Molecules 2023, 28(17), 6381; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules28176381.
• Shamshina, J.L.; Berton, P. Renewable Biopolymers Combined with Ionic Liquids for the Next Generation of Supercapacitor Materials. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24, 7866. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24097866.
• Berton, P.; Shamshina, J. L. Ionic Liquids as Tools to Incorporate Pharmaceutical Ingredients into Biopolymer-Based Drug Delivery Systems. Pharmaceuticals 2023, 16(2), 272; https://doi.org/10.3390/ph16020272.
• Shen, X.; Zhao, D.; Xie, Y.; Wang, Q.; Shamshina, J. L.; Rogers, R. D.; Sun, Q. Cellulose Gel Mechanoreceptors – Principles, Applications and Prospects. Adv. Funct. Mater. 2023, 2214317. https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.2022143171.
• (Invited Personal Perspective to the Special Issue: Modern Aspects of Ionic Liquids.) Shamshina, J. L.; Rogers, R. D. Commercialization of Ionic Liquids in Pursuit of Green Chemistry: Must we Each Become an Entrepreneur? The Chemical Record 2023, https://doi.org/10.1002/tcr.202200256.
• (This article belongs to the Special Issue: Special Issue: Spectroscopic Analysis and Molecular Modification of Nanomaterials): Rumi, S. S.; Liyanage, S.; Shamshina, J. L.; Abidi, N. Effect of Microwave Plasma Pre-treatment on Cotton Cellulose Dissolution. Molecules 2022, 27(20), 7007.
• (This article belongs to the Special Issue: A Themed Issue in Honor of Professor Robin D. Rogers - "A Scientific Journey within Green Chemistry") Rachiero, G. P.; Berton, P.; Shamshina, J. L. "Deep Eutectic Solvents: Alternative Solvents for Biomass-Based Waste Valorization," Molecules 2022, 27(19), 6606, DOI: 10.3390/molecules27196606. Also announced as an entry on "Deep Eutectic Solvents for Biomass-Based Waste Valorization" in MDPI Encyclopedia: https://encyclopedia.pub/entry/29071.>
• Shamshina, J. L.; Abidi, N. “Isolation of Chitin Nano-whiskers Directly from Crustacean Biomass Waste in a Single Step with Acidic Ionic Liquid," ACS Sustainable Chem. Eng. 2022, DOI: 10.1021/acssuschemeng.2c02461.
• Berton, P.; Abidi, N.; Shamshina, J. L. "Ionic liquids: Implementing Objectives of Sustainability for the Next Generation Chemical Processes and Industrial Applications," Curr. Opin. Green Sustain. Chem. 2022, 100625, DOI: 10.1016/j.cogsc.2022.100625.
• Hoque, E.; Acharya, S.; Shamshina, J. L.; Abidi, N. "Review of Foam Application to Cotton Textiles," Textile Research Journal 2022, DOI: 10.1177/00405175221107400.
• (This article belongs to the Special Issue: A Themed Issue in Honor of Professor Robin D. Rogers - "A Scientific Journey within Green Chemistry") Lyon, D. R.; Smith, B. R.; Abidi, N.; Shamshina, J. L. "Deproteinization of Chitin Extracted with the Help of Ionic Liquids," Molecules 2022, 27, 3983, DOI: 10.3390/molecules27133983.
• Shamshina, J. L.; Acharya, S.; Rumi, S. S.; Liyanage, S.; Parajuli, P.; Abidi, N. "Cryogenic Grinding of Cotton Fiber Cellulose: the Effect on Physicochemical Properties," Carbohydrate Polym. 2022, 119408, DOI: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2022.119408.
• Acharya, S.; Liyanage, S.; Parajuli, P.; Rumi, S. S. Shamshina, J. L.; Abidi, N. "Utilization of Cellulose to its Full Potential: A Review on Cellulose Dissolution, Regeneration, and Applications," Polymers (Basel) 2021, 13(24), 4344.
• (Invited for a Special Issue on bio-product extraction.) Achinivu, A. C.; Shamshina, J. L.; Rogers, R. D. "Chitin Extracted from Various Biomass Sources: It’s Not the Same," Fluid Phase Equilibria 2021, 10.1016/j.fluid.2021.113286.
• Berton, P.; Shamshina, J. L. "Chapter 3: Ionic Liquids for Topical and Transdermal Drug Delivery," In: Application of Ionic Liquids in Drug Delivery. Goto, M.; Moniruzzaman, M. (Eds.); Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd, 2021, in print.
• Liyanage, S.; Acharya, S.; Parajuli, P.; Shamshina, J. L. "Production and Surface Modification of Cellulose Bioproducts," Polymers (Basel) 2021, DOI: 10.3390/polym13193433.
• Parajuli, P.; Acharya, S.; Shamshina, J. L.; Abidi, N. "Tuning the Morphological Properties of Cellulose Aerogels: An Investigation of Salt-Mediated Preparation," Cellulose 2021, DOI: 10.1007/s10570-021-04028-w.
• Shamshina, L.; Abidi, N. "Cellulose Nanocrystals from Ionic Liquids: A Critical Review," Green. Chem. 2021, 23, 6205 - 6222, DOI: 10.1039/D1GC02507D.
• Shamshina, J. L.; Abidi, N. “Choosing the Right Strategy: Cryogrinding vs Ball Milling – Comparing Apples to Apples,” for the Marine based green chemistry themed collection of Green Chem. 2021, 9646 - 9657, DOI: 10.1039/d1gc03128g.
• (Invited for a Special Issue “Frontiers of Ionic Liquids”) Shamshina, J. L.; Qin, Y.; Belmore, K.; Daly, D. T.; Rogers, R. D. "Switchable Carbamate Coagulants to Improve Recycling Ionic Liquid from Biomass Solutions," GreenChE 2021, DOI: 10.1016/j.gce.2021.07.001.
• Shamshina, J. L.; Rogers, R. D. “Chapter 5: 3D printing of Cellulose and Chitin from Ionic Liquids for Drug Delivery: a Mini-Review," In: Application of Ionic Liquids in Drug Delivery. Goto, M.; Moniruzzaman, M. (Eds.); Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd, 2021, in print.
• Shamshina, J. L.; Wineinger, H. B.; Choudhary, H.; Vaid, T. P.; Kelley, S. P.; Rogers, R. D. "Confusing Ions on Purpose: How Many Parent Acid Molecules can be Incorporated in a Herbicidal Ionic Liquid?," ACS Sustainable Chem. Eng. 2021, DOI: 10.1021/acssuschemeng.0c08797.
• (Invited for the special issue "Ionic Liquids in Drug Development, Formulation, and Delivery") Shamshina, J. L.; Rogers, R. D. “Are Myths and Preconceptions Preventing us from Applying Ionic Liquid Forms of Antiviral Medicines to the Current Health Crisis?" Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2020, 21(17), 6002 - 6018, DOI: 10.3390/ijms21176002.