Hyung Kim

The main research goal of the Kim group is to gain theoretical understanding of condensed-phase chemical and electrochemical processes at the molecular level with proper account of solvation effects. They develop and apply analytic models and computational methods, viz., statistical mechanics theory, quantum chemistry tools and molecular dynamics simulations, to quantify solvation effects on free energetics and dynamics of chemical reactions and related spectroscopy in homogeneous and heterogeneous environments. Their primary focus is on solution systems that have important environmental, biological or energy implications. 
Our specific thrust areas include:
Solvation and chemical reactions in green solvents: The primary focus is on chemical reactions involving charge shift (e.g., SN1 and electron transfer reactions) and related dynamics (e.g., dielectric relaxation and vibrational energy relaxation) in environmentally benign green solvents, in particular, room-temperature ionic liquids and supercritical water.
Energy storage: Supercapacitors and pseudocapacitors: The main effort is directed towards quantitation of how electrode properties such as size and shape of carbon micropores and electrolyte properties, e.g., ion size, density and conductivity, control the energy and power densities of EDLCs.
Structure and dynamics of multi-domain proteins: The current thrust is to investigate specific bindings and interactions between domains of plasminogen using various simulation techniques.