Dr. Kenneth J. McDonald, Ph.D. Associate Professor Deputy Director - Chemistry Program Chemistry & Life Science kenneth.mcdonald2 [at] westpoint.edu About Education Research & Publications Dr. McDonald is an Associate Professor in the Department of Chemistry and Life Science (CLS) and teaches courses in physical chemistry, materials engineering, and general chemistry. Dr. McDonald earn his B.S. and M.S. in chemistry from Illinois State University in 2004 and 2006, respectively. Dr. McDonald received his Ph.D. in Inorganic Chemistry in 2012 from Purdue University where he studied the electrochemical synthesis of semiconductors for use in photoelectrochemical cells to split water into H2 and O2 using solar energy. After receiving his Ph.D., Dr. McDonald worked for Toyota Research Institute of North America for 2 years before shifting his focus back to higher education. Dr. McDonald has been at West Point since 2016 and has taught in both the Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering (CME) (Engineering Materials and the Fundamentals of Engineering Mechanics and Design) and CLS (General Chemistry I/II and Physical Chemistry I/II). Ph.D. in Inorganic Chemistry - Purdue UniversityM.S. in Physical Chemistry - Illinois State UniversityB.S. in Chemistry - Illinois State University Current Research Dr. McDonald’s research efforts are focused on the synthesis and characterization of materials in support of the Army’s growing energy and supply chain needs. His group primarily uses electrochemical synthesis routes to produce thin films of polycrystalline electrodes that can then easily be adapted to electrochemical and photoelectrochemical devices. Examples of his group’s projects include the synthesis of polycrystalline n-type semiconducting electrodes for use in a photoelectrochemical cell to purify wastewater into potable water and the synthesis of metal-organic- frameworks (MOFs) thin films for use in the decomposition of chemical warfare agents. Selected Publications Koleci, C.; Kowalski, E.M.; McDonald, K.J. The STEM faculty Experience at West Point. Journal of College Science Teaching. 2022, 51 (6).Koleci, C.; Kowalski, E.M.; McDonald, K.J. STEM Education within The West Point Experience. Journal of College Science Teaching. 2021, 50 (6).Cardiel, A. C.; McDonald, K. J. and Choi, K. S.* Electrochemical growth of copper hydroxy double salt films and their conversion to nanostructures p-type CuO photocathodes. Lagmuir. 2017 33 (37), 9262-9270.McDonald, K. J.; Zhang, R.; Ling, C.; Zhou, L. Q.; Zhang, R.; Whittingham, M. S.; Jia, H. Hydrothermal synthesis, structure refinement, and electrochemical characterization of Li2CoGeO4 as an oxygen evolution catalyst. J Mater. Chem. A. 2014, 2, 18428-18434.McDonald, K. J.; Quandt, R. W. Ground state surface formation of Cl2 in the dissociation of CCl4 and CHCl3 and the comparisons with Br species. Comp. Theo. Chem. 2014, 1037, 28-34.Park, Y., McDonald, K. J. and Choi, K. S. Progress in bismuth vanadate photoanodes for use in solar water oxidation. Chem. Soc. Rev., 2013, 42, 2321-2337Huang, Z., Lin, Y., Xiang, X., Rodríguez-Córdoba, W., McDonald, K. J., Hagen, K. S., Choi, K. S., Brunschwig, B. S., Musaev, D. G., Hill, C. G., Wang, D., and Lian, T. In situ probe of photocarrier dynamics in water-splitting hematite (α-Fe2O3) electrodes Energy Environ. Sci., 2012, 5, 8923-8926.McDonald, K. J. and Choi, K. S. New Electrodeposition Route to BiOI and its Conversion to BiVO4 for Use in Solar Energy Conversion. Energy Environ. Sci., 2012, 5, 8553-8557.McDonald, K. J. and Choi, K. S. Synthesis and Photoelectrochemical Properties of Fe2O3/ZnFe2O4 Composite Photoanodes for Use in Solar Water Oxidation. Chemistry of Materials 2011, 23, 4863-4869.McDonald, K. J. and Choi, K. S. Photodeposition of Co-Based Oxygen Evolution Catalysts on a-Fe2O3 Photoanodes. Chemistry of Materials 2011, 23, 1686-1693.