Department of Chemistry, Institute of Chemical Technology, Mumbai
Dr. Rahul Vitthal Pinjari is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemistry at the Institute of Chemical Technology (ICT), Mumbai. He holds an M.Sc. in Chemistry from the University of Pune, a Ph.D. in Chemistry under the supervision of Professor Shridhar P. Gejji at the University of Pune, and completed a prestigious postdoctoral fellowship at Uppsala University, Sweden, supported by the Carl Trygger Foundation, where he worked with Dr. Marcus Lundberg.
Dr. Pinjari’s research expertise lies in computational chemistry, with a strong emphasis on electrochemistry, spectroscopy, CO₂ utilization, separation and catalysis. His doctoral work focused on density functional investigations of supramolecular host–guest complexes, hydrogen bonding networks, and their effect on NMR spectral variations. During his postdoctoral tenure in Sweden, he contributed to the development of advanced multiconfigurational quantum chemical methodology (CASSCF/CASPT2 and core-RAS approaches) for simulating L-edge X-ray absorption spectra of transition metal complexes, with applications to heme systems.
Professionally, Dr. Pinjari has over 15 years of teaching and research experience. Before joining ICT in 2024, he served as Assistant Professor at the School of Chemical Sciences, Swami Ramanand Teerth Marathwada University (SRTM), Nanded, where he guided postgraduate students and contributed to interdisciplinary research initiatives. He has successfully led funded projects in both academic and industrial collaborations, including computational investigations of methoxy amine synthesis and battery development.
Dr. Pinjari has published extensively in peer-reviewed international journals. His work spans theoretical chemistry, spectroscopy, supramolecular chemistry, and applied materials science. He has also delivered invited lectures, presented at international conferences across Europe and India, and actively participated in academic workshops and outreach programs.
His contributions have been recognized through several honors, including the INSA Visiting Scientist Award (2021–22), the Carl Trygger Postdoctoral Fellowship (2012–2014), and fellowships from the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR-JRF and SRF). Beyond research, he has played key roles in academic committees, quality assurance initiatives, and science outreach activities, reflecting his commitment to both advancing chemical sciences and fostering academic excellence.