Academic Credentials
  • Ph.D., Energy Science and Engineering, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 2016
  • B.S., Chemical Engineering, Tennessee Tech University, 2011
Additional Education & Training
  • NASA Breakthrough Materials Workshop, Huntsville, AB; April 24, 2019.
  • Surface Science Techniques - XPS and ToF-SIMS of Surfaces; Georgia Inst. Of Tech., Atlanta, GA; December 14-15, 2018.
  • NSF Becoming the Messenger, Knoxville, TN; November 7, 2012.
Professional Honors
  • Bredesen Center for Interdisciplinary Graduate Research & Education Fellowship; August 2012.
  • Tennessee Solar Conversion and Storage using Outreach, Research, and Education Research Fellowship; September 2012.
Professional Affiliations
  • Society of Plastics Engineers - member

Dr. Seibers is a materials scientist specializing in polymer composites used in a variety of applications ranging from photovoltaics to aerospace materials for space exploration. He also routinely consults on projects centered on evaluating the end-use performance and durability of polymeric materials used in piping systems, liquid storage systems, flexible hoses, and medical devices.

Dr. Seibers has a strong understanding of many areas related to composite manufacturing including additive chemistry, composite formulation, solution and melt processing, and performance characterization. He has considerable experience in the synthetic modification of polymers, surfaces, and nanoparticles to tune performance and processing characteristics. He is also familiar with the effects of material exposure to harsh conditions found in the environment or within decontamination processes used in healthcare applications. 

Prior to joining Exponent, Dr. Seibers was a research scientist at the Georgia Institute of Technology where he worked on a NASA funded effort to develop electrically conductive polymer composites for space applications. He received his Ph.D. from the Bredesen Center, a joint program between the University of Tennessee Knoxville and Oak Ridge National Laboratory, where his work focused on enhancing the performance of solar cells through synthetic modification, blend formulation, and process optimization.

Dr. Seibers has used chemical characterization techniques to probe aspects of polymer chemistry ranging from monomer or solvent purity to polymer molecular weight or end-group composition. Some of the techniques used in these efforts include gas chromatography mass spectroscopy (GC-MS), Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), size exclusion chromatography (SEC), and matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization - time of flight MS (MALDI-ToF MS), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), Fourier Transform Infrared Resonance (FTIR), Raman spectroscopy, and X-Ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy.

In his efforts to understand how chemistry, processing, or field exposure affect morphology and performance, Dr. Seibers has used techniques utilized atomic force microscopy (AFM), contact angle analysis, dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), electrical properties assessment, ellipsometry, neutron reflectometry, transmission & scanning electron microscopy (TEM, SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), small and wide-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS & WAXS).