Rate My Professor Troy Runge

Troy Runge is a professor in the Department of Biological Systems Engineering within the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He currently serves as Associate Dean for Research and Extension and Director of the Wisconsin Agricultural Experiment Station, roles he assumed in April 2023. In these capacities, he oversees the college's $166 million research portfolio, the Research Division, Agricultural Research Stations, and represents Wisconsin in the North Central Regional Association of State Agricultural Experiment Station Directors. Previously, Runge chaired the Department of Biological Systems Engineering, directed the Wisconsin Bioenergy Initiative, and served as the first chair of the UW-Madison Dairy Innovation Hub steering committee. Before joining academia, he spent fifteen years at Kimberly-Clark Corporation in research and engineering positions focused on pulp, tissue, nonwoven, and hygiene product production. Runge earned a B.S. in Paper Science and Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point and both an M.S. and Ph.D. in Paper Science and Engineering from the Institute of Paper Science and Technology at Georgia Institute of Technology.

Runge's research centers on bioenergy, investigating how biomass composition affects bioprocessing systems including anaerobic digestion, combustion, gasification, and catalysis, alongside biomaterials such as pulp, paper, bio-based chemicals, cellulose composites, and nonwoven structures. His projects have received funding from the NSF, DOE, USDA, US Forest Service, and industry partners, resulting in 31 patents. He is recognized as an award-winning teacher, instructing courses including Renewable Energy Systems, Food and Bioprocessing Operations, and Engineering Principles for Biological Systems. Notable publications include Increasing the revenue from lignocellulosic biomass: Maximizing feedstock utilization (Science Advances, 2017), Magnetically separable base catalysts for isomerization of glucose to fructose (Journal of Catalysis, 2015), and Nitrate sorption to biochar following chemical oxidation (Science of the Total Environment, 2019). His scholarship has accumulated over 6,000 citations. Runge advocates for research hubs and large multidisciplinary centers to enhance opportunities for the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the state.