Jeff Bullard’s research group at Texas A&M is focused on investigating material microstructure and its influences on engineering properties. In particular, we are interested in the ways in which microstructures evolve in response to a variety of thermodynamic driving forces. Some examples include sintering and grain growth of polycrystalline materials, thin-film growth, hydration of cementitious binders, and pressure dissolution of sedimentary rock formations. The chemistry and physics of such phenomena are often complex and poorly understood, and we are using both experimental and computational materials science approaches to gain insights about their mechanisms. By doing so, we seek to formulate predictive models of materials behavior during processing and service life. Our group uses both experimental and computational methods to derive and validate these models.