After obtaining Ph.D. from North Carolina State University in 1984 Dr. Netravali joined the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at Cornell University as a postdoctoral associate. In 1985 he joined the Department of Mechanical Engineering as a research associate and in August of 1987 he joined the Department of Fiber Science & Apparel Design (FSAD) as an Assistant Professor of Fiber Science. His main research areas are Fiber Reinforced Composites and Green Materials and Processes. In composites, the primary focus of his current research is to develop sustainable and environment-friendly and carbon-neutral ‘green composites’ using plant-based resins and fibers. His group has developed protein and starch based thermoset resins suitable for composites.

Dr. Netravali is a member of the American Chemical Society (ACS), the Fiber Society, American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists (AATCC), and the American Nano Society. He is an Adjunct Professor at Universidade Federal do Amazonas (UFAM), in Manaus, Brazil, and in the Dept. of Materials Science & Engineering at Tuskegee University, Tuskegee, AL. He is also a member of the Engineering Panel of the Research Grants Council (RGC) of Hong Kong. He is an Editor of the Reviews of Adhesion and Adhesives, Open Access Supplement (RAA-OAS) and Associate Editor of AATCC Journal of Research. He also serves on the Editorial Advisory Boards of five research journals; Composites Science and Technology, Journal of Biobased Materials and Bioenergy, Journal of Renewable Materials, Fibers, and Textile Research Journal. He is a founding member and a member of the Advisory Committee of the International Conference on Green Composites. He is a Faculty Fellow at the David R. Atkinson Center for a Sustainable Future at Cornell University. He has authored and co-authored over 150 refereed papers and book chapters, co-edited 3 books, and has presented more than 200 research papers at international conferences including as Keynote and Plenary lectures and at research universities and institutes.