Im very excited to win the DOE grant, said Byron, whose doctoral adviser is Prof. Andrew Teplyakov in UDs Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry.
It will enable me to further characterize the catalysts Im studying.
I'm very grateful for this opportunity, given that there are less than
20 synchrotron facilities in the U.S.
Byrons research focuses on
hydrocarbon-reforming chemical reactions, which have numerous
applications in the renewable energy field.
She is examining highly
active metal catalysts to find the best chemical spurs that will speed
up the dry reforming of methane, which converts carbon dioxide and
methane into synthesis gas. This syngas can then be further processed
into renewable fuels.
This research is important in addressing
the growing energy and environmental crisis, especially if we can
capture greenhouse gases and transform them into a source of fuel on a
wide scale, Byron said. Ideally, I hope it will lead to a reduction in
the effects of global warming and a reliable source of energy.
Also
this semester, doctoral student Jeffrey Hudson, from Marysville,
Michigan, is heading to the National Energy and Technology Laboratory
(NETL), located just outside Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He is taking a
deeper look at the chemical interactions between iron and shale organic
matter, with the goal to optimize oil and natural gas production from
fracking wells.
Hudsons doctoral adviser is Prof. Yu-Ping Chin in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering.
Winning
this grant is an honor. I mean, how many people get to say they have a
fellowship with the Department of Energy Office of Science? Hudson
said. It will enable me to continue applying some of my analytical
skills and knowledge to a new area of focus while also learning new lab
skills.
Hudson and Byron continue UDs track record for winning
these highly competitive grants. Last year, Margaret (Maggie) Capooci
and Aeri Gosselin won funding and recently completed their fellowships.
Gosselin, a doctoral candidate in chemistry and
biochemistry whose adviser is Prof. Eric Bloch, did research on porous molecules called coordination
cages in the Molecular Foundry at Lawrence-Berkeley National Laboratory
(LBNL) in California, hosted by Prof. Brett Helms. These unique
molecules are being explored as a new designer material for making
cheaper ways to store economically important gases such as hydrogen and
methane.
Im driven by the real-world problems that we as a
society currently face in terms of energy production and consumption,
said Gosselin.
Current energy storage methods are costly and require a large energy
input to properly store, for example, natural gas. The successful design
and implementation of these porous materials as a storage media would
not only save money and energy, but also improve the overall safety of
handling these gases.
Capooci is now completing her doctorate in the Water Science and Policy Program,
working with adviser Prof. Rodrigo Vargas. She wants to expand
understanding of the patterns and processes governing greenhouse gas
emissions from tidal marsh soils and worked at the Lawrence Livermore
National Lab in Livermore, California, with Prof. Karis McFarlane.
Article by Tracey Bryant; photos courtesy of Argonne National Laboratory and Carly ByronPublished Sept. 4, 2020