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LaTrease Garrison, ACS’s Chief Operating Officer, gave opening remarks to a packed room at the GC&E Conference’s Opening Night Awards Ceremony.
Every year, we’re inspired by the many students who are passionately integrating sustainable design principles into their research, both in answering fundamental questions and developing practical applications.
To support the efforts of our future chemistry and engineering leaders, the ACS Green Chemistry Institute® (GCI) offers several awards: the Hancock, Breen, and Ciba awards to support travel; the Heh-Won Chang Ph.D. Fellowship in Green Chemistry; and the Nina McClelland Memorial Award. Last Fall, we received a remarkable response to our call for nominations for these awards which recognize excellence in student research and provide funding for students to attend and present at professional scientific conferences.
From a highly competitive pool of applicants, 14 winners were selected after careful consideration by academic and industry experts who generously volunteered their time to serve on the judging panels. We were delighted to celebrate the awardees in person during the Annual Green Chemistry and Engineering Conference’s first-ever Opening Night Awards Ceremony this past June in Atlanta, GA.
Read on to learn about this year’s winners of the Hancock Memorial Award, Breen Memorial Fellowship, and the Ciba Travel Awards. Learn about the winners of the Nina McClelland Memorial Award and the Heh-Won Chang Ph.D. Fellowship in Part 2 of our Green Chemistry Student Awardees blog post!
Kenneth G. Hancock Memorial Award: provides national recognition for outstanding student contributions to furthering the goals of green chemistry through research and studies.
The Hancock Memorial Award winners pose on stage at GC&E with ACS GCI staff (Left to Right: Christiana Briddell (ACS GCI), Camille Rubel, Kangjie Bian, David A. Laviska (ACS GCI))
Kangjie Bian
Kangjie Bian received his B.S. in applied chemistry from Huaqiao University in China and his M.S. in chemistry from the University of Science and Technology of China. Kangjie is currently a graduate student at Rice University. The title of his award application was “Earth-Abundant Metals Photocatalysis and Sustainable Transformations.”
In his research, Kangjie aims to leverage solar energy to promote 3D metal catalysis and overcome redox-potential mismatch with feedstock chemical TFA to achieve a photocatalytic, redox-neutral hydrotrifluoromethylation. His commitment to green chemistry inspired him to focus on earth-abundant compounds to avoid environmental impacts related to noble metal utilization and the employment of a co-catalyst to eliminate the use of stoichiometric reagents. He hopes the approach could also provide a solution for converting environmental hazards – polyfluoroalkyl carboxylic acids (PFAAs) – into useful polyfluoroalkylated compounds for additional environmental benefit.
Camille Rubel
Camille Rubel completed her Bachelor of Science in chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley, and she is currently a Ph.D. candidate at The Scripps Research Institute. The title of her award application was “Air-Stable Ni(0) Precatalysts: Electrochemical Preparation and Catalysis.”
Despite its instability in air, Ni(COD)2 has remained the most important Ni(0) precatalyst and organometallic precursor since the mid-1990s. To overcome its instability and allow the full environmental benefits of Ni-catalysis in enabling unique C–C bond formation reactions at scale, Camille has worked to develop a family of air-stable Ni(0) precursors. These precatalysts offer similar efficacy, allowing researchers to avoid energy-intensive glovebox work and apply nickel catalysis on large scales. In addition, an electrochemical preparation of these precatalysts was developed, allowing more efficient, safer access to the low-valent nickel complexes. The environmental benefits of this work include replacing palladium catalysis in industry with nickel catalysis, reducing the environmental burden of precious metal use, and decreasing hazardous chemical use (e.g. pyrophoric chemical reductants).
Joseph Breen Memorial Fellowship: supports the participation of a U.S. or international scholar in a green chemistry conference or training program of their choice.
Left to Right: Christiana Briddell (ACS GCI), Daniel Reddy, Neha Parashar, Pablo Lopez-Porfiri, and David A. Laviska (ACS GCI)
Pablo Lopez-Porfiri
Pablo Lopez-Porfiri completed his B.S. and M.S. in chemical engineering at the Universidad Técnica Federico Santa María in Chile, and he is currently working as a postdoctoral research associate in membrane science and technology at the University of Manchester in the UK.
Throughout his academic career, Pablo’s focus has been on advancing sustainable practices in separation processes. By combining experimental and modeling work during his Ph.D. studies, he developed a methodology for the screening and selection of suitable extraction media, including neoteric solvents such as bio-based, ionic liquids, and eutectic solvents, to intensify the production of biobased organic acids with consideration of the Principles of Green Chemistry. Currently, Pablo is focused on developing efficient separation methods for biomolecule recovery, gas separation, and water purification as well as sustainable material fabrication for these applications. He is also eager to guide new master's and Ph.D. students toward green engineering practices.
Neha Parashar
Neha Parashar completed her B.S. in botany at the University of Delhi and her M.S. in environmental management at Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University in India. She is currently working toward her Ph.D. in civil and environmental engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology, Patna. Neha’s research focuses on the development of magnetic biochar-based sand filters for the removal of microplastics from wastewater effluent.
Deeply passionate about finding sustainable solutions, she has extensively researched low-cost, eco-friendly, low-maintenance biomass solutions for upgrading wastewater treatment plants and removing microplastics from wastewater. The work involves the development of biochar from different agricultural waste residues and exploring the impact of varying pyrolytic temperatures on biochar efficiency. Neha’s work presents a promising practical solution for mitigating the increasingly urgent issue of microplastic pollution.
Daniel Reddy
Daniel Reddy completed his B.S. in chemistry at Liberty University in Virginia and his M.S. in organic chemistry at Purdue University. He is currently pursuing his Ph.D. in analytical chemistry at Queen’s University in Canada where he has demonstrated leadership in initiating research collaborations, promoting diversity, and supporting safety in research.
Microdroplets are generally considered to be small-volume liquids ranging in size from femto/picoliters to nanoliters. By performing chemistry in microdroplets, laboratories can conserve precious compounds, reduce sample volumes and waste streams, and speed up analyses. Daniel’s current focus is on the development of a convenient, low-cost, and potentially reusable microdroplet sampling device. He is also working to pair this device with the emerging technique of liquid microjunction to avoid laborious traditional sample preparations and solvent-based extractions in support of greener analytical chemistry.
Ciba Travel Awards in Green Chemistry: sponsor U.S. student travel to attend and participate in an ACS meeting, conference, or training program with a focus on green chemistry.
Left to Right: Christiana Briddell (ACS GCI), Mairo Yamano, Dallin Smith, Zahria Patrick, Stella Fors, and David A. Laviska (ACS GCI). Not pictured: Rita Bernadett Vlocskó
Stella Fors
Stella Fors is currently a Ph.D. candidate at Northwestern University. Her research focuses on developing greener synthetic processes using electro-organic systems for CO2 conversion and improving water quality by investigating the degradation of PFAS using novel electrochemical methods. Green chemistry principles of designing less hazardous chemical syntheses, using renewable feedstocks, catalysis, and studying pollution mechanisms all underline her work as a graduate researcher.
Outside the lab, Stella is passionate about science outreach and policy. Her recent outreach includes drafting policy briefings related to water contamination in the Great Lakes Region and speaking about green chemistry at the industry scale during the 28th Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC. She is excited to pursue a career in developing federal science policy solutions at the intersection of US climate resilience and the chemical manufacturing and energy industries.
Dallin Smith
Dallin Smith is currently working toward his Ph.D. at Texas A&M University. Previously, he earned his B.S. in chemistry with a minor in environmental science at Brigham Young University. His research focus is on environmentally benign fire protection of polymeric materials, including treatments for flammable polymeric substrates and inherently flame-retardant polymers.
Due to the historical use of halogenated substances in flame retardants and firefighting foams, there is strong interest in finding functional but benign alternatives. A promising way to do this is by utilizing nitrogen- and phosphorous-rich molecules found in nature (such as chitosan and phytic acid). Dallin is currently developing a flame-retardant adhesive resin from benign reagents to replace those typically made with formaldehyde.
Rita Bernadett Vlocskó
Rita Bernadett Vlocskó is a graduate student in green organic chemistry at the University of Massachusetts, Boston, where her primary focus is on novel green and sustainable design and synthesis of pharmaceutically relevant heterocycles. Motivated by the waste generated by traditional pharmaceutical processes, Rita is exploring the power of computational tools and big data to optimize syntheses and develop greener alternatives.
Another aspect of Rita’s research includes the rational chemical design for therapeutic candidates (such as preeclampsia, a relatively common disorder in pregnancy with no cure) that incorporate eco-friendly practices across generation, use, and disposal. Recognized for her teaching and mentoring abilities, Rita has also contributed to green chemistry education, book chapters, and literature reviews.
Zahria Patrick
Zahria Patrick is currently pursuing her B.S. in chemistry at the University of Missouri, where she also works as a research assistant. Her focus, alongside her advisor Dr. James Bashkin, is on finding greener synthetic routes that reduce halide-containing waste in common industry reactions. Working with Dr. Bashkin, Zahria aims to produce an intermediate to Glutethimide, a drug used to treat patients with insomnia, using the principles of green chemistry as well as other green protocols. In addition to her research, Zahria is interested in science communication and educating others about the importance of green chemistry.
Mairo Yamano
Mairo Yamano is working toward his B.A. with honors in chemistry and a course major in economics at Swarthmore College. His research focuses on minimizing environmental contamination related to copper. In the lab of Dr. Christopher Graves, Mairo is investigating using aluminum as a catalytic alternative to copper for atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) reactions. Using redox-active ligands, he has helped the group create tunable aluminum complexes that show catalytic activity in ATRP reactions. With his unique perspective that combines chemistry and economics, Mairo is motivated to innovate and communicate about new chemical processes that also reduce damage to the environment.
Photography by Brad Zangwill