Graduate Research Traineeship Program: Chemistry of the Environment

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9256458 Silbey The MIT Chemistry Department has been awarded a three year Graduate Research Traineeship Grant by the Chemistry Education Program to develop a traineeship program in Chemistry of the Environment. A group of 9 faculty in physical, inorganic, and chemical toxicology, will join in a coordinated study of the production, dispersion, and removal of chemical species in the natural environment, and their interactions with biological systems. Among the topics to be addressed are chemical processes in the stratosphere; detection of trace atomospheric pollutants; spectroscopy of hydrocarbon free radicals found in combustion; synthesis of improved materials for fuel cells and catalytic converters; biochemical studies of methanotrophic bacteria; molecular biology of environmental carcinogens; and theoretical analyses of pollutant diffusion in the atmosphere. New classroom subjects and seminars on the relations between chemistry, technology, and environmental policy will be offered as part of the program. %%% Chemical processes involving trace gases in the atmosphere, such as catalytic ozone destruction, gobal warming due to methane and carbon dioxide, and tropospheric pollution by nitrogen and sulfur oxides are now widely recognized as critical environmental threats. A principal focus of the MIT graduate traineeship program will be on the kinetics and spectroscopy of atmospheric molecules and radicals. The goal of this effort is to train a new generation of chemists better equipped to understand and deal with these important environmental issues. ***