NSF Workshop: New Vistas in Molecular Thermodynamics: Experimentation, Modeling and Inverse Design

该项目将支持将于2018年1月7日至9日在加州大学伯克利分校校园内举行的分子热力学研讨会。研讨会将汇集技术领导者和初级研究人员，为基础研究制定路线图，以应对化学加工工业中出现的机遇和挑战。该研讨会将促进来自分子热力学社区不同领域的学者之间的辩论和讨论，以揭示基础研究问题，其答案将有助于克服当前的技术挑战。它还将涵盖与现代化工程教育有关的主题。成功开发和实施新的工艺设计和优化工具将确保美国化学工业的持续竞争力，同时也解决环境挑战和提高能源效率。最近的趋势强调环境的可持续性和提高能源效率的化学过程工业创造了新的研究机会，在分子热力学领域。通过连接物质在所有长度尺度上的物理化学性质，分子热力学已成为加速科学创新，催化新兴技术，并为各种工业系统的设计和优化提供核心知识的工具，从能源生产，材料合成和化学加工到制药和环境应用。计算算法、数据科学和人工智能领域新方法的快速涌现，通过将实验和计算方法整合到流程设计和优化的强大工具中，为创新和跨学科合作提供了独特的机会。除了定义分子热力学领域的新研究前沿外，研讨会还将讨论课程开发和劳动力培训问题，以确保美国化学工业在全球范围内的持续竞争力。

The project will support a workshop on Molecular Thermodynamics that will be held on the campus of the University of California-Berkeley, from January 7 to 9, 2018. The workshop will bring together technology leaders and junior researchers to develop a roadmap for basic research in response to emerging opportunities and challenges in the Chemical Process Industries. The workshop will foster debate and discussion among scholars from different areas of the Molecular Thermodynamics community to uncover fundamental research questions whose answers will enable overcoming current technological challenges. It will also will also cover topics related to modernizing Engineering Education. Successful development and implementation of new tools for process design and optimization will ensure sustained competitiveness of the U.S. chemical industry while also addressing environmental challenges and promoting energy efficiency.Recent trends emphasizing environmental sustainability and improved energy efficiency in the chemical process industries have created new research opportunities in the field of Molecular Thermodynamics. By connecting the physicochemical properties of matter at all length scales, Molecular Thermodynamics has been an enabling tool to accelerate scientific innovations, catalyze emerging technologies, and provide core knowledge for design and optimization of diverse industrial systems, ranging from energy production, materials synthesis, and chemical processing to pharmaceutical and environmental applications. The rapid emergence of new methods in computational algorithms, data science and artificial intelligence provide a unique opportunity for innovation and interdisciplinary collaboration by integrating experimental and computational methods into powerful tools for process design and optimization. In addition to defining new research frontiers in the field of Molecular Thermodynamics, the workshop will also address curriculum development and workforce training issues to ensure continued world-wide competitiveness of the U.S. chemical industry.