REU Site: Elements of Sustainability

位于俄亥俄州莫斯科的爱达荷大学获得了本科生研究体验(REU)现场奖，支持在2024-2026年夏季对10名学生进行为期10周的培训。在这个项目中，由化学系和既定的激励竞争性研究计划(EPSCoR)资助，学生将参与关注可持续发展的研究领域。学生将在培训计划中培养的技能包括可持续地使用和制造化学品、数据分析、使用化学诊断设备，以及检查从合成到处置的整个生命周期中化学过程的使用情况。该计划将包括在研究、道德和安全方面负责任的行为的核心培训，以及职业发展研讨会。REU网站还将战略性地从社区大学和研究机会有限的四年制院校招收学生。项目跨越化合物的整个生命周期，从合成、分析测试、应用到销毁或再利用。这项研究将围绕用于改善电池应用的新的碳同素异构体、混合金属回收、生物修复、可生物降解的生物塑料和可再生复合材料、生物工程、全氟烷基物质(PFAS)的降解以及生物基产品的添加剂制造。此外，学生将有机会选择关注合成有机化学、工程学、化学生物学和环境化学的导师。通过积极的研究体验，参与者还将获得技术技能、研究独立性，并了解如何在STEM相关职业和研究生教育中应用可持续的化学方法。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) site award to the University of Idaho, located in Moscow, ID, supports the training of 10 students for 10 weeks during the summers of 2024-2026. In this program, funded by the Division of Chemistry and the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR), students will participate in research areas focused on sustainability. Skills students will develop during the training program include sustainably using and making chemicals, data analysis, use of chemical diagnostic equipment, and examining usage of the chemical process over its entire lifecycle from synthesis to disposal. The program will incorporate core training in responsible conduct in research, ethics, and safety, together with career development workshops. The REU site will also strategically recruit students from community colleges and four-year institutions with limited research opportunities. Projects span the entire lifecycle of chemical compounds from synthesis, analytical testing, application, to destruction or reuse. The research will center around new allotropes of carbon for improved battery applications, mixed metal recycling, bioremediation, biodegradable bioplastics and renewable composites, bioengineering, PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) degradation, and additive manufacturing of biobased products. Moreover, students will have the opportunity to choose mentors with foci in synthetic organic chemistry, engineering, chemical biology, and environmental chemistry. Through an active research experience, participants will also gain technical skills, research independence, and learn about applying sustainable methods of chemistry in STEM related careers and graduate education.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.