Davidson School of Chemical Engineering graduating senior Justin Senyk finished in the top 3 poster presentations at the recent 2020 Spring Undergraduate Research Conference Symposium. His project, Density Functional Theory Study of Propane Dehydrogenation on Ni-Zn Alloys, was conducted to evaluate Ni-Zn alloys as catalysts for propane dehydrogenation. Project mentors were Chemical Engineering Professor Jeffrey Greeley and ChE PhD student Ranga Rohit Seemakurthi.

 

Purdue University’s 2020 Spring Undergraduate Research Conference, formerly known as the Purdue Undergraduate Research Poster Symposium (URPS) is the largest annual showcase of undergraduate research across all disciplines. This event highlights the scholarly work and creative endeavors undergraduate students have been engaged in through oral or poster presentations and awards top students with both financial and non-financial awards.

 

In light of COVID-19, Spring 2020 conference was held virtually. Over 80 Engineering graduate students, faculty and staff volunteered to judge the College of Engineering poster submissions. The College of Engineering were involved in the judging of the posters as well as provision of financial awards and recognitions — $300 for the first place, $200 for the second place, and $100 for the third place. The Engineering Undergraduate Research Office (EURO) partnered with the Office of Undergraduate Research (OUR) to assess and scientifically evaluate all poster and oral research submissions.

 

The volunteer judges from the College of Engineering provided feedback to the undergraduate student presenters throughout the virtual conference. The top posters out of the 87 presentations were selected based on the formal feedback received on content, organization, and documentation. In addition to the judges’ feedback, a special committee from the Engineering Undergraduate Research Office was formed to select and disperse the top 3 poster presentation awards and honorable mentions, recognizing them for their research contributions and advancing scientific knowledge.

 

Read the full news release here.