This project is part of the AAMP-UP '22 program, which focuses on energetic material research.
AAMP-UP is separate but highly partnered with SURF.

The project is run by Dr. Stephen Beaudoin and his team. Additively manufactured energetic materials do not adhere to themselves and casings with sufficient strength to survive gun launch. This project is focused on assessing the properties of the energetic composites that dictate how strongly the composites adhere to themselves and to their casings. The measurements will be made by cutting the composites and measuring the force required to initiate and propagate a crack, and also by using atomic force microscopy to measure directly the adhesion between energetic particles and binders and casings.

Chemical Unit Operations, Chemical Catalysis and Synthesis, Composite Materials and Alloys, Fabrication and Robotics, Material Modeling and Simulation, Material Processing and Characterization, Other

• No Major Restriction

Must be a U.S. citizen, national, or permanent resident of the United States. Must have completed at least one academic semester of full-time study at associate's or bachelor's degree level from an accredited college or university.

Chemical Engineering

Stephen Beaudoin

This project is part of the AAMP-UP '22 program, which focuses on energetic material research.
AAMP-UP is separate but highly partnered with SURF.

The project is run by Dr. Bryan Boudouris and his team. The overarching objective of this project is to create polymeric binders that have robust electrical and mechanical properties. This will be achieved by modifying commercially-available materials as well as synthesizing next-generation conducting polymers. By developing the appropriate structure-property-processing relationships, we will develop, and eventually deploy, binders with electronically-triggerable properties. Specifically, the student associated with this project will focus on the design and mechanical testing of polymers and polymer-based binders for energetic materials applications.

There are no specific prerequisites in coursework or associated knowledge for this project. However, a chemistry or chemical engineering major would be the most relevant degree plan.

Chemical Unit Operations, Chemical Catalysis and Synthesis, Composite Materials and Alloys, Material Processing and Characterization

• No Major Restriction

Must be a U.S. citizen, national, or permanent resident of the United States. Must have completed at least one academic semester of full-time study at associate's or bachelor's degree level from an accredited college or university.

Chemical Engineering

Bryan Boudouris

This project is part of the AAMP-UP '22 program, which focuses on energetic material research.
AAMP-UP is separate but highly partnered with SURF.

The project is run by Dr. Steven Son and his team. The research topic seeks to explore the high-rate mechanics of energetic materials under impact or shock or detonation. It will involve advanced sample preparation, including microscale machining of energetic materials, as well as high rate experiments. The student would work closely with Research Scientists and graduate students to design experiments, perform experiments, analyze data, and report/share these results.

Chemical Catalysis and Synthesis, Composite Materials and Alloys, Material Modeling and Simulation, Material Processing and Characterization

• No Major Restriction

Must be a U.S. citizen, national, or permanent resident of the United States. Must have completed at least one academic semester of full-time study at associate's or bachelor's degree level from an accredited college or university.

Mechanical Engineering

Steven Son

This project is part of the AAMP-UP '22 program, which focuses on energetic material research.
AAMP-UP is separate but highly partnered with SURF.

The project is run by Dr. Steve Son and his team. The objective of this project would be to determine the similarity of mass flow rate for a variety of inert materials and ammonium perchlorate (AP) for multi-modal size distributions. The undergraduate student would gain experience researching relevant literature, mixing samples, designing experiments, and analyzing the data for the mock materials as well as assisting with the same tests using energetic materials.

Chemical Unit Operations, Chemical Catalysis and Synthesis, Composite Materials and Alloys, Material Modeling and Simulation, Material Processing and Characterization

• No Major Restriction

Must be a U.S. citizen, national, or permanent resident of the United States. Must have completed at least one academic semester of full-time study at associate's or bachelor's degree level from an accredited college or university.

Mechanical Engineering

Steve Son

This project is part of the AAMP-UP '22 program, which focuses on energetic material research.
AAMP-UP is separate but highly partnered with SURF.

The project is run by Dr. Steve Son and his team. Piezoelectric energetic materials (piezoenergetics or PEMs) offer the potential for a new generation of smart propellants and pyrotechnics with multifunctional capabilities that can be actively controlled via external stimuli. However, the fundamental physics and chemistry governing energy transfer, energy repartitioning, and chemical reactions/kinetics resulting from external stimulation of PEMs are not well understood. It is envisioned that, by coupling piezoelectric behavior and nanoenergetics, truly smart and switchable materials can result. Specifically, we envision reactive piezoelectric materials with multifunctional properties with reactivity and microstructure that can be controlled and altered by external stimuli including stress, temperature, or electromagnetic fields; while enabling integrated in situ sensing. The REU student would be mentored by two graduate students and would design experiments, perform those experiments, collect data and present/share those results.

Chemical Catalysis and Synthesis, Composite Materials and Alloys, Material Modeling and Simulation, Material Processing and Characterization

• No Major Restriction

Must be a U.S. citizen, national, or permanent resident of the United States. Must have completed at least one academic semester of full-time study at associate's or bachelor's degree level from an accredited college or university.

Mechanical Engineering

Steven Son

This project is part of the AAMP-UP '22 program, which focuses on energetic material research.
AAMP-UP is separate but highly partnered with SURF.

The project is run by Dr. Steven Son and his team. High density fuels, typically metals, are commonly added to propellants and explosives to improve their performance, as well as other factors such as sensitivity and toxicity. Other novel fuels could include solvated electrons (dissolved metals in ammonia, for example). This research topic explores the development, small-scale manufacturing, and characterization of high-density fuels in energetic materials. Particular emphasis is placed on emergent material systems, such as aluminum-lithium alloys, oxide-free coated nano-aluminum, and mechanically activated (MA) fuels. The REU student would work closely with Research Scientists and graduate students to design experiments, perform experiments, analyze data, and report/share these results.

Chemical Unit Operations, Chemical Catalysis and Synthesis, Composite Materials and Alloys, Material Modeling and Simulation, Material Processing and Characterization

• No Major Restriction

Must be a U.S. citizen, national, or permanent resident of the United States. Must have completed at least one academic semester of full-time study at associate's or bachelor's degree level from an accredited college or university.

Mechanical Engineering

Steven Son

This project is part of the AAMP-UP '22 program, which focuses on energetic material research.
AAMP-UP is separate but highly partnered with SURF.

The project is run by Dr. Steven Son and his team. Of the many techniques that have been employed to increase burning rates, embedding thermally-conductive and/or reactive wires appears to be the approach to do so without increasing sensitivity. We are utilizing our additive manufacturing capabilities, including vibration assisted printing (VAP), to produce both the wires and the propellant. These “wires” may not actually be metals, but include thermally conductive materials such as graphene. The objective of this project is to use both fused deposition modeling (FDM) and direct writing 3D printing techniques to tailor the surface area of propellants dynamically using conductive and reactive wire deposition. The REU student would work closely with Research Scientists and graduate students to design experiments, perform experiments, analyze data, and report/share these results.

Chemical Catalysis and Synthesis, Composite Materials and Alloys, Material Modeling and Simulation, Material Processing and Characterization

• No Major Restriction

Must be a U.S. citizen, national, or permanent resident of the United States. Must have completed at least one academic semester of full-time study at associate's or bachelor's degree level from an accredited college or university.

Mechanical Engineering

Steven Son

This project is part of the AAMP-UP '22 program, which focuses on energetic material research.
AAMP-UP is separate but highly partnered with SURF.

The project is run by Dr. Davin Piercey and his team. It is centered around chemical synthesis of new materials for use in propellants, explosives, and pyrotechnics.

Completion of both Organic Chemistry classes and labs is a requirement for the students who fill this position. There is not a specific major requirement, but Chemistry and Chemical Engineering degree plans would be the most relevant.

Chemical Unit Operations, Chemical Catalysis and Synthesis, Composite Materials and Alloys, Material Processing and Characterization

• No Major Restriction

Organic Chemistry classes & labs. Must be a U.S. citizen, national, or permanent resident of the United States. Must have completed at least one academic semester of full-time study at associate's or bachelor's degree level from an accredited college or university.

Materials and Mechanical Engineering

Davin Piercey

This project is supported by CISTAR, an NSF Engineering Research Center headquartered at Purdue.

Electrochemical reactions are a critical component of technologies to generate energy and fuels with lower carbon footprint. Metal-functionalized carbon materials are promising electrocatalysts, and their catalytic performance is influenced by the porous and surface properties of the carbon support. This project will focus on developing novel methods to synthesize carbon supports with tailored pore structures and surface properties. The student will learn about catalyst synthesis techniques, characterization methods for bulk and atomic structure (X-ray diffraction, spectroscopy, microscopy), and catalyst evaluation. This project will be co-advised by Professor Brian Tackett .

Students working on this project will also have the opportunity to participate in information sessions, tours and informal mentoring with CISTAR's partner companies.

Purdue students are not eligible for this project. Students must be from outside institutions. Participants must be US Citizens. Students with disabilities, veterans, and those from traditionally underrepresented groups in STEM are encouraged to apply.

Chemical Catalysis and Synthesis

• Chemical Engineering

School of Chemical Engineering

Rajamani Gounder

This project is supported by CISTAR, an NSF Engineering Research Center headquartered at Purdue.

CISTAR's vision is to convert natural gas liquids, for example, ethane and propane, to fuels and chemicals by two catalytic steps. The first requires dehydrogenation of alkanes to olefins, which are subsequently converted to final products. This project investigates a new class of catalyst for conversion of ethylene and propylene to higher molecular weight hydrocarbons suitable for blending into gasoline or diesel fuels. These reactions occur at high temperature and pressure in a fixed bed reactor. The research plan is to synthesize catalysts and test these to determine the rates, selectivity and stability.

Students working on this project will also have the opportunity to participate in information sessions, tours and informal mentoring with CISTAR's partner companies.

Purdue students are not eligible for this project. Students must be from outside institutions. Participants must be US Citizens. Students with disabilities, veterans, and those from traditionally underrepresented groups in STEM are encouraged to apply.

Chemical Catalysis and Synthesis

• Chemical Engineering
• Chemistry

None, but reaction engineering is desirable.

Chemical Engineering

Jeff Miller

This project is supported by CISTAR, an NSF Engineering Research Center headquartered at Purdue.

In this project, students will develop precise colloidal and impregnation-based syntheses for supported metal alloy nanoparticles. These materials will then be utilized as heterogeneous catalysts in thermal and solution-phase hydrogenation and dehydrogenation reactions. A particular focus will be placed on controlling the ensemble geometry and electronic properties of the alloy surface in order achieve highly selective catalysis.

Students working on this project will also have the opportunity to participate in information sessions, tours and informal mentoring with CISTAR's partner companies.

Purdue students are not eligible for this project. Students must be from outside institutions. Participants must be US Citizens. Students with disabilities, veterans, and those from traditionally underrepresented groups in STEM are encouraged to apply.

Chemical Catalysis and Synthesis

• Chemistry
• Chemical Engineering
• Materials Engineering

General chemistry, organic chemistry

Chemistry Department

Christina Li

This project is supported by CISTAR, an NSF Engineering Research Center headquartered at Purdue.

Zeolites are crystalline materials that are used as catalysts for upgrading light hydrocarbons from shale gas into transportation fuels and chemicals. However, improved catalyst materials that are more active, selective and stable are needed. These aspects of catalytic performance are linked to their atomic-scale properties, specifically the distribution of Al atoms in the crystalline material. This project will focus on developing novel methods to synthesize zeolite materials with different Al site distributions. The student will learn about catalyst synthesis techniques, characterization methods for bulk and atomic structure (X-ray diffraction, spectroscopy, microscopy), and catalyst evaluation.

Students working on this project will also have the opportunity to participate in information sessions, tours and informal mentoring with CISTAR's partner companies.

Purdue students are not eligible for this project. Students must be from outside institutions. Participants must be US Citizens. Students with disabilities, veterans, and those from traditionally underrepresented groups in STEM are encouraged to apply.

Chemical Catalysis and Synthesis

• Chemical Engineering

School of Chemical Engineering

Rajamani Gounder

This project is supported by CISTAR, an NSF Engineering Research Center headquartered at Purdue.

Ethylene and propylene are the largest volume organic intermediates. Almost all ethylene is produced by steam cracking of natural gas condensates (mostly ethane and propane) or of refinery light naphtha (also mostly ethane and propane), co-producing hydrogen. Because of natural gas combustion in the cracking furnaces, and the gasification of coke deposits, and all the electricity required for the process and refrigeration systems compressors, ethylene production indirectly results large amounts of carbon dioxide emissions to the atmosphere, which is unsustainable.
One possible carbon dioxide mitigation strategy would be to fit carbon capture and sequestration technologies onto the cracking furnace flues, onto the CO2 absorption strippers (if used), and onto the fossil-fueled power plants producing electricity for the process and refrigeration compressors. As an alternative to fossil-fueled power plants with carbon capture and sequestration, there are other existing (near) zero-carbon electricity sources including for example nuclear, hydro, geothermal, wind, solar thermal, and solar photovoltaic.
The aim of this project is to design a world-scale condensate cracking plant to produce polymer-grade ethylene and propylene using only renewable electricity utilities.

Students working on this project will also have the opportunity to participate in information sessions, tours and informal mentoring with CISTAR's partner companies.

Purdue students are not eligible for this project. Students must be from outside institutions. Participants must be US Citizens. Students with disabilities, veterans, and those from traditionally underrepresented groups in STEM are encouraged to apply.

Chemical Unit Operations, Chemical Catalysis and Synthesis, Material Modeling and Simulation

• Chemical Engineering
• Mechanical Engineering
• Electrical Engineering

Note - Chemical Engineering – Preferred; Mechanical and Electrical Engineering – Acceptable.

School of Chemical Engineering

Cornelius Masuku

This project is supported by CISTAR, an NSF Engineering Research Center headquartered at Purdue.

While chemical engineering evolved against the backdrop of an abundant supply of fossil resources, re-cent trend of carbon neutrality offers an unprecedented opportunity to imagine more sustainable chemical plants with net-zero carbon emission. In CISTAR, we are interested in converting shale gas into useful chemicals without any carbon emissions during the process, which requires careful selection of product combination and innovative design of chemical processes. In this project, the student will participate in synthesis, simulation and optimization of processes described above.

Students working on this project will also have the opportunity to participate in information sessions, tours and informal mentoring with CISTAR's partner companies.

Purdue students are not eligible for this project. Students must be from outside institutions. Participants must be US Citizens. Students with disabilities, veterans, and those from traditionally underrepresented groups in STEM are encouraged to apply.

Chemical Unit Operations, Chemical Catalysis and Synthesis, Material Modeling and Simulation

• Chemical Engineering

School of Chemical Engineering

Rakesh Agrawal

Chemical spills and backflow incidents are common threats to drinking water distribution and plumbing systems. Sometimes free product and drinking water with dissolved contaminants can travel through this infrastructure and reach building faucets. When this occurs health officials, system owners, and infrastructure owners rapidly seek information about whether individual constituents became sequestered in certain parts of the systems and how best to remove them. Plastics are an important concern because many are easily permeated by organic compounds which prompts them to leach chemicals into clean water making it unsafe.

In response to drinking water contamination incidents over the past 20 years and requests from health departments and households affected, this project will examine the fate of fuel chemicals in contact with plumbing materials (i.e., pipes, gaskets) and plastic personal effect materials (i.e., baby bottles, plates, cups, etc.). Diesel, gasoline and crude oil are being considered. The student will conduct the contamination experiments, collect water samples and analyze them using state-of-the-art instrumentation. The student will analyze, interpret, and report the information with advisement of one graduate research assistant and two faculty who respond to these types of water contamination incidents.

Other questions that may be explored include the chlorination of the fuel components and formation of disinfectant byproducts, mechanical integrity impacts on the plastic materials, chemical transformations of the leached products. This work directly supports emergency response and recovery activities of the Center for Plumbing Safety.

Chemical Unit Operations, Chemical Catalysis and Synthesis, Engineering the Built Environment, Environmental Characterization, Other

• Environmental and Ecological Engineering
• Chemistry
• Chemical Engineering
• Civil Engineering
• Materials Engineering
• Materials Science
• Plastics Engineering
• Agricultural Engineering
• Pharmacy
• Military Science
• Public Health
• Environmental Health Sciences
• Food Science

Strong internal motivation to learn Basic understanding of chemistry

CE & EEE

Andrew Whelton

Packaging is a critical feature of the food delivery supply chain. Food packaging is not just there to “hold” food but provides a critical function of preservation over long periods in a wide variety of temperature and humidity conditions. Plastics are the material of choice for many applications due to its low density and cost for the function and can actually be lower total carbon emissions that other materials such as glass and paper. Unfortunately, most are not inherently sustainable. However, as food waste is ~10% of greenhouse gas emissions, elimination of plastic in packaging could actually be worse for the environment. What is needed is an alternative material that can obtain the same stringent barrier requirements that is sustainable. Cellulose is one such material and is biodegradable as well. This project will investigate Cellulose Nanomaterials extracted from trees to investigate sustainable packaging. Due to its nanoscale size, it obtains properties more like plastic films than paper with regards to barrier, strength, etc. Alternatively, research will be conducted into finding replacements for aqueous fluorinated fire-fighting foams (AFFF). AFFF is currently the only qualified milspec Naval fire fighting foam surfactant, but the principal component, fluorosurfactants, are known toxic compounds, hence, replacement is necessary. This project will research non-toxic, non-fluorinated replacements as well as additives to improve performance. At this point, it is unknown which project will be pursued, but it is sure that fun with sustainable materials will be had!

Chemical Catalysis and Synthesis, Material Processing and Characterization

• No Major Restriction

Enthusiasm and interest for materials engineering, chemistry, and sustainability.

MSE

Jeffrey Youngblood

Water and energy are tightly linked resources that must both become renewable for a successful future. However, today, water and energy resources are often in conflict with one another, especially related to impacts on electric grids. Further, advances in nanotechnology, material science and artificial intelligence allow for new avenues to improve the widespread implementation of desalination and water purification technology. The team is pursuing multiple projects that aim to explore solar and wind-powered desalination, nanofabricated membranes, light-driven reactions, artificial intelligence control algorithms, and thermodynamic optimization of energy systems. The student will be responsible for fabricating membranes, building hydraulic systems, modeling thermal fluid phenomenon, analyzing data, or implementing control strategies in novel system configurations. More information here: www.warsinger.com

Big Data/Machine Learning, Chemical Catalysis and Synthesis, Ecology and Sustainability, Energy and Environment, Engineering the Built Environment, Environmental Characterization, Fluid Modelling and Simulation, Material Modeling and Simulation, Nanotechnology, Thermal Technology

• Mechanical Engineering
• Civil Engineering
• Environmental and Ecological Engineering
• Chemistry
• Chemical Engineering
• Materials Engineering

Applicants should have an interest in thermodynamics, water treatment, and sustainability. Applicants with experience in some (not all) of the following are preferred: experimental design and prototyping, manufacturing, Python, LabView, EES, MATLAB, 3D CAD Software, & Adobe Illustrator. Rising Juniors and Seniors are preferred.

Mechanical Engineering

David Warsinger