May 24, 2021
Steven Wilson and Gabriel Nile hope to contribute to innovations that would lead to more sustainable energy systems and more effective resource conservation technologies.
The two chemical engineering graduate students at Arizona State University’s Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering have reason to be optimistic about achieving these goals.
Chemical engineering graduate student Gabriel Nile will work with NASA researchers to bring improved technology to spacecraft crews to more effectively recycle water during space missions. Photo courtesy Jordan Nile
Download full screen
The advances they made with ambitious research projects during their studies have given them the opportunity to work with engineers and scientists from major federal agencies.
Wilson was awarded a U.S. Department of Energy Graduate Scholarship in Computational Science to support his efforts to advance the generation, storage, and delivery of renewable energy.
Wilson’s scholarship helps doctoral students use their powerful computer skills to solve complex scientific and technical problems.
In addition to his research at ASU, the fellowship will allow Wilson to expand his expertise by spending three months in a national DOE laboratory over the next three years.
Nile was inducted into NASA’s Space Technology Graduate Research Opportunities program, which encourages graduate participation in developing new technologies to advance the country’s space exploration missions.
He will work with a NASA specialist in his field and become part of a larger group of technical experts and researchers working in an area of space technology research that matches his technical interests.
Nile will work 10 weeks per year in various NASA laboratories for at least three years.
Wilson’s research focuses on the computational modeling of chemical systems for energy storage. He is also working to identify solid metal oxide materials best suited for effective storage and ways to adapt power grids to renewable, clean energy sources.
Advances in this direction could not only be a big step in the sustainability of energy systems, but also provide a blueprint for backup systems for conventional power grids, he said, adding that such systems could help prevent the widespread failure that the Texas recently experienced.
Steven Wilson, a PhD student in chemical engineering at Arizona State University’s Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering, will work with US Department of Energy researchers on his projects to develop advances in the use of renewable energy generation, storage and delivery. Photo courtesy Steven Wilson
Wilson’s journey into engineering began during his 10 years in the US Navy. As chief petty officer in charge of a division at Reactor Laboratories, he led a team that oversaw chemistry and radiological controls on board naval nuclear vessels. As the watch’s qualified engineering officer, he oversaw the commissioning, shutdown and maintenance of a $ 1 billion nuclear power plant.
By the time he arrived at ASU to begin undergraduate studies, Wilson already had research and leadership skills, said Christopher Muhich, assistant professor of chemical engineering at the School for Engineering of Matter, Transport and Energy, one of the six Fulton schools. Wilson soon joined Muhich’s lab and became a valuable contributor.
Muhich, now Wilson’s graduate advisor, notes that he has “achieved some amazing things for someone who has just completed his first year of PhD,” including the publication of two research papers and the lead author of a third paper that says about “some really cutting “is reported to be -edge stuff. “
Muhich specifically points to Wilson’s creative combination of computational chemistry and machine learning to discover methods of using certain materials to store renewable energy. These methods could be essential in enabling the transition from fossil fuels to environmentally friendly systems, he said.
Such a fundamental shift, however, will mean that “the reliability of power grids increasingly depends on increasing capacities to store solar, wind and tidal energy,” said Muhich, and Wilson’s work looks like it can help meet this challenge.
“I want to do something that doesn’t just make some improvements to what we’ve done,” said Wilson. “I want to keep doing chemistry, physics, and computing so we can have smart renewable energy systems that do things better than what we’ve done before.”
The same applies to Nils research efforts. He wants to provide new technologies to increase the effectiveness of water recycling and water purification on board spacecraft.
This work includes the development of membranes that are able to thoroughly separate contaminants from water at the molecular level. He will focus on what he calls “enhancing selective water transport” by developing new ultra-thin membranes that can be used to extract more clean water from wastewater and even humidity in spacecraft.
The circuit diagrams show the technology developed by Gabriel Nile to provide recycled water to spacecraft crews during their space exploration missions. The system uses low molecular weight layers to create membranes that filter out contaminants in water. Illustrations by Kailong Jin / ASU
The success of the process is based on the controlled stacking of complex structured molecular layers in order to produce membranes through which only water can pass.
Even minor improvements in the amount of water that can be recycled in space should dramatically improve NASA’s ability to sustain larger exploration activities, Nile said.
By reducing the demand for expensive water supplies for spacecraft crews, missions to Mars or beyond would become more profitable endeavors, he said.
Nile is excited about the possibility that one day technologies that he helped develop will play an important role in space travel.
“I really enjoy working on chemical separation processes,” he said. “This opportunity to work with NASA experts inspired me to delve deeper into this work.”
Nile will receive solid support for his research endeavors at ASU. Chemical separation and membrane filtration are a strength of the Fulton Schools chemical engineering program, said Kailong Jin, assistant professor of chemical engineering and Niles research advisor.
“With our combined expertise in porous materials, inorganic materials and synthetic materials, I believe we can actually make real progress in this area,” said Jin.
In addition to the collaboration and mentoring benefits Wilson and Nile receive from working with national laboratories as PhD students, there are also potential long-term career benefits.
According to Muhich and Jin, heads of national agencies are looking for students to participate in these research programs and are looking for talent who match the agencies ‘laboratories’ requirements for new employees.
“This experience will give them a huge head start when it comes to finding good opportunities in research laboratories or as university faculty members when they finish school,” said Muhich.
Comments are closed.