Photo by Shivani Jinger
For Rylee Marks, an Honors College student who will earn her bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering this year, the plan was always straightforward: finish college, enter industry.
“I thought, I’m going to spend four years getting my degree,” Marks said. “After four years, I’m going to industry, working in energy consulting.”
The National Science Foundation has selected Oregon State University as one of 16 research institutions to receive Phase 1 grants for the 2023 Convergence Accelerator program’s Track I: Sustainable Materials for Global Challenges, a $11.5 million investment targeting a global need for critical materials in infrastructure, health care, national security, and energy.
Photos by Johanna Carson.
Kelsey Stoerzinger, assistant professor of chemical engineering, has been granted an award from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Early Career Research Program.
Machine learning is making inroads into chemical engineering, where it’s helping researchers develop new nanoporous materials for a variety of applications.
Riley Humbert likes to work with her hands, from knitting to rock climbing to building the parts she needs for homebrewing beer. Together with her dad, the fourth-year chemical engineering major built a mash tun, where grains steep and become the sugar water containing all the nutrients yeast need to ferment beer.
Juniors Tucker Holstun and Yesh Godse are among 396 college students selected from approximately 5,000 potential candidates across the United States to receive the award for the 2020-2021 academic year.
The scholarships are awarded based on academic merit to college sophomores and juniors who exhibit intellectual intensity and exceptional promise of becoming research leaders and who show potential for significant contributions to research in their chosen fields, according to the scholarship program’s mission statement.
Ambassador Adam Al-Mulla (’95 B.S., Chemical Engineering), now serving as Kuwait’s permanent delegate to UNESCO, credits Oregon State University with opening his eyes to the passion that has driven his career.
That passion would eventually lead him to work with people from various cultures and backgrounds to promote education, science, and cultural preservation and appreciation throughout the world.
After a fulfilling career as a chemical engineer, one Oregon State University alumnus is now calling the shots as a Hollywood producer.
“I am curious by nature and love to solve problems. Chemical engineering gave me the opportunity to use those skills, as did my time in management in the oil business. Now I’m thrilled to be using those skills in a third career in Hollywood,” said Ivan Williams.
Williams described his circuitous career path from chemical engineer to business executive to movie producer as a journey that began on the campus of Oregon State.
Crabbing off the Oregon Coast is literally a case of “pot luck.” On a good day, you might pull up your crab pots to find them brimming with the daily catch limit.
Other times, your pots come up empty.
Kaichang Li, professor of chemical engineering at Oregon State University, recalls one fruitless crabbing excursion in particular, back in 1999. Denied their hoped-for feast of Dungeness after a disappointing day on the water, he and his companion opted to hunt for mussels instead.
