AirUCI grad student Mallory Hinks of the Nizkorodov group has been offered the American Institute for Physics Congressional Science Fellowship, and she will start her career in science policy in Washington, D.C. in the fall... congratulations, Mallory!
News
Here's the latest news from AirUCI — our events, our people, our science.
2017
Monday, April 3, 2017
AirUCI faculty Jack Brouwer, associate director of AirUCI's partner institute APEP, announced that their research on power-to-gas technology potentially holds the ability to dramatically increase the use of intermittent renewable energy. In partnership with Southern California Gas Company, APEP has demonstrated that the UC Irvine campus microgrid could increase the portion of renewable energy it uses from 3.5% to 35% by implementing a power-to-gas strategy.
"With power-to-gas technology, you don’t need to stop renewable power generation when demand is low. Instead, the excess electricity can be used to make hydrogen that can be integrated into existing natural gas pipeline infrastructure and stored for later use," says Jack. “This research clearly shows that power-to-gas technology can increase the use of renewable energy and should be an important component in meeting California’s clean energy and greenhouse-gas reduction goals,” says Jeff Reed, director of business strategy and advanced technology at SoCalGas.
Read the article
Wednesday, March 29, 2017
AirUCI faculty Steven Davis is working to map the migration of air pollution risk to regions far from factories that produce the pollution. “Previous studies proved that air pollution can travel great distances and cause harm far from emitting factories,” Steve says. “Our research shows that trade extends the distance between cause and effect by separating consumers in one region and people who suffer adverse health impacts, who are often on the other side of the world.”
Read the article
Read the article in Science Magazine
Thursday, March 9, 2017
AirUCI's Mallory Hinks, graduate student in the Nizkorodov group. has been awarded a fellowship from the UCI Chancellor’s Club Fund for Excellence. These fellowships are designed to recognize and reward some of UCI's most gifted graduate students. Congratulations, Mallory!
Thursday, March 9, 2017
AirUCI faculty Filipp Furche's work is the basis for a collaborative study of plutonium with Los Alamos National Laboratory. This finding uncovered a significant new chemical attribute of plutonium—the identification and structural verification of the +2 oxidation state in a molecular system—and marks out plutonium, already known for its extremely complex chemistry, as the actinide element with the largest number of confirmed oxidation states.
Read the article
Tuesday, March 7, 2017
The research group of AirUCI faculty Michael Prather has found that the combination of prolonged hot spells with poor air quality greatly compounds the negative effects of each and can pose a major risk to human health. Prather’s group made the findings after examining 15 years of surface observations (1999-2013) for the eastern United States and Canada.
Read the article
Sunday, March 5, 2017
In honor of the 30th anniversary of Women's History Month, UCI's web site listed a number of UC Irvine women faculty who excel in their fields and AirUCI co-Director Barbara Finlayson-Pitts was featured among them. Well deserved, and congratulations, Barbara! View article
Tuesday, February 28, 2017
Nitrogen trifluoride, or NF3, is a key chemical agent used to manufacture certain types of photovoltaic cells for solar panels, as well as semiconductors and LCD flat screens. NF3 is thought to be 17,200 times more potent than carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas, according to the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. An article on Seeker.com quotes AirUCI faculty Michael Prather on the importance of tracking and ameliorating the effects of NF3.
Read the article
Monday, February 27, 2017
AirUCI faculty John Hemminger has been awarded the U.S. Department of Energy Secretary’s Appreciation Award. The text of the presentation read in part:
"in recognition of your visionary leadership over 15 years of the Basic Energy Sciences Advisory Committee. Through your skilled guidance as chairman, the committee has produced compelling strategies for cutting-edge fundamental science and world-leading scientific user facilities that are central to the United States competitiveness and the Department’s mission. This exacting work, punctuated by several highly acclaimed committee reports, continues to inform critical federal investments with a profound impact on the Nation’s science and technology enterprise. We are grateful for your dedicated service to the people of the United States of America." Signed: Ernest J. Moniz, Secretary of Energy, January, 2017.
Wednesday, February 22, 2017
The 2017 winners of James N. Pitts award are Derek DuBois and Mary Villareal. This award is given annually in honor of the late Jim Pitts, chemistry legend and husband and research partner of AirUCI co-Director Barbara Finlayson-Pitts. Congratulations to both winners!
Derek followed a roundabout path to chemistry research, taking several years off from school in his 20s and working in various careers. When he returned to UCI as a Chemistry major, he joined the research team of Prof. James Nowick whose group works to gain understanding of protein and peptide assembly. His enthusiasm for research and his drive to succeed stood out among the applicants for the Pitts award.
Mary is the first in her family to pursue a college education and discovered her love for chemistry while exploring other career options, including nursing and biology. She overcame a number of obstacles and persisted in her studies, often with very little support. Her goal after graduation is to attend graduate school for an advanced degree with an eye toward developing natural medical products.
