DSU Chemistry Scientists Awarded $1m Research Grant

A team of faculty scientists from the DSU’s Department of Chemistry has been awarded a three-year $1 million grant from the National Science Foundation that will expand the research capacity of its doctoral program into the materials chemistry arena.

The grant will fund a project entitled “Advanced Nanomaterials for Energy Research and Applications (ANERA)” and enhance the research infrastructure by focusing DSU’s existing Applied Chemistry Ph.D. program on materials chemistry research.

In addition to funding a comprehensive research program and fellowships to support graduate students, the grant will enable to the development of new materials chemistry courses, as well as develop a growing network of material scientists in Delaware.

The research is designed to create novel catalytic materials with unprecedented composition properties that could be used in biomass conversion to biofuels and valuable chemicals.

The research program – under the grant title of ANERA RISE – is expected to have the broader impact of preparing underrepresented groups, such as African Americans and women, in STEM research disciplines to become competitive future scientists.

The principal investigator of the grant is Dr. Cherese Winstead, chair of the DSU Department of Chemistry. The co-investigators are Dr. Cheng-Yu Lai, associate professor of Chemistry, and Dr. Daniela R. Radu, assistant professor.