Office of Research, UC Riverside
Jianzhong Wu
Professor
Chemical Environ Engineering D
jianzhon@ucr.edu
(951) 827-2413


NSF Workshop:New Vistas in Molecular Thermodynamics: Experimentation, Modeling and Inverse Design

AWARD NUMBER
009474-002
FUND NUMBER
33403
STATUS
Active
AWARD TYPE
3-Grant
AWARD EXECUTION DATE
1/2/2018
BEGIN DATE
1/1/2018
END DATE
12/31/2018
AWARD AMOUNT
$30,000

Sponsor Information

SPONSOR AWARD NUMBER
1807368
SPONSOR
NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
SPONSOR TYPE
Federal
FUNCTION
Organized Research
PROGRAM NAME

Proposal Information

PROPOSAL NUMBER
18040575
PROPOSAL TYPE
New
ACTIVITY TYPE
Other Research

PI Information

PI
Wu, Jianzhong
PI TITLE
Other
PI DEPTARTMENT
Chemical/Environ. Engineering
PI COLLEGE/SCHOOL
Bourns College of Engineering
CO PIs

Project Information

ABSTRACT

The project will support a workshop on Molecular Thermodynamics that will be held on the campus of the University of California-Berkeley, from January 7 to 9, 2018. The workshop will bring together technology leaders and junior researchers to develop a roadmap for basic research in response to emerging opportunities and challenges in the Chemical Process Industries. The workshop will foster debate and discussion among scholars from different areas of the Molecular Thermodynamics community to uncover fundamental research questions whose answers will enable overcoming current technological challenges. It will also will also cover topics related to modernizing Engineering Education. Successful development and implementation of new tools for process design and optimization will ensure sustained competitiveness of the U.S. chemical industry while also addressing environmental challenges and promoting energy efficiency.

Recent trends emphasizing environmental sustainability and improved energy efficiency in the chemical process industries have created new research opportunities in the field of Molecular Thermodynamics. By connecting the physicochemical properties of matter at all length scales, Molecular Thermodynamics has been an enabling tool to accelerate scientific innovations, catalyze emerging technologies, and provide core knowledge for design and optimization of diverse industrial systems, ranging from energy production, materials synthesis, and chemical processing to pharmaceutical and environmental applications. The rapid emergence of new methods in computational algorithms, data science and artificial intelligence provide a unique opportunity for innovation and interdisciplinary collaboration by integrating experimental and computational methods into powerful tools for process design and optimization. In addition to defining new research frontiers in the field of Molecular Thermodynamics, the workshop will also address curriculum development and workforce training issues to ensure continued world-wide competitiveness of the U.S. chemical industry.
(Abstract from NSF)