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Research Experience for Undergraduates. Why are REU’s Especially Important Today?

How can undergraduate students learn more about clean energy at UConn? Julia Valla, Associate Professor at the Center for Clean Energy (C2E2), says we can do that through REU’s.  An REU program simply put, stands for a Research Experience for Undergraduates. Through these REU’s students can learn more about their field and get a closer look at information beyond their textbooks.

Apply on-line today!! h2-reu.energy.uconn.edu, deadline is February 20, 2022

Looking more in depth at this REU, it promotes an interdisciplinary based style of research opportunities rather than one that is set to only one discipline. In fall 2021, Dr. Valla was awarded an NSF REU titled A Convergent Approach on Traineeship Towards Realizing H2 EconomyShe explains the reason for studying this topic is that the “Hydrogen economy is a huge initiative today, and by 2050 we need to be carbon-free. Hydrogen is considered one of the most efficient fuel carriers today. We have technologies of production, hydrogen storage, and hydrogen transportation, but they are not commercial yet.” She outlines the goals for the REU as the following: 1) educate participants about the different technologies for hydrogen production, 2) storage, and utilization to unify students from underrepresented minorities to have equal opportunities, and 3) develop professional skills that can be used later in a student’s desired career field.

The REU program, focused on Hydrogen and led by Dr. Valla, will be held at UConn’s C2E2, where her research work is conducted. “Hydrogen is a key research area at the center for many of its faculty. The faculty utilize this opportunity, starting with the undergraduate and graduate students, to demonstrate how hydrogen technologies can help reduce the carbon footprint.” Although this REU is not just set for hydrogen related topics, students can explore any research area they are interested in. The main basis of an REU, Dr. Valla says, is for “undergraduate students to have the opportunity to work with a faculty member and their research group.  It also provides them with hands-on experience with testing beds, advanced characterization of materials, and instrumentation capabilities for testing/characterization.”  Participants will spend 10 weeks over the summer participating in graduate level research projects finding solutions to address those challenges.  The program is designed to offer 4 Thrust areas with each thrust area offering multiple projects. Students will have the opportunity to interact with industrial partners working in the field of hydrogen technologies.

Dr. Valla has a long history working in the field of clean and renewable energy, with a specialty in biofuels production. Her career goes across the Atlantic Ocean, where she first began her research in Greece, attaining a Ph.D. in chemical engineering from Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. After that, her path led her to be a Project Leader/Research Scientist at Rive Technology Inc. in Cambridge, MA. Eventually, her career led her to UConn, where she is currently an Associate Professor of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering. Some of her notable accomplishments are awards such as the 2015 ACS PRF Young Investigator Award and the 2019 National Science Foundation CAREER Award. With these successes and accomplishments, Dr. Valla is adding the REU program at UConn to that list.

Dr. Valla in her lab with graduate students Jeffrey Page and Lei Yu

 

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