Hello friends:
Greetings to you on a beautiful sunny day in State College after a rainy and damp winter and the beginning of spring. The University Park campus is resplendent with the colors of azaleas, phlox, and the ever-pleasing roses. The lines at the Nittany Lion Shrine are slowly starting to become more manageable, after the frenzy of spring graduation. It is indeed gratifying to note that the University has put forth the next generation of talented and well-trained young professionals to take on the myriad of challenges facing our society. The EMS Energy Institute also had its share of graduate and undergraduate students, well-trained in many aspects of energy research, who are eager to unleash their skills to shape the transformation that is ongoing in the energy sector. We wish them well and look forward to hearing about their career exploits and the major ways in which they have impacted the energy industry.
In the meantime, I have spent my first year as the director of the EMS Energy Institute mostly familiarizing myself with the current activities within the institute. We have an incredibly talented group of administrative and technical staff, and they constantly strive to outdo each other in contributing to making the institute a fantastic place to work. Despite budget reductions, personnel reorganization initiated by the University, and numerous demands placed by funding organizations, these staff members go about doing their jobs with the utmost dedication and diligence, and for that, I am extremely grateful. It gave us much happiness to celebrate our esteemed colleague Elizabeth Wood’s retirement. Liz, as many of you know, was the key person responsible for maintaining the institute’s presence on the worldwide web. She is a graphic artist par excellence, and her artistic touch is visible in nearly every poster on display on the walls of the institute.
Thanks to the enthusiasm of the staff and the army of research affiliates associated with the institute, we have been successful in launching several initiatives during this year.
Some of these are:
- Reorganization of the institute into four thematic areas:
- Materials and Minerals for the Energy Transition
- Science and Engineering of Energy Systems
- Socioeconomic and Environmental Aspects of the Energy Transition
- Predictive Data Analytics and Computational Aspects of the Energy Transition
For each thematic area, we identified a team of area leads. We entrusted these leads to engage researchers in discussions and produce recommendations for allocation of research resources such as labs, facilities, assignment of graduate assistants, seed funds, etc., recommend members to join the institute’s advisory board, and suggest names of speakers for the Energy Exchange Seminar Series.
- The institute underwent an external review in April 2024. Several activities were initiated and completed in preparation for the review. These included:
- Compilation of a self-study report. Although we decided to use much of the content in the report that was prepared in 2020 in preparation for the review that year, prior to it getting cancelled due to COVID-19, there were several items that needed to be revised and new sections added to highlight the future plans of the institute. We also added several new appendices to the report to highlight new initiatives, consortia, etc.
- Complete overhaul of posters and displays throughout the institute. This was a major job that involved drafting, printing, and displaying about seventy new posters around the EI complex.
- Sprucing up of laboratory facilities throughout the EI complex. As part of this effort, we have eliminated 98 percent of our old chemical inventory. In addition, we also went through the equipment in labs and tagged several old pieces of non-operational equipment to be hauled to salvage.
- Commissioned two new laboratories with shared analytical equipment. We accomplished this by relocating some of the gas chromatography-mass spectrometers, surface analyzers, and thermogravimetric analyzers and equipment that were sitting idle in single principal investigator’s labs into a shared lab. In addition, we have also created a sample preparation area with centrifuges, ovens, grinding and polishing equipment, etc.
- Cleaned out and created new laboratory spaces for research into plastics recycling and for creating a database of reaction kinetics for catalyst-aided low temperature oxidation, hydrogen storage in reservoir environments, mineral extraction, and optimization of energy usage for mineral comminution.
- Established an advisory board for the EMS Energy Institute consisting of members representing the various activities in the institute. This outstanding group of industry thought leaders and top-notch research managers in research labs are anxious to help the institute formulate its vision and engage in strategic development in key areas pertaining to the energy transition.
- Launched professional development activities for graduate students affiliated with the institute. This included the launch of a graduate seminar series that featured laboratory managers of major facilities on campus, a resume building session with a career planning professional, as well as a hands-on session focused on explaining the use of plastic, copper, and stainless-steel tubing with discussions on the use of Swagelok fittings. In addition to these activities, we have also invested some resources to create collaborative lounges for graduate students in two areas of the institute.
- Engagement in several other minor projects focused on upgrading the EI facilities. That includes projects like improved signage to indicate the EI facilities, a revamped lobby with a large monitor that serves both as an information display unit as well as a searchable people locator, and improved conference room facilities. I am sure you will appreciate these changes during your next visit to the institute.
Through all these activities, the institute has striven to provide top notch research support to all our affiliates. Whether it be helping projects with research accounting, ordering supplies and chemicals, aiding with organization of meetings, or assisting researchers in the setup of their lab, our staff remain committed to make these as streamlined and efficient as possible. They may be lean in number but large-hearted in their efforts to assist everyone affiliated with the institute. Together we will strive to attain even higher standards in service and efficiency.
Sanjay Srinivasan
Director, EMS Energy Institute
Penn State