Chemical Analysis of CO2 Capture Solvent Degradation Products

Program Goals

The Professional Internship Program is designed to introduce undergraduate students and recent Bachelor's graduates to the challenges of conducting energy research, and enable graduate students and recent Master's graduates to further build off their studies and experience as they join the scientific community. Participants interact daily with assigned mentors who guide research and project activities during the internship, while they become integral members of project teams.

The program goals include providing the opportunity to participants to:

• Develop skills and knowledge in their field of study
• Engage with new areas of basic and applied research
• Transition classroom theory into hands-on experience
• Network with world-class scientists
• Exchange ideas and skills with the Laboratory community
• Use state-of-the-art equipment
• Contribute to answers for today's pressing scientific questions
• Collaborate with the broader scientific and technical communities

Project Details

Through the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE), this posting seeks a recent Bachelor's graduate, recent Master's graduate, or student researcher to engage in projects with the Research Innovation Center (RIC) at the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) in the area of Point Source Capture under the mentorship of Lauren Burrows. This project will be hosted at the NETL Pittsburgh, PA campus.

Amine-based CO2 capture solvents are exposed to high temperatures and post-combustion byproducts which cause these solvents to degrade over time. NETL has built a mobile solvent degradation laboratory which will travel to CO2 capture test sites and evaluate amine degradation, providing rapid feedback that will help increase efficiency and reduce costs. In this project, the participant will collect liquid samples of condensed exhaust gas from CO2 capture tests and determine the identity and concentrations of degradation products using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), gas chromatography-nitrogen chemiluminescence detection (GC-NCD) and liquid chromatography-MS (LC-MS). This appointment will involve travel to the National Carbon Capture Center in Alabama, and various other test sites in the United States and laboratory-based research on-site at NETL in Pittsburgh.

Stipend

Participants receive a biweekly stipend based on their educational level. Stipend payments are taxable as an educational benefit. Stipends for full-time participation are:

• $775.50 per week for undergraduate students
• $1206 per week for recent Bachelor's graduates
• $1475.50 per week for graduate students and recent Master's graduates

Program Requirements

To document the effectiveness of the program, participants are required to submit a pre-appointment and post-appointment survey, as well as a reflection on their appointment experience when they renew or end their appointment. The reflection should summarize their project(s), additional activities, and overall experience. Details are provided as the appointment end date approaches.

Participants may also have the opportunity to contribute to manuscripts, journal articles, book chapters, conference presentations, posters, patents, and other publications as a part of their appointment. Such achievements should also be reported to ORISE; additional details are provided after an offer has been accepted.

Requirements

• Have one of the following academic statuses:
  • An undergraduate student*1 in good standing at a regionally accredited college/university*2
  • A recent Bachelor's degree graduate*1 who has received their Bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited college/university*2 within the last 60 months of the intended appointment start date
  • A graduate student in good standing at a regionally accredited college/university
  • A recent Master’s degree graduate who has received their Master’s degree from a regionally accredited college/university within the last 60 months of the intended appointment start date
• Have an overall GPA of 2.5/4.0 or higher
• Be at least 18 years of age at the time of application
• Provide confirmation of coverage under a health insurance plan prior to the beginning of the internship

Discipline(s)

• Chemistry and Materials Sciences (12 )
• Communications and Graphics Design (2 )
• Computer, Information, and Data Sciences (17 )
• Earth and Geosciences (21 )
• Engineering (29 )
• Environmental and Marine Sciences (14 )
• Life Health and Medical Sciences (51 )
• Mathematics and Statistics (11 )
• Physics (16 )
• Science & Engineering-related (2 )
• Social and Behavioral Sciences (29 )

Age

Must be 18 years of age

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for this opportunity, you must:

• Have one of the following academic statuses:
  • An undergraduate student*1 in good standing at a regionally accredited college/university*2
  • A recent Bachelor's degree graduate*1 who has received their Bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited college/university*2 within the last 60 months of the intended appointment start date
  • A graduate student in good standing at a regionally accredited college/university
  • A recent Master’s degree graduate who has received their Master’s degree from a regionally accredited college/university within the last 60 months of the intended appointment start date
• Have an overall GPA of 2.5/4.0 or higher
• Be at least 18 years of age at the time of application
• Provide confirmation of coverage under a health insurance plan prior to the beginning of the internship