Michelle Everett-Task 2 Team Member

I graduated from UT with a B.S. in Mathematics. After a number of years in an unrelated field, I missed the challenge that math had provided, and decided to return to UT. I started in Aerospace Engineering, which gave me the math fix I needed. As a result of an Introduction to Materials’ Science and Engineering course, my interest was piqued into a field that I had never heard of. A semester later I was taking all the MSE courses I could get my hands. Once the materials’ position became available in the STAIR program, I found myself enrolled in graduate school. I earned my Master’s Degree in Materials’ Science and Engineering in November of 2009. When I was “planning” out my career I certainly never saw myself as a research scientist. But now that I am doing it, I’d say it’s a near perfect match (of course my mom had known all along).

As cliché as it sounds, I have always wanted to do something that would be meaningful on some level. It seems that people who have scientific skills should use them to do just that. I think the bulk of sustainability lies on these people. It is a scientists’ responsibility to work toward and develop technology to be socially, economically, and environmentally sustainable. Through the STAIR program and my research journey I have learned so much that has helped me to realize this. I have been recycling since the 90’s and conserving natural resources since I was tall enough to turn the light switch off and on. STAIR allows me to have a nice bridge way between my personal convictions and my career goals.

Research:
Currently my research is focused on the storage of gas in different compounds. One focus is on nanoporous frameworks. As modeled they would be similar to MOFs, and store hydrogen by means of adsorption. This research is an analogous material where the organic molecule is replaced by a porphyrin with metal oxide linkers at the corners. These nanoporous Metal-Porphyrin-Framework (MPF) structures have thus far only been hypothesized, and the hydrogen adsorptive capacity has been modeled through the use of molecular simulations. Previous MPF synthesis produced single crystals where the nanoporous space was experimentally determined to be 23 Å. However, statistically significant data could not be obtained when characterized using single crystal x-ray diffraction. Several synthesis techniques have been used to produce single crystals of MPFs. In a few cases, single crystal diffraction data has been obtained, but a crystal structure has not yet been determined. Possible pitfalls include the difficulty of ordered packing by large molecules, or a high degree of interpenetration due to the nanoporous space.

Another focus is on gas hydrates. Hydrates are crystalline water compounds that store gas molecules in cages. They are found in nature on the ocean floor and in the permafrost. The formation of water into hydrate requires free gas, moderate pressure and temperatures nearing zero degrees Celsius. Currently we are collecting low temp x-ray diffraction data in order to comment on the kinetics of decomposition. We have also been working on small angle neutron scattering experiments in order to study hydrate formation in sand. Next is to do some CO2 exchange for CH4 in methane hydrates. This will help to give some insight into the future of sequestering carbon dioxide while recovering methane.

Metal Porhyrine Framework (MPF)

E-mail: Michelle Everett
Additional information on each of the three research areas can be found in the links below.

• Task 1: Production of hydrogen through biological pathways
• Task 2: Discovery of nanoporous materials for hydrogen storage
• Task 3: Identifying structure/property relationships in hydrogen-based fuel cells