Events

Co-organized by Dr. Idalia Ramos (UPR-Humacao), Dr. Jorge L. Colón (UPR-Río Piedras), and Dr. Ubaldo Córdova (UPR-Mayagüez).
Duration: 1.5 days

The National Science Foundation Partnerships for Research and Education in Materials (NSF-PREM) program’s purpose is developing the next generation of materials researchers by enhancing diversity in materials research and education. PREM achieves this goal by stimulating the development of formal, long-term, collaborative research and education partnerships between minority-serving colleges and universities and the NSF Division of Materials Research (DMR)-supported centers and facilities. In Puerto Rico there are currently three active NSF-PREM programs: (a) the University of Puerto Rico at Humacao-University of Pennsylvania (UPenn) PREM program (PREM UPRH-UPENN), a partnership between the UPR Humacao and Cayey campuses and the UPenn Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC), which began in 2004; (b) the Wisconsin-Puerto Rico PREM program, a partnership between the UPR-Mayagüez, Río Piedras and Medical Sciences campus and the University of Wisconsin-Madison (PREM-UPRM), which started in 2018, and (c) the PREM Center for Interfacial Electrochemistry of Energy Materials (CIE2M) program, a partnership between UPR-Río Piedras campus, the Ana G. Méndez University Cupey and Gurabo campuses, and the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source (CHESS) at Cornell University (NSF-PREM CIE2M), established in 2018. The Puerto Rico NSF-PREMs symposium will highlight the progress made by these three programs in providing research and educational opportunities in materials research to undergraduate and graduate students from Puerto Rico, including the outreach efforts made with elementary, middle, and high school teachers and students on the island.

The symposium will consist of three half-day sessions on (1) nanostructured multi-functional materials, (2) nanoscale interactions of macromolecules and organic molecules, and (3) non-equilibrium studies of interfaces. Topics to be covered include the latest research on single-atomic-layer materials and nanofibers of electro-active polymers; nanoparticle-protein interactions; catalytic materials with controlled sites by atomic layer deposition; flexible porous coordination polymers for gas capture; crystallization, polymorphism, dynamics, and structures of active pharmaceutical ingredients; dynamics of active particles in anisotropic media; active colloids templated from liquid crystals; collective behaviors of active colloids; oxygen-reduction and evolving electrocatalysts, nanostructured materials for dye-sensitized solar cells, and hybrid solid-state supercapacitors.

Organizers: Mary Virginia Orna, ChemSource, Inc., 1338 North Avenue, New Rochelle, NY 10804, Phone: (914) 310-0351, email: maryvirginiaorna@gmail.com; mvorna@protonmail.com; Daniel Rabinovich (Joint School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering, 2907 E. Gate City Blvd, Greensboro, NC 27401, Phone: (336) 285-2800, email: Dan.Rabinovich@uncg.edu).
The theme of the 2022 Southeastern Regional Meeting of the ACS (SERMACS 2022) is “Chemistry Transcending Boundaries for a Sustainable Future.” The projected half-day symposium, La Historia de Pioneros y Descubridores en Química, will focus on: (a) discoveries of elements (platinum, tungsten and vanadium), (b) nanotechnology prior to 500 CE, and (c) Nobel prizewinning work in the Hispanic world that transcended cultural boundaries and continue to contribute to the sustainability of research today.

Co-organized by Dr. Jenny Yang (UC-Irvine), Dr. Jorge L. Colón (UPR-Río Piedras), Dr. Jillian Dempsey (UNC-Chapel Hill), and Dr. Jesús Velázquez (UC-Davis).
Duration: 2.5 days

The conversion of solar energy into chemical fuel is one of the “Holy Grails” of 21st Century Chemistry. The Chemistry of Solar Fuels symposium will cover the most-current fundamental research and contributions being made to solve the energy and climate crisis taping solar energy as a sustainable energy source. Chemistry is providing innovation through creative, new ideas to improve our life and secure a clean and sustainable future through solar energy. The symposium will consist of five sessions on (a) heterogenous catalysis, (b) molecular catalysis, (c) light-induced water splitting, CO2 reduction and N2 reduction, (d) membranes and electrolytes, (e) DFT/Machine Learning. Topics to be covered include the latest research on artificial photosynthesis, multielectron catalysis, hydrogen production, oxygen-evolving catalysts, carbon-dioxide reduction, and photoelectrochemical cells.

Organizer: Izaskun Jiménez-Serra
Duration: 3 days