Intellectual Merit

1. Correlating the Microstructure with the Physical Properties of Perovskite and Related Oxide Materials Edwin Walker, Southern University, DMR 0449886 Intellectual Merit For the past year, my research group has been heavily involved in determining the kinetic parameters such as the activation energy, rate constant, pre-exponential factor, as well as the reaction order for the synthesis of nanocrystalline cathode materials for solid oxide fuel cells using the Michael-Addition Directed Hydrogelation of Acrylates for Materials Synthesis (MADHAMS) from several non-isothermal (experiments where the temperature constantly increases) experiments. The MADHAMS method is a soft chemical preparation for the production of oxide materials. This method has several advantages such as low cost, homogeneneity, excellent control of stoichiometry, ease of handling, short reaction times and lower temperatures, and the production of uniform grain sizes with narrow size distributions. Knowledge of the kinetic parameters for the formation of the solid solution is instrumental in the optimization of the synthesis conditions that are required for the formation of nanocrystalline particles with uniform particle size and distribution using our soft chemical method. We have modeled our approach for studying the formation kinetics after the way these materials are thought to form in nature. Therefore, we have determined the minimum amount of energy (activation energy) required produce the desired material from the solid-state reaction or the reaction that would likely occur in nature. Using this information in conjunction with enthalpy data obtained when the soft chemical method is used, we were able calculate the speed of the soft chemical method. This project has made a significant impact on several under-represented minority students at Southern University by exposing them to materials science-related research, a field where the numbers of minority students is very scarce. This project has provided them with a hands on research experience unlike the semester long research projects semester-long research projects

2. Correlating the Microstructure with the Physical Properties of Perovskite and Related Oxide Materials Edwin Walker, Southern University, DMR 0449886 Direct and Broader Impacts on Program This project has had broader impacts on research, research productivity and capabilities, and the education in the chemical science at Southern University and A & M College a Historically Black College and University (HBCU) and a Primarily Undergraduate Institution. This experience not only benefited the students in the Prof. Walker’s research laboratory, it will gave them a more meaningful undergraduate research experience. Students selected to participate on this research project have been afforded a unique opportunity to work in a rapidly growing field of scientific study. Some of the advantages students that have experienced working on this project are: they have become experienced in the operation, manipulation, and interpretation of many analytical instruments such as the X-Ray Diffractometer, Thermogravimetric analyzer, as well as students have performed experiments at the J. Bennett Johnston, Sr. Center for Advanced Microstructures and Devices (CAMD) synchrotron facility, one of eight in the US. They have also gain a better understanding of the solid-state kinetics.