Sutton Receives ACS PRF New Doctoral Investigator Award
Jeffrey Sutton, assistant professor of mechanical engineering, was selected to receive the American Chemical Society Petroleum Research Fund Doctoral New Investigator Award. This award provides funding of $100,000 over two years and will support his research characterizing turbulent combustion processes in dimethyl ether flames using advanced laser diagnostics.
Dimethyl ether (DME) is a promising oxygenated fuel that has the potential to be used as an alternative to natural gas for power production and as a substitute for diesel fuel in compression-ignition (CI) engines. However, the underlying physical and chemical processes that control DME flame behavior, including differences compared to conventional hydrocarbon fuels, are not well understood. Sutton’s research will investigate the effects of turbulence on the mixing properties and thermo-chemical state for DME-fueled combustion.
The Petroleum Research Fund (PRF) is an endowed fund, managed by the American Chemical Society that supports fundamental research directly related to petroleum or alternate energy at nonprofit institutions in the United States and other countries. Approximately 90 awards are given annually throughout all areas of chemistry, the earth sciences, chemical and petroleum engineering, and related fields such as polymers and materials science. The PRF Advisory Board selects proposals based on a broad set of evaluation criteria including overall quality, significance, and scientific merit of the proposed research; extent to which scientific education will be enhanced through the involvement of students in the research; impact of PRF funding the research, including the effect on the principal investigator’s overall research program; and qualifications and/or potential of the principal investigator.
The Doctoral New Investigator grants program aims to promote the careers of young faculty by supporting research of high scientific caliber, and enhance the career opportunities of their undergraduate/ graduate students, and postdoctoral associates through the research experience.
