Enhancing the Research and Education Program in Materials Chemistry at Claflin University: Acquisition of Single Crystal XRD and Microspectrophotometer
Abstract
As the oldest HBCU in the state of South Carolina, Claflin University serves about 2000 students, of which about 600 STEM majors. Almost 94% of the student body is African American, 70% STEM majors are women and 60% are first generation college students, making Claflin University a vital part of local, regional, and national efforts to recruit minority and female students into advanced degrees and research-oriented careers in the STEM fields. The School of STEM has a very strong tradition in research and research-based teaching. All STEM majors are required to complete a research-based senior thesis and present their results to faculty committee. The school of SNSM also offers various research internships during academic year and summer and about 60 undergraduate and 20 high school students have participated annually in the past years. In this proposal, we are requesting funds from the Department of Defense to acquire a suite of analytical instruments, including a Bruker D8 Quest single crystal XRD and a Craic 20/30 PVTM microspectrophotometer, to investigate the crystal structures and optical properties of various advance materials, including non-linear optical crystals, scintillation materials and metal-organic frameworks. These instruments are needed to support the research and educational programs ongoing at Claflin University and will be used to achieve the following objectives: 1) enhancing the research and training infrastructure for faculty and students; 2) broadening the participation of women and minorities in STEM disciplines; 3) updating existing courses and developing new interdisciplinary and cross disciplinary courses; 4) improving the quality of graduating STEM students by enabling students to train on advanced instruments used in industry, thus preparing them for success in the workforce. 5) strengthening the collaboration between Claflin and other HBCU schools, research institutions and industries. Acquisition of these instruments will enable faculty and students, the opportunity to engage in high quality materials science related research and education; attract students to STEM programs at Claflin University; and enable the university to provide a rigorous curriculum. These techniques will be integrated into the lectures and general laboratory curriculum of relevant courses, particularly Inorganic Chemistry and Physical Chemistry where crystal structure and optical property are currently taught from a fundamental and limited perspective. Acquisition of the instrument will enable faculty to delve deeper into advanced concepts and applications of the instrument. In addition, the proposed work should provide great benefit to AOR and DoD by advancing the research in advanced materials and training potential minority employees.
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Jun 25, 2021
- Source ID
- W911NF2110223
Entities
People
- Jie Ling
Organizations
- Army Contracting Command
- Claflin University
- Office of the Secretary of Defense