Application of AI/ML to Advance Catalyst Development Efforts for Waste Methane Valorization

The National Energy Technology Laboratory's (NETL's) record of success has been built on understanding the future of energy and the technologies required to make that future possible. We’ve long touted our success in developing the technologies that took on acid rain in the 1970s and mercury in the early 2000s.

Program Goals

The Professional Internship Program is designed to introduce undergraduate students and recent Bachelor's graduates to the challenges of conducting energy research, and enable graduate students and recent Master's graduates to further build off their studies and experience as they join the scientific community. Participants interact daily with assigned mentors who guide research and project activities during the internship, while they become integral members of project teams.

The program goals include providing the opportunity to participants to:

• Develop skills and knowledge in their field of study
• Engage with new areas of basic and applied research
• Transition classroom theory into hands-on experience
• Network with world-class scientists
• Exchange ideas and skills with the Laboratory community
• Use state-of-the-art equipment
• Contribute to answers for today's pressing scientific questions
• Collaborate with the broader scientific and technical communities

Project Details

Through the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE), this posting seeks a recent Bachelor's graduate or student researcher to engage in projects with the Research Innovation Center (RIC) at the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) in the area of waste methane valorization, under the mentorship of Daniel Haynes. This project will be hosted at the NETL Pittsburgh, PA campus.

The development of catalytic materials is a time consuming and iterative process by nature because of the large parameter space and interdependence of different variables that affect the desired performance. Artificial intelligence and machine learning models have demonstrated the potential to improve the effectiveness of this process to enhance discovery of new materials by reducing time and labor costs. The project will collaborate with a multidisciplinary team developing and curating an AI/ML database and modeling effort to enhance catalyst material discovery, optimize experimental protocols, and improve computational atomistic simulations. The project is aimed at efforts to convert waste methane into value added chemicals, and seek to improve catalyst durability, selectivity and activity.

The candidate can expect to learn with subject matter experts in heterogeneous catalysis and microwave catalysis to understand technical details required for dataset and database development and parameters for model training. They will learn with NETL Science-based AI/ML team members to learn to design, build, and maintain data pipelines to collect, process and store data obtained from the literature, as well as that determined experimentally and computationally. They will also develop expertise in AI/ML models applicable for catalyst development, such as predictive and generative modeling, and image analysis.

Stipend: Participants receive a biweekly stipend based on their educational level. Stipend payments are taxable as an educational benefit. Stipends for full-time participation are:

• $775.50 per week for undergraduate students
• $1206 per week for recent Bachelor's graduates
• $1475.50 per week for graduate students and recent Master's graduates

Deliverables: To document the effectiveness of the program, participants are required to submit a pre-appointment and post-appointment survey, as well as a reflection on their appointment experience when they renew or end their appointment. The reflection should summarize their project(s), additional activities, and overall experience. Details are provided as the appointment end date approaches.
Participants may also have the opportunity to contribute to manuscripts, journal articles, book chapters, conference presentations, posters, patents, and other publications as a part of their appointment. Such achievements should also be reported to ORISE; additional details are provided after an offer has been accepted.

The National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), part of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) national laboratory system, is owned and operated by the DOE. NETL supports the DOE mission to advance the energy security of the United States. This is an educational opportunity offered by NETL and administered by the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education. Participants in the program are not considered employees of NETL, DOE, the program administrator, or any other office or agency.

Qualifications

The ideal candidate would have some, but not necessarily all, of the following skills:

Master's in Materials Science, Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, Material Physics, Physics, or Data Science.

Strong expertise in AI/ML methodologies is preferable.

Expertise in catalysis and/or materials research and characterization techniques like X-ray diffraction, SEM, Raman, XPS, etc. is also desired.

It is recognized that not all applicants will have knowledge and experience in all of these areas. This opportunity will provide exposure to/interaction with technical experts in several of these areas

To be eligible for this opportunity, you must:

• Have one of the following academic statuses
  • An undergraduate student*1 in good standing at a regionally accredited college/university*2
  • A recent Bachelor's degree graduate*1 who has received their Bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited college/university*2 within the last 24 months at time of application
  • A graduate student in good standing at a regionally accredited college/university
  • A recent Master’s degree graduate who has received their Master’s degree from a regionally accredited college/university within the last 36 months at time of application
• Have an overall GPA of 2.5/4.0 or higher
• Be at least 18 years of age at the time of application
• Provide confirmation of coverage under a health insurance plan prior to the beginning of the internship

*1 Soon-to-be Associate's degree graduates are eligible to apply if enrolled as a student at time of application. 
*2 Students and recent Bachelor's degree graduates from accredited Community Colleges and Technical Schools are encouraged to apply.