8:04 a.m., Nov. 12, 2009----Maeva Tureau, a fourth-year Ph.D. candidate in chemical engineering at the University of Delaware, has been selected to receive the Air Products Graduate Fellowship for the 2009-10 academic year. The fellowship is supported through an annual gift to the University by the Air Products Foundation. Tureau is advised by Thomas H. Epps, III, assistant professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering.

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“Maeva is studying the assembly of nanostructured polymeric materials that can ultimately be used as porous network templates for the capture and concentration of small molecules, such as metabolites, in aqueous systems,” says Epps, who is the 2009 Outstanding Junior Faculty Member in the College of Engineering. “Among her many contributions, she has performed excellent work on the synthesis and characterization of novel block copolymer materials, collaborated with researchers at national laboratories, and chaired a session as an invited participant at a conference in Brazil.”

Tureau also “has taken a leadership role in many group activities, including undergraduate and graduate student mentoring, safety training, and equipment design,” Epps adds.

“I believe that my work will provide an experimental framework for the generation of tailored network structures,” Tureau says, “and create a foundation for further development in block copolymer materials for various nanotechnology and advanced materials applications.” Applications of interest include porous membrane design, sustainable energy processes, and nanotechnology.

Originally from France, Tureau completed her bachelor's degree at Virginia Tech in chemical engineering, with a concentration in green engineering, in 2006. Her long-term goal is a career in the environmental field, preferably a position that involves not only cross-disciplinary work but also cross-cultural influences.

“Once again we're grateful to Air Products for funding this fellowship,” says Norman Wagner, the Alvin B. and Julia O. Stiles Professor of Chemical Engineering and chairperson of the Department of Engineering. “We appreciate the dedicated and loyal alumni there who helped create this new graduate fellowship and continue to support it.”

“I've had the pleasure of having Maeva in class and seeing her research develop under the tutelage of Prof. Epps,” he adds. “She is an excellent candidate for the fellowship.”

The fellowship includes not only funds to cover the recipient's stipend but also an internship opportunity. “I'm looking forward to the internship,” says Tureau, “as it will enable me to grow as a researcher and broaden my experience with polymers.”

Article by Diane Kukich
Photo by Evan Krape