NETL will host an extended residency for a Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) doctoral candidate in chemical engineering under the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science Graduate Student Research (SCGSR) Program.

CMU’s William Strahl is one of 87 awardees from 58 different universities who will conduct research at 16 DOE national laboratories. Strahl earned a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Brigham Young University with a minor in computer science before arriving in Pittsburgh to study at CMU for his doctorate.

The goal of SCGSR is to prepare graduate students for science, technology, engineering or mathematics (STEM) careers by providing graduate thesis research opportunities through extended residencies at DOE national laboratories. The program represents a pipeline for highly skilled scientific and technological workforce development.

According to NETL’s Anthony Burgard, the designated researcher who works with the SCGSR program, Strahl will work on research projects at NETL that address critical energy and environmental challenges on national and international scales and pursue research that advances his overall doctoral thesis.

“The SCGSR program provides a way for graduate students to enrich their scientific research by engaging with researchers at DOE national labs, learning from world class scientists and using state-of-the-art equipment and facilities,” Asmeret Asefaw Berhe, director of the DOE Office of Science explained. “In addition, they get valuable opportunities to network and observe firsthand what it’s like to have a scientific career.”

The SCGSR program provides supplemental funds for graduate awardees to conduct part of their thesis research at a host DOE laboratory/facility in collaboration with a DOE laboratory scientist within a defined award period. Collaborating DOE Laboratory Scientists may be from any of the participating DOE national laboratories/facilities. The award period for the proposed research project at DOE laboratories/facilities may range from 3 to 12 consecutive months.

NETL is a DOE national laboratory that drives innovation and delivers technological solutions for an environmentally sustainable and prosperous energy future. By using its world-class talent and research facilities, NETL is ensuring affordable, abundant and reliable energy that drives a robust economy and national security, while developing technologies to manage carbon across the full life cycle, enabling environmental sustainability for all Americans.