(7cu) Porous Materials Chemistry for Catalysis and Separations

My research career has spanned areas from surface science and catalysis of complex multifunctional biomass-derived molecules to synthesis of nanoporous materials for adsorption, separations and understanding of materials stability. I believe my combination of skills will allow for design and synthesis of uniquely functionalized porous materials and evaluation of these materials in catalytic and separations processes, with complementary spectroscopic and structural characterization.

My Ph.D. work at the University of Colorado Boulder under Professor Will Medlin focused on elucidating the fundamental surface reaction mechanisms of biomass-derived molecules, such as furfural, on transition metal surfaces and utilizing those insights to design catalysts for atom-efficient selective transformations. Using surface science techniques, I proposed different surface intermediates that led to either the desired hydrodeoxygenation or the atom-inefficient decarbonylation reactions. This fundamental insight led to the design of surface-modified and bimetallic oxide-supported catalysts with superior hydrodeoxygenation selectivity and a spectroscopic look at the mechanisms by which the catalytic selectivity was improved. For my dissertation “Improving Catalytic Selectivity through Control of Adsorption Orientation,” I received the Outstanding Dissertation Award from CU Boulder’s College of Engineering.

During my tenure as a postdoc at the Georgia Institute of Technology under Professors Chris Jones and Ryan Lively, I have broadened my skills in the areas of porous materials chemistry, adsorption, and separations, working with a variety of nanoporous materials from metal-organic frameworks to structured porous oxides. The majority of my work has focused on designing and characterizing materials systems for CO₂ adsorption from dilute sources such as ambient air and investigating the how nanoporous materials interact with and are transformed by other acid gases. These projects have required engineering at length scales from the atomic-level design of adsorbents and surfaces to macroscopic contactors such as honeycomb-shaped monoliths and hollow fibers.

Research in my independent career will combine these diverse skill sets to develop advanced nanostructured porous materials platforms for a variety of applications in catalysis and separations. My research program will span three areas in porous materials chemistry and engineering: (1) enzyme-mimetic nanoporous systems for selective catalysis and adsorption, (2) crystal morphology engineering of soft nanoporous materials, and (3) highly-dispersed heterogeneous catalysts derived from mixed-metal-organic frameworks. My research will be motivated by challenges in asymmetric catalysis, molecular separations, biomass valorization, and partial hydrogenation and oxidation reactions.

Selected Publications (10 first author, 20 total):

1. S.H. Pang, L.-C. Lee, M.A. Sakwa-Novak, R.P. Lively, C.W. Jones “Design of Aminopolymer Structure to Enhance Performance and Stability of CO₂ Sorbents: Poly(propylenimine) vs. Poly(ethylenimine),” J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2017, 139, 3627-3630.
2. S.H. Pang, C. Han, D.S. Sholl, C.W. Jones, R.P. Lively “Facet-Specific Stability of ZIF-8 in the Presence of Acid Gases Dissolved in Aqueous Solutions,” Chem. Mater.2016, 28, 6960-6967.
3. S.H. Pang, N.E. Love, J.W. Medlin "Synergistic Effects of Alloying and Thiolate Modification in Furfural Hydrogenation over Cu-Based Catalysts," J. Phys. Chem. Lett.2014, 5, 4110-4114.
4. S.H. Pang, C.A. Schoenbaum, D.K. Schwartz, J.W. Medlin “Directing Reaction Pathways by Catalyst Active-Site Selection using Self-Assembled Monolayers,” Nature Commun.2013, 4:2448.
5. S.H. Pang, J.W. Medlin “Adsorption and Reaction of Furfural and Furfuryl Alcohol on Pd(111): Unique Reaction Pathways for Multifunctional Reagents,” ACS Catal. 2011, 1, 1272-1283.

Teaching Interests:

As an undergraduate student, I developed and led recitation sessions for classes in Thermodynamics and Separations. As a graduate student teaching assistant for Process Controls, I taught the lab portion of the class and earned the department’s “Outstanding Graduate Student Teaching” award in 2012. I also served as the Lead Graduate Teacher for the department, educating fellow graduate students in engineering pedagogy to help them become more effective teachers. In 2013, I was given the opportunity to serve as the department’s Teaching Fellow, developing course materials and teaching General Chemistry for Engineers for half a semester, gaining valuable experience in active learning techniques, while continuing my graduate research.

My teaching philosophy is centered on two major goals for student learning: (1) the students develop a fundamental understanding of the theories and concepts central to Chemical Engineering, and (2) they become critical thinkers with the problem solving and teamwork skills that will be necessary for them to be successful in the future. The achievement of these two goals will be accomplished via a combination of active learning activities designed to engage students and allow for more teacher-student interaction.

Because of my emphasis on conceptual learning and problem solving, I am primarily interested in teaching chemical engineering courses that form the foundation onto which the other courses build, such as Material and Energy Balances and Thermodynamics, though would be comfortable teaching any core Chemical Engineering course. I am also interested in developing upper-level elective courses in Chemical Kinetics and Catalysis, Nanoporous Materials and Nanotechnology, and Spectroscopic Methods.

I have also served as a research mentor for a dozen undergraduate students throughout my career, five of which are from underrepresented groups in engineering, and am especially proud to have published papers with two of these students (one female, one Hispanic). I look forward to continuing my role as an educator and developing problem solving skills in the next generation of engineers and researchers. In the long term, I am interested in applying the latest concepts from STEM education research to advancing the methodology of teaching chemical engineering to make it accessible to a larger population of students.