NSF Grant for Broadening Participation in Computing

Duration: May 2008 - August 2008
Faculty Member(s): Joe Komar ,  Kristine H. Wammer
Student(s): Jillian Beaufeaux

Abstract:
The research focuses on understanding the chemical and biological processes that affect the fate of contaminants in the environment. Students in the Wammer lab will be working on two projects this summer. One project involves studying the photochemical degradation of antibiotics under natural sunlight, including using the new mass spec instrumentation in the department to help identify potentially harmful degradation products. The other project will examine the influence of exposure to low-level concentrations of the antimicrobial compound triclosan on antibiotic resistance levels in Mississippi River bacteria.

Within that, what I am planning to have Jillian work on is to see if we can use computational chemistry to predict pholysis rates for a set of compounds which is yet to be determined.  Jillian would do some work on the computer, modeling molecules, and she would do some work in the lab, measuring photolysis rates.

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