A doctoral student in the Department of Chemistry, Dinumol Devasia, has been awarded a TechnipFMC Fellowship for 2020-21 for her research focusing on the spectroscopic investigation of carbon dioxide reduction reaction. She said this fellowship grant would highlight the significance of her research and bring recognition to her efforts. 

“I am developing a molecular-level understanding of how heterogeneous photocatalysts for carbon dioxide fixation function. With this understanding, that was previously unavailable, we hope to develop an artificial photosynthetic scheme where carbon dioxide can be converted to fuels/chemicals using visible light and plasmonic nanoparticles,” Devasia said. 

After graduation, Devasia plans to work in the chemical industry. The fourth year graduate student does research in the lab of Prashant K. Jain, Richard and Margaret Romano Professorial Scholar and associate professor of chemistry.

The TechnipFMC fund was originally created by Bert A. Gayman, a University of Illinois mechanical engineering graduate, and later acquired by FMC Corporation. Upon their merger, they became TechnipFMC which is a global leader in subsea, onshore/offshore and surface projects. The fund supports scholarships, fellowships and research.