Chemistry Professor Eric Schelter Receives Cottrell Scholar Award

Assistant Professor of Chemistry Eric Schelter has received a 2013 Cottrell Scholar Award from the Research Corporation for Scientific Advancement (RCSA). He is one of only 13 Scholars named in the U.S. this year.

Cottrell Scholars receive $75,000 each in recognition of their scientific research as well as their dedication to teaching. The awards are made to early-career science educators in the physical sciences and related fields. Originality, feasibility, and the prospect for significant fundamental advances to science are the main criteria for judging the candidates’ research; while contributions to education (especially at the undergraduate level), aspirations for teaching, and the candidates’ proposed strategies to achieve educational objectives are factors in assessing their teaching plans.

Schelter was recognized for his work with rare earth elements, required in the manufacture of wind turbine generators, hybrid and electric vehicles, fiber optics, cell phones, and flat-panel displays. China currently produces about 97 percent of the world’s supply of rare earth metals. In 2010 the Chinese government announced it would reduce exports of these vital materials by 72 percent, citing the environmental damage caused by mining and processing operations. The elements must be separated from their composite mineral sources, a process that requires the use of environmentally taxing acids and solvents. Schelter’s goal is to develop efficient, environmentally friendly separations processes for certain high-value rare earth metals based on their unique physical and chemical properties.

Described by the RCSA as “a tireless communicator for science,” Schelter sees this research project as an educational opportunity. Through continuing lectures on campus and off, he is working to interest students and the general public in the urgent problems associated with rare earth metals mining and processing. He reaches out to high school and college chemistry students to highlight the dichotomy between renewable energy devices and the environmental damage done by mining and processing the rare earth metals used in those devices.

The newly named Cottrell Scholars join 251 previous Scholars at more than 115 colleges and universities. Scholars are also members of the Cottrell Scholars Collaborative, a network of scholar educators who meet annually to share their methods to increase the retention of undergraduate science majors.

The Cottrell Scholar Awards are named in honor of Frederick Gardner Cottrell, a scientist, inventor, and philanthropist. In 1912 Dr. Cottrell founded Research Corporation, America’s first foundation dedicated wholly to science, providing means for scientific research and experimentation at scholarly institutions.