2022 Undergraduate Research Symposium

The Department for Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering held the 15th annual Undergraduate Research Symposium on April 1, 2022, at the Illini Union Ballroom. The judges, participants, and winning poster presenters were recognized later on at the Undergraduate Scholarship and Awards Ceremony.

"Our undergraduate students are contributing to grand efforts to create a more equitable and sustainable world," said professor Simon Rogers at the awards ceremony. "Throughout the past year, despite the ongoing pandemic, they have remained committed to their research goals—which makes their accomplishments recognized today all the more impressive."

The winners were announced by Omega Chi Epsilon president Devin Schinski, who helped organize the event:

• Maxwell Polanek (advised by professor Brendan Harley) took first place with the poster titled: "Investigating the Effect of Mineralized Collagen Scaffolds on the Immunomodulatory Capacity of Human Mesenchymal Stem Cells" 
• Edward Neves (also advised by professor Brendan Harley) placed second with "Biomaterial-based Tumor Models to Analyze the Role of Glioma Extracellular Matrix in Therapeutic Efficacy"
• David Yang (advised by professor Damien Guironnet) placed third with "Programmable and Automated Shape-controlled Synthesis of Bottlebrush Polymers"

2022 Judging Panel 

Gonzalo Campillo Alvarado is an Illinois Distinguished Postdoctoral Research Associate at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, working with professor Ying Diao. This fall, he will begin a tenure-track position as an assistant professor at Reed College. Dr. Campillo Alvarado integrates knowledge of supramolecular-, reversible- and mechanochemistry—with emphasis on boron—to engineer crystalline materials with functional properties. He earned his bachelor’s degree from the Universidad Veracruzana, his master’s degree from the Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos, and his doctorate from the University of Iowa.

Kenneth Jaconetty (BS '82) is the senior director, IP legal lead for IP transactions at Astellas Pharma U.S. Previously, he has served as assistant general counsel for IP at Takeda Pharmaceuticals and senior counsel at Baxter Healthcare Corporation, and in numerous other roles as a patent and intellectual property attorney. Jaconetty earned his JD at George Washington University Law School. 

Paul Jahn (BS '81) is the chief operations officer of the Battery Anode Materials Project for Syrah Technologies, an Australian minerals and technology company. His previous roles include senior management consultant at the Bridgewater Winston Consultancy LLC, executive VP at the International Alliance Group, and senior VP and general manager at Middough. In addition to his bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering, Paul has earned a master’s degree in management science from the MIT Sloan School of Management. 

2022 Symposium Participants

Presenter	Poster Title	Advisor
Jayne Allen	"Bio-Based Succinic Acid: A Review of the Technological Drivers of Production Costs and Environmental Impacts"	Professor Jeremy Guest
Andrew Cheng	"Enhancing the Device Performance of Organic Solar Cells Fabricated with Halogen-free Solvent"	Professor Ying Diao
Andrew Gondella	"Building a DIY Integrating Sphere to Measure Light Frequencies and Intensities for Solar Panel Efficiency"	Professor Joachim Floess
Kyle Gray	"Brochosomes: Investigating and Characterizing Naturally Produced Nanoparticles"	Professor Charles Schroeder
Edward Neves	"Biomaterial-based Tumor Models to Analyze the Role of Glioma Extracellular Matrix in Therapeutic Efficacy"	Professor Brendan Harley
Maxwell Polanek	"Investigating the Effect of Mineralized Collagen Scaffolds on the Immunomodulatory Capacity of Human Mesenchymal Stem Cells"	Professor Brendan Harley
Briana Sobecks	"Dual Role of Strigolactone Signaling Partner in Inhibiting Substrate Hydrolysis"	Professor Diwakar Shukla
David Yang	"Programmable and Automated Shape-controlled Synthesis of Bottlebrush Polymers"	Professor Damien Guironnet