Westerlies

The Westerlies are prevailing winds which move air and water from west to east within the atmosphere and play an important role in shaping Earth’s climate.

At Oregon, the Westerlies are a group of science and engineering students working on problems related to future earth. Broadly, they apply research methods from chemistry and materials science to solutions with the potential to prevent or remove ~ 1 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions each year. Westerlies train their laboratory and data science skills through regular practice and contribute to an open-source data bases on the (electro)chemical properties of minerals.

Current projects

Green Steel:

The iron and steel industry leads to the emissions of similar amounts of carbon dioxide to all passenger vehicles, globally. Modern methods of ironmaking could avoid the majority of these emissions, but many ironmaking solutions are constrained by the availability of suitable sources of iron oxides. Students working on this project are developing carbon neutral and carbon negative methods for iron ore processing.

Carbon Sequestration:

Carbon dioxide captured from industrial processes or direct air/ocean capture can be stored for thousands of years if it is reacted with rocks rich in magnesium and calcium. Students working on this project are developing energy efficient methods for enhancing the rate that minerals react and store carbon dioxide.

Join

Are you interested in undergraduate research and contributing to projects related to sustainable chemistry, clean technologies, and climate solutions? If you are committed to working (paid) at least 6 hours per week on a research project, email pkempler@uoregon.edu with an unofficial transcript and a brief description of your interests.