Posted November 1, 2024 by Tiffany Lee
In case you missed these stories highlighting research and creative activity at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the Office of Research and Innovation’s communications team has compiled a roundup of some top research stories from research.unl.edu and other sources.
Husker scientists exploring hydrogen energy potential from underground rift
Who: Seunghee Kim, Charles J. Vranek Associate Professor of civil engineering; Karrie Weber, professor of Earth and atmospheric sciences and biological sciences; Hyun-Seob Song, associate professor of biological systems engineering
What: With National Science Foundation funding, a Husker research team is studying the potential of the Midcontinent Rift – a 1,200-mile swath of volcanic rocks stretching across the upper Midwest – to produce natural hydrogen that could yield vast amounts of clean energy. Though hydrogen is potentially a key player in reducing reliance on fossil fuels, much remains unknown about the production, migration and accumulation of natural hydrogen in the continental deep subsurface. The Husker research team will explore whether the geomechanical and biogeochemical conditions in the rift trap hydrogen at an economically meaningful scale. The rift is estimated to be 3,000 to 5,000 feet underground. The work draws from civil engineering, biogeochemistry and microbiology.
“It could be deep enough to be stored but shallow enough that we can access it,” Weber said. “The geology is in our favor.”
Writer: Dan Moser, Office of Research and Innovation
Li advances work on HIV vaccine
Who: Qingsheng Li, Willa Cather Professor of biological sciences
What: Li, a member of the Nebraska Center for Virology, received a five-year, $3.5 million R01 grant from the National Institutes of Health to advance work on an mRNA vaccine against HIV. His approach targets one of the biggest obstacles to developing an HIV vaccine: the virus’ ability to rapidly mutate, which has led to hundreds of thousands of HIV strains. By targeting parts of the virus that are consistent across this vast genetic diversity, Li’s formula has potential to achieve a level of efficacy that has so far eluded the field. The formula is also novel for conferring some temperature stability outside of ultralow temperatures, which has been difficult to accomplish in mRNA vaccines.
“We think this approach has great potential, particularly in poorer countries, because it’s difficult for them to access ultralow-temperature freezers,” Li said.
Writer: Tiffany Lee, Office of Research and Innovation
Husker team explores potential of MXenes for nanotech applications
Who: Alexander Sinitskii, professor of chemistry; Md. Ibrahim Kholil and Rashmeet Khurana, graduate students in chemistry; Saman Bagheri, postdoctoral research associate in chemistry
What: A research team led by Husker materials scientists is advancing exploration into the physical properties of MXenes, a fast-growing family of two-dimensional materials with potential for many nanotechnology applications. MXenes are made of atomically thin layers of transition metal carbides, nitrides or carbonitrides and are useful because of their chemical and structural diversity, as well as their scalability and processability. The Nebraska team is focused on one little-studied version containing chromium, titanium and carbon atoms, which exhibits unusual properties not seen in other types. It is the first MXene with “p-type” – electron-deficient – properties and increasing conductivity under illumination. The team’s research on this new material was published in the Oct. 1 issue of the journal Matter.
Writer: Dan Moser, Office of Research and Innovation
180 Huskers ranked among the world’s top researchers
Who: Nebraska researchers from seven colleges across campus
What: The University of Nebraska-Lincoln is home to 180 Huskers featured in the 2024 list of the world’s most influential researchers. The Stanford/Elsevier Top 2% Scientists List is a comprehensive analysis of all peer-reviewed papers across scientific disciplines. It measures the significance of the research, including how often each study is cited in the work of other scientists, and is the definitive list of research that has made the most significant impact across each field of study.
Current and former UNL researchers on the 2024 ranking include 61 from the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources; 53 from the College of Arts and Sciences; 45 from the College of Engineering; 13 from the College of Education and Human Sciences; five from the College of Business; two from the College of Architecture; and one from the College of Fine and Performing Arts.
Writer: Troy Fedderson, University Communication and Marketing
