Booz Allen Hamilton Colloquium: Dr. G.K. Surya Prakash

Friday, November 11, 2016
3:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m.
1110 Jeong H. Kim Engineering Building
Sandy Nicholes
301 405 3114
snichol@umd.edu

Talk Title: Beyond Oil and Gas: The Methanol Economy

G. K. Surya Prakash

Donald P. and Katherine B. Loker Hydrocarbon Research Institute and Department of Chemistry, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089-1661, USA

gprakash@usc.edu

 

Abstract:

Methanol, a liquid at ambient temperature, is preferable to low volumetric energy density hydrogen for energy storage and transportation. It is also an excellent fuel substitute for internal combustion engines and diesel engines.  It is a good fuel for direct oxidation fuel cells. Dimethyl ether (DME) derived from methanol is a high cetane diesel substitute and also LNG and LPG substitute. Methanol is a convenient raw material for synthetic hydrocarbons and their varied products. Chemical recycling of excess carbon dioxide formed from human activities, natural and industrial sources, or even from the air to methanol via capture followed by reductive conversion with hydrogen is possible. Any available energy source (preferably alternative energies such as solar, atomic, etc.) can provide the needed energy, primarily generating hydrogen. Direct electrochemical reduction of CO2 is also possible. Methanol, presently produced from fossil fuel based syngas (mixture of CO and H2), can also be made by direct oxidative conversion of natural gas or other methane sources. Even biomass can be converted to methanol through syngas. The Methanol Economy concept that was jointly developed with the Nobel Laureate colleague, George A. Olah is expected to solve the energy  & material problems in the long run and at the same time address the issue of global warming.

 

Bio:

Professor Prakash was born in 1953 in Bangalore, India. He holds a B.Sc (Hons) from Bangalore University and a M.Sc. from IIT, Madras. He obtained his Ph. D. in chemistry under Professor Olah at the University of Southern California (USC) in 1978. He joined USC faculty in 1981 and is currently a Professor and Director holding the Olah Nobel Laureate Chair in Hydrocarbon Chemistry at the Loker Hydrocarbon Research Institute. His research interests are in superacid, hydrocarbon, synthetic organic & organofluorine chemistry, with particular emphasis in the areas of energy and catalysis. He co-invented the direct oxidation methanol fuel cell. He has trained more than 120 doctoral and post-doctoral scholars. He is a prolific with more than 740 peer-reviewed publications holding ~ 50 patents. He has published 11 books. He has received many recognitions including American Chemical Society Awards: in 2004 for creative work in fluorine chemistry, in 2006 for his contributions to hydrocarbon chemistry and the 2006 Richard C. Tolman Award from the Southern California section of the American Chemical Society. He received the 2007 Distinguished Alumni Award from his alma mater, IIT, Madras and the 2010 CRSI Medal from the Chemical Research Society of India. Recently, he was awarded (jointly with Olah) the inaugural 2013 $1 Million Eric and Sheila Samson Prime Minister’s Prize for Innovation in Alternative Fuels for Transportation by the State of Israel. In 2015, he won the Henri Moissan International Prize for excellence in Fluorine Chemistry. He is a fellow of the AAAS, a Member of the European Academy of Arts, Sciences and Humanities, Fellow of the European Academy of Sciences and Foreign Fellow of National Academy of Sciences, India and a Fellow of the American Chemical Society. He also sits on several Editorial Boards. Professor Prakash’s book, co-authored with Olah and A. Goeppert, “Beyond Oil and Gas: The Methanol Economy” (Wiley-VCH, 2006 and 2nd Edition, 2009, translated into five languages) is getting worldwide attention.

Audience: Graduate  Faculty  Staff  Alumni 

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