Nate Olson: Reaching for the moon with nanotechnology

Part 3 of a 5-part series about undergraduates pursuing research and career goals over summer vacation 

Many students study chemistry in high school since it is a college preparatory course, but not everyone takes to it. From his very first chemistry class, however, Nate Olson found not only an aptitude for the subject material, but a learning desire that ultimately led to a dream of working to support space exploration.

“What I find most interesting about chemistry is the fact that it is omnipresent. There is no part of the world around us where chemistry is absent,” he said.

His interest in chemistry led naturally to chemical engineering because of the more applied aspects of chemical engineering. 

“I already had an interest in problem solving, tinkering, and doing various building projects. These engineering-like interests and my love of chemistry made chemical engineering a perfect fit,” he explained.

“An aspect of chemical engineering I especially enjoy is that it brings together chemistry, physics, mathematics, and biology. With the chemical engineering curriculum, you get to study a wide range of fascinating science. It is a field with a huge amount of breadth. With a chemical engineering degree, I think you could do just about anything you want,” Nate said.

In particular, Nate enjoys the challenges that research presents, and the opportunity to make an impact on the world through discovery and innovation. 

“I hope to someday do research and development for space exploration, which has always fascinated me,” Nate continued. “I think nanotechnology will play a key role in expanding humanity’s reach into space due to the ability to create strong, lightweight materials, advanced electronics, and nanosensors. I hope I can be a part of my generation’s moon landing, whether it be a visit to Mars, establishment of a moon colony, or some other endeavor,” he added.

This summer, Nate, whose faculty mentor is Nicholas Brunelli, joins six other Ohio State chemical engineering students who are pursuing research projects as part of The Ohio State University Undergraduate Summer Research Program: Eileen Elliott (mentor: Jessica Winter); Nathaniel Kramer (mentor: Umit Ozkan), John Osburn (mentor: Daniel Dotson), Ivan Pires (mentor: Andre Palmer), Mitch Raith (mentor: David Wood), and Bradley Schockman (mentor: Yiying Wu).

All students will be presenting their research at the annual Undergraduate Research Office Fall Forum on September 15 in the Buckeye Reading Room at Thompson Library from 11 am - 4 pm. 

‘Green’ catalysts inspired by natural materials

One nano-scale material that holds great promise for the future Nate envisions is the nanotube – a long, hollow structure with nanometer-sized diameters. Due to the unique chemical bonds that hold the nanotube’s particles together, nanotubes exhibit extraordinary strength, thermal conductivity, and mechanical and electrical properties which have valuable applications in nanotechnology, electronics, optics, and other fields of materials science. Thinner than a hair but stronger than steel, nanotubes can be integrated with other materials such as polymers to form lightweight but extremely strong nanocomposite materials.

One type of nanotube that occurs naturally is imogolite, a type of inorganic, aluminosilicate nanotube that forms in soils of volcanic origin. Imogolite nanotubes can also be made in the lab using a low temperature, solution-phase synthesis, and Nate’s work focuses on how to tune the properties, structure, and behavior of imogolite through rational changes to the synthesis.

Catalysis, separations, and sensing are three main areas where imogolite nanotubes could be applied. However, pure imogolite is inert and generally unreactive and to make imogolite useful in specific molecular recognition applications, its properties need to be modified.

Nate’s challenge: Create hybrid nanotubes to form an industrially-viable heterogeneous catalyst that could be utilized in an efficient and green process. 

His project: Introduce heteroatoms into the nanotube structure to create hybrid imogolite. By including other atoms in the structure, the reactivity and structure of imogolite could be changed.

There’s another thing that Nate has learned beyond the subjects of chemistry and chemical engineering:  the value of communication.

“Perhaps the most important takeaway from my time doing undergraduate research is the value of communication. I cannot stress how important it is to be willing to discuss with fellow students in the lab, both grad and undergrad, about your project and laboratory procedures,” he said.

Nate said that when he first started, he was apprehensive about asking how to use a piece of equipment or the best way to carry out a procedure. He didn’t want to distract others from their work.

“However, this seriously hindered my progress. Once I began to ask questions, I realized that everyone was always willing to help. The knowledge and advice that I’ve received from other students in the lab has been invaluable and has helped me to make huge progress on my research project. So don’t ever be afraid to ask questions!” he said.

What’s next?  “There is nothing I enjoy more than learning, so graduate school seems like a perfect fit,” said Nate, who intends to pursue a doctorate in chemical engineering. “My time doing undergraduate research has further solidified my choice to pursue a doctorate, specifically my work with nanotechnology – a field in which I hope to continue to do research,” he added.