Dr. Wentao Cao and Mia Enders, alongside an XRD (x-ray diffraction) machine at the Pacific Northwest National Lab.
SUNY Fredonia senior Mia Enders is working alongside Associate Professor Wentao Cao this summer at the Pacific Northwest National Lab.
Dr. Cao was accepted into the U.S. Department of Energy’s competitive Visiting Faculty Program, a 10-week summer collaborative experience at the Pacific Northwest National Lab (PNNL) in Washington state. Ms. Enders, a Geology major, with a minor in Chemistry, from Bath, NY, is also being supported at the PNNL by the same program.
Ideally, this experience will help me to stand out in a pile of applicants while also providing an understanding of a more professional environment” - Mia Enders
The objective of their project, “REE (Rare Earth Element) enrichment via fluid-involved precipitation,” is to understand REE enrichment in selected rock specimens. They are examining rare earth minerals in metamorphic rocks with the goal of understanding the forming mechanisms. Leaching rare earth elements from samples is also planned.
“We are going to examine rare earth minerals in metamorphic rocks and aim to understand the forming mechanisms. After characterization, we will conduct hydrothermal experiments on rare earth minerals-bearing rock samples,” Cao, of Fredonia’s Department of Geology and Environmental Sciences, explained.
Enders believes her PNNL research will provide great networking opportunities as well as experience that will be attractive to prospective employers. “Ideally, this experience will help me to stand out in a pile of applicants while also providing an understanding of a more professional environment,” she said.
Analytical and experimental facilities at PNNL will be utilized to analyze, image, and react to the REE-bearing minerals.
Cao developed the new project with colleagues at PNNL, a Department of Energy national lab based in Washington state, whose strengths are in chemistry, earth sciences, biology and data science.
