2016 Samuel Wesley Stratton Award

Dr. Brown is recognized for revealing molecular mechanisms that yield great improvements in gas-separation and catalytic processes in microporous materials.  The task of separating and purifying mixtures of gases into their various constituents is fundamental to the production of many chemical products by the petrochemical and electronic industries.  Current gas-separation technologies tend to be energy intensive, requiring pressurization and cryogenic temperatures to separate gases with similar boiling points.  Using neutron diffraction Dr. Brown has identified key properties of the bonding of small hydrocarbons in microporous materials that enable much simpler and cheaper methods of chemical separations and catalysis.