South Piedmont Community College Associate in Science Capstone ePortfolio
South Piedmont Honors Program
In looking beyond South Piedmont, I see myself continuing education to the level of a Master's degree or higher in a STEM-related field. During my educational journey, I hope to participate in a number of college research projects, as it is something that interests me. My participation in the SP Honors Program has allowed me to become more familiar with independent-research projects, as well as refine my research process, network within the college, fulfill my intellectual curiosities, and develop my public speaking abilities. As of May 2020, I will be the first student to graduate with "full" honors (meaning completion of four projects as well as at least one presentation the formal Spring event) in the history of the program! This has been a long journey with the program, and on this page, I will introduce each of my projects, what I have learned from it in reflection, as well as how I believe I can apply it to my future.
Le Châtelier’s Principle & the Haber-Bosch Process
This was my first (and favorite) honors project, one that I based in my General Chemistry II course during the Spring of 2019. The focus of this project was Le Châtelier’s principle of equilibrium and its connection to the Haber-Bosch process and subsequently agriculture. The Haber-Bosch reaction has been positively manipulated using Le Châtelier’s principle to produce higher yields. The process was developed in the early 20th century and is the primary method used to produce synthetic ammonia. One of the primary uses for ammonia is as an ingredient in fertilizer, a crucial substance for helping farmers achieve higher yields. If you look to places such as Africa, where much of the next century's population growth is expected, a strong correlation is seen between low actual yield relative to potential and low fertilizer use. It is also evident that there are few synthetic ammonia plants in Africa, which directly results in a low supply and high price, meaning farmers are reluctant to use it at all. If these Haber-Bosch plants can be implemented across Africa, a more suitable supply of fertilizer can then be produced and applied to crops and dramatically improve yields.
With this upside, you may ask why this technology hasn't already been implemented. One immediate reason is the extreme conditions of the actual chemical reaction to produce ammonia. In the vessel, gaseous nitrogen and hydrogen are subjected to high pressures of approximately 150 atmospheres and temperatures over 400 degrees Celsius, in order to absorb onto the solid, iron-based catalyst. These conditions require close monitoring and frequent replacement of lining used in the vessel. This along with a general lack of advanced infrastructure in Africa make the actual implementation much more difficult.
In order to make it more reasonable, my project argues that more research should be done into refining the Haber-Bosch technology, with the goal of lowering the intensity of the necessary conditions. One possible method is by producing ammonia in a solution, which was done successfully at near atmospheric pressure and relatively low temperature in the early 21st century. Producing ammonia in a solution allowed for homogeneous catalysis, a more efficient reaction where the reactants and catalyst are in the same state of matter. Further research is still necessary to evaluate the industrial applications of this reaction. If this research is conducted, it would be a part of a larger movement to refocus efforts in Africa to create more ammonia plants and provide people with the means to create a more sustainable Africa for the future.
I am extremely proud of the content of this project. Through research and familiarization with it, I have become more aware of global issues and taken a step toward proposing a solution. While it assured my interest in studying chemistry, it also brought other areas such as agriculture to my attention. While this project was largely theoretical, it served as my first advanced scientific research experience. I became familiar with the amount of reading and time that is required to understand complex scientific concepts. I gained experience in relating these concepts to real-world problems and solutions. I can use these skills in the future when I hope to complete several undergraduate and graduate research projects in my future studies.
Beyond just the content is the presentation. I presented this project at my college's "Evening of Excellence," where students of all the academic enrichment programs present their work to the faculty. I delivered perhaps my strongest presentation of my academic career, demonstrating deep knowledge of my subject both through fluidity of speech and ability to respond to all questions asked in the 5-minute (although mine went over to around 8) Q & A session that followed the presentation. I impressed many high-ranking members of the faculty at South Piedmont, including the president, vice president, and many professors. Most importantly, however, I impressed my family and impressed myself. Receiving the praises of those in the audience helped assure me that I can handle high-pressure situations. It helped to shape me into the confident, educated scholar that I am today. Although this was only my first honors project, it is still my favorite. When I think back on it today, it makes me immensely proud that I chose to take the step toward my future.
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Above are two moments captured from my presentation during the Evening of Excellence in April 2019. When I look back on these images, I think of the wonderful opportunities I have been given and the personal growth I have seen from my participation in the program. I can't help but smile when I view them.
The Interesting Narrative and Today
This project was based in my British Literature I course during the Fall of 2019. Although this was my only project outside of the sciences, it provided me with perhaps the most comprehensive research process. This was due to the fact that I had to shift the direction of this project multiple times. (As described in my Information and Media Literacy reflection on my Program Outcomes page) This project was originally intended to focus on two literary works, with the goal of arguing that one influenced the other. After analyzing both, I found almost no evidence to responsibly support a connection. Instead, I refocused the project to focus on the controversy of Olaudah Equiano's origins and advise a healthy sense of skepticism for the scholars of today.
I learned a great deal from my work on this project. The three primary areas in which I saw improvement or hope to develop in the future are citation use, time-management, and scholarly responsibility. To avoid redundancy, I advise you to read my Information and Media Literacy reflection (linked above) and read the "Archimedes Principle and Environmental Monitoring" section below (as it was the other project I completed during the semester). These cover my progress toward achieving a flowing balance of citations as well as my struggles with planning my work. The final area is scholarly responsibility, where I can proudly say that I did not overstep the information I had and assert an unfounded conclusion for the project. While this would have been an easy option, my desire for truth in academics pushed me to persevere through the semester and complete my project.
Archimedes Principle and Environmental Monitoring
This project was based in my College Physics I course during the Fall of 2019. At this point in my educational journey, I had yet to experience a physics course, although I believed it to be one of my interests alongside chemistry. Completing this project allowed me to spend additional time with the subject and truly explore a potential interest. For a topic, I chose Archimedes principle of buoyancy, discussing its relation to the development of biomimetic water-walking robots at a number of universities. These robots were very limited in movement and weight-carrying capacity, largely because they were heavily reliant on the surface tension created by their wire legs. My project argued that if the robots were redesigned to be more dependent on Archimedes principle, their weight-carrying capacity would be dramatically improved (from 1-2 grams to upwards of 400 grams) and they would, in turn, be much more viable for real-world use. The use discussed in this project was in the monitoring of still-water ecosystems, including marshes and other wetlands. These robots could be equipped with devices that monitor levels of phosphorous, nitrogen, and other chemicals and provide solid data as part of a larger conservation or recovery effort.
From this project, I became more familiar with the scientific method and specifically the complications of research. I have encountered this problem more recently with my final honors project and will discuss it more below. For this project, my instructor and I wanted to make our own model of the robot as a basis for our redesign. I would attribute most of the issues we experienced to the extreme precision that we were unable to replicate. I was determined not to let this disrupt the project. Instead, with a slight redirection, the project included more information relating to the specific, varying environmental conditions that would affect the calculations of the robot's weight-carrying capacity. We experimented with a method to calculate the density of water in a specific body (which may vary due to temperature, debris, and other factors) as well described a method that could be used to calculate the gravitational constant (which varies in locations around the globe).
Perhaps the most important lessons I was able to take from this honors project came from the semester as a whole. Due to my desire to be the first graduate of the program, I had to complete two honors projects for the Fall of 2019. During this semester, my time-management skills were tested greatly. I admit, there were days early in the semester where I could have done more work on the project. This fact stands as a lesson that I learned, to not put off work when there is time at the present to complete it. More eloquently, I will use the quote from Benjamin Franklin: "Don't put off until tomorrow what you can do today." In terms of this project, I learned by facing the consequences of an extremely busy and overwhelming schedule in December. This experience has helped me immensely to refine my planning, a skill that I am constantly working to improve (as reflected in my Goals page).
The Impacts of Oil Spills and A Natural Cleanup
This project was based in my Critical Thinking course during the current Spring 2020 semester. Although it is not finished as of the creation of this website, I can still reflect on its progress and the lessons I have learned thus far. I will first introduce the project, which is focused on oil spills and the processes used to remediate them. This project looks to find a natural alternative for a class of chemically-manufactured cleanup products known as sorbents. Sorbents are used to absorb the oil from water and remove it from the ecosystem. Commercially-used sorbents are made from chemicals, some that have the possibility to cause unintended consequences. A natural sorbent, if proven effective, can be easily gathered in large quantities and be put to good use. This project built off of previous research and tested materials such as human hair, dog hair, cotton, sweet gum tree seeds, and pine cones. It was found that dog hair was more effective than human hair, but overall cotton was most effective. This project suggests further research into the effectiveness of materials such as other types of animal hair as well as other natural fibers beyond cotton. If this research is conducted, these materials, that may otherwise go to waste, can provide an effective and natural method to remediate environments devastated by oil spills.
There were two primary aspects of a research project that gave me trouble during this project. The first was communication. Due to commitments (primarily last semesters honors projects) that distracted me from the preparation of this project, its exact focus took some time to narrow down. As a result, there were many times when everyone involved was uninformed, causing some conflicts. While these conflicts were a challenge to overcome, it presented another opportunity to learn the importance of communication and decisiveness. In order to lead or participate in a successful research project in the future, I must ensure everyone is informed and understands the purposes of the work. The second troubling aspect was the process. A major component of preparation for the project was the acquisition of the materials necessary for the planned experimentation of the project. We (my mentor and I) needed to acquire oil, the natural materials, and decide on a laboratory procedure we would follow. Doing mostly new research was a new adventure for me and as such, it took time to get everything in place. Largely thanks to the advice of my mentor, we were able to make slight adjustments to overcome ordering and procedural issues. She handled the ordering while I pulled from other work from other research projects to create our procedure. It was a very intensive process, but I enjoyed it and am hopeful I will have the opportunity to complete more research projects in the future.
I hope to update this section once I have fully completed my final project. For the time, I can say that the Honors Program as a whole has allowed me to develop strong skills of time-management, communication, leadership, and research, all of which will be immensely useful for my future plans in the STEM field.