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Abstract:
Smithsonian magazine has named Rice University chemical engineer Michael Wong to its list of "America's Young Innovators in the Arts and Sciences: 37 Under 36," which is featured in a special October issue of the magazine. Wong, associate professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering and of chemistry, was recognized for creating a new class of palladium-coated gold nanoparticles that can be used to break down chlorinated compounds like trichloroethene (TCE) in polluted groundwater water.

Wong makes Smithsonian magazine's prestigious "37 under 36" list

Houston, TX | Posted on October 17th, 2007

Rice chemical engineer uses nanotechnology to clean the environment.

Smithsonian magazine has named Rice University chemical engineer Michael Wong to its list of "America's Young Innovators in the Arts and Sciences: 37 Under 36," which is featured in a special October issue of the magazine.

Wong, associate professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering and of chemistry, was recognized for creating a new class of palladium-coated gold nanoparticles that can be used to break down chlorinated compounds like trichloroethene (TCE) in polluted groundwater water.

TCE, a solvent, is commonly used to degrease metals and electronic parts. It's also carcinogenic and one of the most common and poisonous organic pollutants in U.S. groundwater. TCE is found at 60 percent of the contaminated waste sites on the Superfund National Priorities List.

Wong's gold and palladium nanocatalysts break TCE into nontoxic components and have proven to work remarkably well.

"We didn't believe it at first, because the gold-palladium nanoparticles were just so much more efficient -- like, a hundred times more efficient," Wong told the Smithsonian in an October feature about his research. His team of researchers includes students Michael Nutt, Kimberly Heck, Yu-lun Fang and Nurgul Ackin, and his collaborators include Rice's Pedro Alvarez and Georgia Tech's Joe Hughes.

The Smithsonian issue featuring the 37 Under 36 goes on sale at newsstands this week. Those on the list range from scientists and artists to scholars and humanitarians.

This year's honorees include environmental activist Philippe Cousteau (Jacques Cousteau's grandson), novelist Daniel Alarcón, mathematician Terence Tao, musician Regina Spektor, primatologist Brian Hare, political historian Jeremi Suri, computer scientist Luis von Ahn, author ZZ Packer, playwright Sarah Ruhl and biologist Beth Shapiro.

"So often in our culture, the tendency is to look nostalgically to the past for great thinkers," said Kerry Bianchi, Smithsonian group publisher. "But the reality is that there are exciting developments going on around us all the time. So often it is simply a matter of bringing the public's attention to these contributions, and that is what the 'America's Young Innovators in the Arts and Sciences: 37 Under 36' initiative does."

For a full list of this year's winners, visit
http://images.smithsonianmag.com/content/innovators/

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About Rice University
Rice University is consistently ranked one of America's best teaching and research universities. It is distinguished by its: size—2,850 undergraduates and 1,950 graduate students; selectivity—10 applicants for each place in the freshman class; resources—an undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 6-to-1, and the fifth largest endowment per student among American universities; residential college system, which builds communities that are both close-knit and diverse; and collaborative culture, which crosses disciplines, integrates teaching and research, and intermingles undergraduate and graduate work. Rice's wooded campus is located in the nation's fourth largest city and on America's South Coast. For more information visit http://www.rice.edu .

About Smithsonian Publishing

Founded in 1970 with the launch of Smithsonian magazine, Smithsonian Publishing -- comprised of Smithsonian magazine, Air & Space, goSmithsonian and the Smithsonian digital network -- allows the intellectually curious to indulge and engage their passions for history, the arts, science, the natural world, culture and travel. Smithsonian Publishing's flagship publication, Smithsonian magazine, has a circulation of more than 2 million. This multi-media network is also affiliated with the world's most visited museums and research complexes of the Smithsonian Institution. For more information, visit http://www.smithsonianmagazine.com , http://www.airandspacemag.com , and http://www.gosmithsonian.com .

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