Workshop: Molecular Models for Carbon-Neutral Industrialization : March 25-27, 2010, Palm Springs, CA

University Of California-Riverside, Riverside CA

Investigators

Abstract

0938198 Wu Overview: Significant advances in basic science and technology are urgently needed to meet the global energy demand in the next few decades without leaving a potentially disastrous carbon footprint behind. As thermodynamics played a central role in fossil-fuel-powered industrial revolution, molecular modeling will be critical to accelerate development of large-scale, cost-effective carbon-neutral technologies to deal with the global energy and environmental challenges. The workshop is designed to offer computational scientists and engineers a realistic look at the opportunities and challenges in application of molecular modeling to addressing global energy and environmental problems. Intellectual Merit: A group of young researchers and internationally distinguished scientists will be invited to discuss and envision the pivotal role that the computational research should play in transforming the fossil-fuel-based modern technologies to those based on sustainable energies and biomass feedstock. The event will be March 25-27 at the Palm Desert campus of the University of California in Riverside (UCR), an appealing and affordable venue for the conference adjacent to Palm Springs, California. The workshop is timed to coincide with the end of 239th ACS National Meeting & Exposition in San Francisco. One week ahead that, the March Meeting of the American Physical Society (APS) will be in Portland, Oregon. These two major international conferences provide an opportunity to invite prominent researchers including those from Europe and Asia to participate in the workshop. The first day of the workshop will be devoted to developments in energy research and computational needs that may help further progress. The second day will feature 10 invited speakers analyzing 10 most challenging problems in application of molecular modeling in the near future. With broad diversity and breadth of backgrounds, the workshop participants and invited speakers will cover different aspects of molecular modeling ranging from first-principle calculations to molecular simulations and phenomenological modeling. Their selection will reflect an emphasis on the near future applications of computational methods to energy and environment problems. Broader Impacts: The workshop has impact in at least three areas. First, it stimulates debate and discussion among engineering scientists in the molecular modeling community on future research directions, and in particular the importance and impact of molecular modeling for experimental design and new industrial applications. Second, it provides valuable inputs into science policy thinking to support computational research to address key technological challenges. And third, it promotes interdisciplinary and international communications and collaborations in integrating different computational methods into a more directed and fruitful way of engineering. The workshop will also help to define new frontiers in molecular modeling research and transform efficient computational methods as a powerful tool for industrial applications