SOU professor’s research published in European journal
NEWS RELEASE (online at https://goo.gl/QQBrqS)
(Ashland, Ore.) —A research paper on the solution chemistry of aluminum, authored by Southern Oregon University professor Anna Oliveri, was published in the current edition of the peer-reviewed periodical “Chemistry – A European Journal.” Oliveri also provided artwork for the journal’s cover.
The paper describes fundamental research on the molecules present in solutions with high aluminum and amino acid concentrations. Understanding the actual structures of the molecules in solutions can lead to a better understanding of the toxicity, bioavailability and reactivity of the solutions.
Colgate Palmolive, which provided funding for the research conducted by Oliveri’s team, uses aluminum in consumer goods such as deodorants and cleaning products. Other potential real-world applications for the research include environmental monitoring of sites near abandoned mines, where acid-mine drainage is creating highly acidic pools with much higher-than-natural metal concentrations.
The research led by Oliveri, an inorganic chemistry professor at SOU, resulted in the first observation of the alpha-isomer of the aluminum molecule in solution. This specific structure had been hypothesized to exist for decades but remained elusive until her observation. A goal of Oliveri’s continuing research is to isolate the alpha-isomer for future studies.
The cover artwork is Oliveri’s second such piece to be featured on the cover of a scientific journal this year. She is enthusiastic about branching out into scientific art to complement her research.
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Co-investigators Maureen Battistella (assistant professor affiliate and research anthropologist at SOU) and Victoria Sturtevant, Ph.D. (SOU sociology professor emerita) will work with SOU students, the OSU Southern Oregon Research and Extension Center, local libraries, historical societies and youth groups to identify heritage families for the project.
Stories, photographs and memorabilia discovered during heritage day events will be digitized and made available to the public thanks to the expertise of SOU librarians and the Southern Oregon Digital Archives (SODA) at Southern Oregon University’s Hannon Library. Retired U.S. Forest Service archaeologist Jeff LaLande, Ph.D., is a consulting historian on the project; his papers and photographs are already in the SOU SODA collection.