Carol Parish receives Fulbright Scholar Award

March 29, 2012

Dr. Carol Parish, Professor of Chemistry, has received a Fulbright Scholar Award to conduct research in Israel, “Investigating the Reactivity of Oil Shale” during the fall 2012 semester.

Parish, whose expertise is in physical, theoretical and computational chemistry, says “Oil shale represents an untapped source of hydrocarbon fuel in Israel; however, information about the molecular nature of these deposits has only recently become available and very little is known about the reaction pathways, combustion efficiency and reactivity of these species.”   Through her research, she will establish a solid understanding of the structures, energies, and mechanisms of combustion and pyrolysis for the molecular constituents of oil shale.  She has been invited to Hebrew University of Jerusalem to collaborate with scientists in laboratories within their Institute of Chemistry.

Dr. Parish, who holds the Floyd D. and Elisabeth S. Gottwald Chair in Chemistry, has taught at the University of Richmond since 2005, having completed her Ph.D. degree at Purdue University.  She has published widely and has received a number of honors including grants from private and government funding agencies.

The principal purpose of the Fulbright program, now more than 60 years old, is to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of more than 150 participating countries.  Grants are made possible through funds appropriated annually by the U.S. Congress, and, in many cases, by contributions from partner countries and/or the private sector.