Lynn A. Melton, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus

Fluorescent Diagnostics/Engineering; teaching chemistry to ninth graders

Education

B.S., California Institute of Technology (1966): Chemistry
M.A., Harvard University (1972): Physical Chemistry
Ph.D., Harvard University (1972): Physical Chemistry

Research Description

Understanding of industrial mixing processes is often a key to the design of efficient chemical reactors. My research program targets the development of novel colorimetric and fluorescent reaction-based diagnostics for industrial mixing processes. It couples the use of acid-base, redox, and/or complexometric chemistry to the solution of important chemical engineering problems. The goal is to enhance chemical engineering design, either through diagnostics that provide direct engineering insight or through diagnostics that drive the development of improved turbulence models for computational fluid dynamics (CFD).

Ninth graders are often baffled and turned off by their introduction to chemistry. They are just learning to use symbols in their algebra course, and they see chemistry as symbols they do not understand. This facet of my research focuses on the development of hands on materials to model the fundamental concepts of chemistry. With these materials students are introduced to concepts such as atoms, atomic force microscopy, and mass spectrometry before they work with the symbols.

Selected Publications

Melton, L.A.; Lipp, C.W. “Criteria for Quantitative PLIF Experiments Using High Power-Lasers”, Experiments in Fluids (2003) 35: 310-316.

Melton, L.A.; Lipp, C.W.; Spradling, R.W.; Paulson, K.A. “DISMT – Determination of Mixing Time through Color Changes”, Chemical Engineering Communications (2002) 189: 322-338.

Melton, L.A. “Determination of Carbon in Trichlorosilane by Metastable Transfer Emission Spectrometry”, Anal. Chem. (1986) 54: 807.