Project Grant 2154133

This National Science Foundation Project Grant award of $450,000 provides funding from July 2022 through June 2025 for mechanistic organic photochemistry research at Brooklyn College of the City University of New York. The principal investigator, Professor Alexander Greer, will analyze oxygen-involving photochemical reactions and subsequent downstream processes to delineate primary from secondary, tertiary, and quaternary photo-oxidation mechanisms. This work aims to improve control of bacterial disinfection and deepen understanding of organic radical and oxidation chemistry relevant to environmental particulates, materials aging, and water disinfection. The funding also supports student training in photochemistry and development of online STEM education resources through the American Society of Photobiology. Using phase separation techniques, the Greer Research Group seeks to resolve sequential light and post-illumination reaction steps and determine specific mechanistic pathways, with implications for selective oxidation and anti-microbial targeting. This award is funded through the Mathematical and Physical Sciences program of the National Science Foundation, which supports advancing scientific knowledge and understanding major national problems through basic research and education in these fields.