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Marquis Scholar Lucas Landherr ’05 (Preston, Conn.) knows that when he dissolves a polymer, or a type of molecular plastic, into a tube of water, the water will flow faster through the tube.
He is conducting research this summer to find out why.
“The real interesting thing is that they discovered polymers will do this thing in the 1940s, but to this day still haven’t figured out why that happens,” said Landherr, a chemical engineering major who is minoring in European history. He recently received Lafayette’s American Institute of Chemical Engineers Donald F. Othmer Award,given to the junior chemical engineering major with the highest grade point average for two years.
In hopes of developing an explanation for why dissolved polymers reduce the friction needed to get water to flow, Landherr has been working in a lab and dissolving polymers in as many water- and water-based alcohol solutions he can get his hands on.
A member of Phi Beta Kappa, Landherr is working alongside J. Ronald “Bud” Martin ’66, professor of chemical engineering, as part of Lafayette’s distinctive EXCEL Scholars program, in which students conduct research with faculty while earning a stipend. The program has helped to make Lafayette a national leader in undergraduate research. Many of the more than 160 students who participate each year share their work through articles in academic journals and/or conference presentations.
“We’re just trying to understand the phenomenon and the basic mechanism behind it,” Martin says. “If you can understand it, you can increase the extent of it.”
While applications of the technology are innumerable, Martin says, polymers are already dissolved in fire hoses to make the water squirt farther.
Oil industry workers coat pipelines with polymers and save money by expediting the oil flow, Landherr says. Scientists believe that ejecting polymers into the ocean in front of submarines will enable the crafts to glide more smoothly through the water and use less fuel, he adds.
In the several years he’s studied dissolved polymers, Martin has made some discoveries that contribute to the knowledge base about the subject. He hopes that trend continues this summer with Landherr.
“I’m hoping he uncovers some things that can lead to an honors project next year,” Martin says.
Just being able to use the chemical engineering department’s expensive machines and conduct research applicable to the real world is satisfying for Landherr.
“The whole idea behind engineering is the fact that we’re given all these problems and forced to come up with solutions ourselves — I’m being given that chance in EXCEL,” he says. “There are no answers in the back of the book; we have to come up with the solution ourselves.”
“This is one of the best opportunities I think you could have,” Landherr adds. “Professor Martin knows exactly how much guidance I need. At the same time, he’s given me a few guidelines and offers a recommendation here and there, but other than that, it feels like the project is mine.”
For the most part, it is.
“So far, I’m impressed with his ability to do things on his own, to think for himself and go ahead and adjust the experiment when it’s required,” says Martin, adding that he chose Landherr as his researcher because he’s a good experimentalist, a self-starter, and can work with minimal guidance.
Landherr said his work this summer will likely spin off into a yearlong honors thesis and will give him a strong foundation in his future pursuit of polymer research.
In his first year at Lafayette, he presented research on “Hitler youth” in Germany at the 16th annual National Conference on Undergraduate Research. His project was guided by Edward McDonald, professor of foreign languages and literatures.
He is president of Lafayette’s chapter of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers and coordinates intramural events. Landherr has performed in College Theater productions of The Two Gentlemen of Verona, She Stoops to Conquer, Translations, and The Cherry Orchard, and hosts a show on WJRH, the campus radio station.
He is a graduate of St. Bernard’s High School.
As a national leader in undergraduate research, Lafayette sends one of the largest contingents to the National Conference on Undergraduate Research each year. Forty-two students were accepted to present their work at the last annual conference in April.
Chosen from among Lafayette’s most promising applicants, Marquis Scholars like Landherr receive special financial aid and distinctive educational experiences and benefits, including a three-week, Lafayette-funded study-abroad course during January’s interim session between regular semesters. Marquis Scholars also participate in cultural activities in major cities and on campus, and mentoring programs with Lafayette faculty.