Congratulations to our 2026 awardees!
Brison Shira
Cooks Laboratory, Purdue University
Agilent/ACS Analytical Graduate Fellowship
During the fellowship period, I plan to develop a new instrumental method for chiral determinations from complex mixtures in less than one second using nanogram samples. Rapid and robust measurement with small samples would matter in areas ranging from astrochemistry to clinical diagnostics. I plan to work with a modified ion trap mass spectrometer to develop this analysis.
Linda Lieu
Fornelli Laboratory, University of Oklahoma
Eli Lilly and Company / ACS Analytical Graduate Research Fellowship
My thesis focuses on advancing middle-down and top-down mass spectrometry (MS) workflows to improve the characterization of intact biotherapeutics and their subunits, ultimately enhancing our understanding of critical quality attributes (CQAs) relevant to drug stability, efficacy, and pharmacokinetics. During the fellowship period, I will optimize and apply innovative tandem MS (MS/MS) technologies, leveraging hybrid ion-ion and ion-photon dissociation techniques to address the growing analytical challenges associated with increasingly complex antibody modalities. Specifically, I will develop a multi-level workflow for the analysis of antibody constructs at both intact and subunit levels, utilizing infrared photon-assisted electron-based activation alongside spectral decongestion to achieve comprehensive structural characterization of bispecific mAbs, trispecific mAbs, and antibody-drug conjugates.
Purva Damale
Badu-Tawiah Laboratory, The Ohio State University
Eastman/ACS Analytical Graduate Fellowship
My research focuses on developing Dynamic Spray mass spectrometry as a universal ionization platform that bridges electrospray ionization (ESI) and atmospheric pressure chemical ionization (APCI) within a single experiment, enabling comprehensive analysis of chemically diverse analytes. This work establishes fundamental principles of voltage-dependent ion formation while introducing voltage ramping as a new analytical dimension to probe ion energetics, charge-state distributions, and reaction pathways. During the fellowship, I will advance Dynamic Spray toward a fully automated, high-throughput system by enabling bidirectional voltage control, expanding multidimensional reaction screening, and establishing quantitative strategies for complex, real-world samples. These efforts aim to transform mass spectrometry into a more versatile, field-deployable technology for applications in metabolomics, pharmaceutical analysis, forensics, and clinical diagnostics.
Haley Jostes
Baker Laboratory, University of North Carolina
PITTCON/ACS Analytical Graduate Fellowship
My PhD research focuses on applying advanced analytical techniques to characterize contaminants and the biological responses associated with environmental exposures, specifically from wildland and urban fires. During the term of this fellowship, I will be working to optimize the coupling of pyrolysis-gas chromatography (py-GC) with our lab’s ion mobility-mass spectrometry (IMS-MS) platform to develop a library of common plastic types. This library will then be used to assess micro- and nanoplastic contamination in various environmental and urban fire relevant matrices to ultimately evaluate resulting exposures.
Honorable Mention
Mohamed Ali
Danielson Laboratory, Miami University of Ohio
Vincent Chang
Malaker Laboratory, Yale University
Seth Horn
McLuckey Laboratory, Purdue University
Kelly Lu
Li Laboratory, University of Wisconsin
Alyssa Moore
Laskin Laboratory, Purdue University
