Sept. 21, 2003 — It's an accomplishment usually afforded to postgraduate and doctoral students, but University of the Virgin Islands senior Valicia Burke is one of few undergraduate students to have their research published in a scientific journal.
Burke, a senior chemistry major, was published in the American Chemical Society's "Industrial and Engineering Chemical Research" journal. She co-authored the scientific paper with her former adviser and research partner Dr. Mary Whitten, a former chemistry professor at UVI.
The paper, published in August, is titled "Simultaneous Acid Catalyst and In-Situ Phosphatizing using Polyester-Melamine Paint: A Surface Phosphatization Study." The research was conducted at Northern Illinois University in the lab of Dr. Chhiu-Tsu Lin, also a co-author, during the summer of 2001 when Burke was a 17-year-old sophomore. There was one other co-author.
"It just gives me a really good feeling," Burke said of being published. "I really didn't expect it to happen. I've been told that there are professors and Ph.D.s who are not yet published," she said, which makes the accomplishment even more noteworthy for the 19-year-old.
Whitten said that Burke used advanced scientific equipment, including a photomicroscope, to conduct the research.
"She was a very quick learner, self-motivated and a great person to work with," Whitten said. "Not very many undergraduate students, let alone a 17-year-old, have had exposure to the types of instrumentation she used that summer."
Burke's current advisor, Dr. Jennifer Carroll, said, "If you can publish as an undergrad you are more likely to be accepted in the graduate school of your choice."
The research involved the development of a paint that will eliminate the need for conversion coatings, which help paint better adhere to metals. Conversion coatings usually contain hexavalent chromium, an environmentally dangerous chemical. Not only will the new paint be better for the environment, but it will also be cost efficient and timesaving, as the paint effectively and completely replaces the need for use of a separate chemical.
The research of Burke and Whitten was sponsored by a grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Minority Biomedical Research Support (MBRS) Research Initiative for Scientific Enhancement (RISE).
Burke is the recipient of the NIH-Minority Access to Research Careers (MARC) scholarship, which provides exceptional UVI juniors and seniors with free tuition and a monthly stipend. Each summer she has done NIH-funded research at universities or institutions abroad. During the summer of 2003 Burke interned at the NIH National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
"The research that I've been doing these past years were independent studies," Burke said, noting that she has worked mostly with professionals rather than with students. "It gave me insight to see where I want to be professionally."
Burke, who will graduate in 2004, has considered pursuing graduate studies in either chemistry, biochemistry or biophysical chemistry and plans to eventually earn a doctorate. Recently she has become fascinated with biophysical chemistry and has a passion to discover the 3-D structure of proteins.
Burke was the valedictorian of her 2001 Educational Complex High School class, where she was enrolled in the magnet program. She was also an early admission student at UVI.
Dr. Teresa Turner is the director of the MARC program at UVI.
Publisher's note : Like the St. Thomas Source now? Find out how you can love us twice as much — and show your support for the islands' free and independent news voice … click here.
