Aspiring Chemical Engineer Seeks to Improve Environment and Reduce Carbon Emissions Worldwide

ANKENY, IOWA, UNITED STATES, October 25, 2022 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Aspire2STEAM.org, which provides educational scholarships and mentoring to young women and girls who are working toward careers that require education in science, tech, engineering, the arts, or math (STEAM), has awarded Autum Satterfield an ASPIRER scholarship made possible through a kind donation from CompTIA. CompTIA is a leading voice and advocate for the $5 trillion global information technology ecosystem; and the estimated 75 million industry and tech professionals who design, implement, manage, and safeguard the technology that powers the world’s economy.

“Autum Satterfield is a person of great substance and strength,” said Cheryl O’Donoghue, CEO of Aspire2STEAM. “Her career accomplishments through her college internships are impressive, while she continues to academically achieve high marks. She’s also endured a series of health and life obstacles without ever losing focus on her education dreams and her aspiration to literally improve our planet so we and future generations are able to sustain life on Earth. To say we are a fan of Autum’s is an understatement.”

Autum is a busy fifth year senior at North Carolina State University double majoring in Paper Science and Engineering and Chemical Engineering with a concentration in sustainable energy, engineering, and the environment. Over the course of her time at the university she served as a teaching assistant, helped conduct research, and worked as a mentor for the university’s Engineering Village, which helps further students’ interest and passion with engineering.

Ultimately, Autum’s main interests revolve around our planet’s sustainability and the continuous process improvement model (an ongoing movement to improve current processes, services, and products that impact Earth and our lives). She honed this interest by participating in several internships, as well as campus research initiatives and events.

Autum’s first industry experience came when she was a Quality Engineering Intern with Clearwater Paper Corporation. In this role, Autum worked with multiple departments to improve product testing, standardize operating procedures, and increase the efficiency of first production runs. She also participated in a co-op as a Process Engineering Intern with International Paper. Not only did she help optimize operating setpoints on their paper machines, she helped determine new viable chemicals within the paper making process. After collecting waste samples, Autum was able to identify how much fiber was being lost which led to a company-wide solution that saved the business roughly two million a year.

“As I prepare to graduate, I know that I want to eventually work on sustainability efforts within a company that is dedicated to sustainable improvements,” said Autum. “My overall goal is to work on carbon capture and storage/sequestration (CCS) technology and implementation, specifically within the oil and gas industry.”

Being at the center of attention with carbon emissions, Autum finds the oil and gas industry gets a bad reputation, however, they have the most room for environmental improvements. She desires to eventually work on evaluating each CCS technology for their viability within a process and their effectiveness in reducing carbon emissions within the manufacturing process.

She is also quite focused on having an impact on sustainability. Currently, Autum is interning with ExxonMobil as an Aromatics Engineering Intern. In this internship, her focus is learning how to size relief valves so that both protection of equipment and company personnel can be optimized. She is also reviewing piping and instrumentation diagrams to find where equipment is lacking and develop solutions to lead to increased production and she is working to optimize a process tower pressure to reduce fuel gas usage, resulting in cost savings and improved environmental impact.

“While a much smaller scale, these types of projects excite me, and I want to continue this work in larger ways throughout my career,” said Autum. “Not only will I be in an industry that manufactures products that touch every aspect of our lives, but I will be making the process more sustainable so people can be more confident in their purchases. Saving the environment one project at a time will only lead to a better world in the future, and that is what I want my future career to make a reality.”

Throughout Autum’s college career, she has done exceptionally well in and out of the classroom. She is set to graduate Summa Cum Laude in December 2022 with a 4.0 GPA.

About Aspire2STEAM

Aspire2STEAM.org is a charitable 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, which has earned Guidestar’s Gold Seal for integrity, transparency, and accountability. Aspire2STEAM provides educational scholarships and mentoring to young women and girls who are working hard—aspiring—to achieve careers that require education in science, tech, engineering, the arts, or math. Aspire2STEAM is committed to helping women and girls with a hand up over the incredible barriers of student debt and rising education costs, and the real, ever-present opportunity barriers that keep them out of most male-dominated industries.

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Cheryl O'Donoghue
Aspire2STEAM
+1 630-253-2004
Cheryl@Aspire2STEAM.org

A Message from Autum Satterfield

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