Sarah Floris

I am a first-year chemistry student from Delft, The Netherlands. I did the majority of middle school and high school in Texas, and also attended undergraduate at Abilene Christian, a small town about two hours west of Dallas, TX. In May of 2016, I graduated from ACU with a B.S. in Chemistry and a minor in Mathematics. During my undergraduate years, I was fortunate to research under Prof. Gregory Powell, who utilizes a microwave reactor to create new organometallic complexes, and later, I was able to work under Prof. Ryan Steele, who utilizes electronic structure theory to analyze interesting properties of compounds, at University of Utah as part of the NSF-REU program. This experience inspired me to continue working in theoretical chemistry, and thus, I joined Dr. McCoy’s lab in July of 2016 and am creating a program to model OH stretch behavior.

Outside of lab, I enjoy playing video games, reading books, playing in snow, and running. My favorite flavor is peppermint, which probably is why my favorite dessert is peppermint patties that I make at my house.  

Research Interest: Currently, I am creating a theoretical model that will analyze the bonding behavior of compounds containing OH stretches. Eventually, I would like to use these tools to investigate new materials for their catalytic properties in renewable and clean energy applications.