January 30, 2023
Staff Accomplishment

Motkuri to Serve as Guest Editor for Scientific Reports Journal

Nature’s Scientific Reports journal selected Motkuri to co-lead guest edition for a collection on catalysis for high value molecules

Researcher standing in laboratory space next to research equipment

PNNL Chemical Engineer Radha Kishan Motkuri

(Photo by Andrea Starr | Pacific Northwest National Laboratory)

Radha Kishan Motkuri, a senior material scientist and chemical engineer at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), has been invited to lead efforts to select and highlight research for an upcoming special collection edition, titled “Catalysis for high-value molecules,” published by Nature’s Scientific Reports.

The call is open now and submissions will be accepted until July 4. To submit or learn more, refer to the call for papers webpage.

The journal Scientific Reports recently developed a series of guest-edited collections led by the journal’s editorial board members to highlight research in important fields and enhance its visibility in the community. The collection seeks to bring together the latest research on new catalysts and processes for synthesis of high-value molecules, and on converting waste to value-added products. The collection is open for submission of manuscripts about original primary research that falls within the scope of the collection and Scientific Reports more generally.

Motkuri, who has served as an editorial board member for Scientific Reports since 2018, was invited to co-lead this effort with two additional subject matter experts—Ahmed I. Osman, from Queen’s University Belfast in Northern Ireland, and Jumras Limtrakul, from the Vidyasirimedhi Institute of Science and Technology (VISTEC) in Thailand. Motkuri’s past work in the nanoporous materials and catalysis area, including research for the Catalysis Design for Decarbonization Center, an Energy Frontier Research Centers catalysis project, serves him well in this guest-editing effort.

“I feel this is an important and rewarding job. Serving on the editorial board will enhance my knowledge of the journal’s submission and publication process and help as I participate in advising journal strategy and development,” says Motkuri.

In addition to this special issue, Motkuri recently completed work with other experts to select research featured in Materials Today: Proceedings, for the edition International Conference on “Novel Materials and Technologies for Energy and Environment Applications” (Elsevier, January 2023).

Motkuri is an editorial board member for Inorganic Chimica Acta (Elsevier) and Scientific Reports (Nature Publishing Group) and served in Inorganic Chemistry (ACS) from 2018 – 2021. Apart from catalysis research, Dr. Motkuri is working on nanoporous materials for potential energy and environment applications, including adsorption/capture, separation, detection, sensing, and security. He was integral in developing thermal vapor-compression technology that runs off any low-grade heat source, called MARCool, for which he received a 2017 R&D 100 Award. Additionally, for the AirJoule Self-Regenerating Dehumidifier—a heating, ventilation, and air conditioning component that recycles the heat it generates by removing water from the air—he was widely recognized and awarded a 2021 R&D 100 Bronze award.