Kevin Barnett, a graduate student in the group of George Huber, the Harvey D. Spangler Professor in chemical and biological engineering, received an award for best research paper presentation at the 255th American Chemical Society National Meeting, held March 18-22, 2018 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Barnett’s research focuses on methods to make useful chemicals from biological sources as an alternative to petroleum-based products. His presentation at the meeting described strategies to improve the economics of converting biomass to useful chemicals by selectively removing oxygen from reactions. The manuscript will be published in the American Chemical Society’s journal Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research.