Coe alumna adapts research to support health care workers
Madeline G. Jensen ’17
Across the world research teams are finding ways to apply their knowledge and resources to battling COVID-19 and supporting health care workers. Coe alumna Madeline G. Jensen ’17 is among them.
Jensen, a third-year doctoral student at the University of Iowa, is using her experience with water filtration devices to develop air filters for personal protective equipment (PPE). Her usual research is on hold while she and a fellow graduate student shift their focus to addressing the health care system’s shortage of PPE.
“It feels really good,” Jensen said. “Before starting this project I was doing my part to help during the COVID-19 pandemic by social distancing and staying at home, but I felt frustrated because I wanted to be able to do more. This project has given me the opportunity to use my skill set to try to ease some of the strain and worry the health care system and health care workers are currently experiencing.
“Right now we are still working to develop a material that meets the air filtration requirements needed for masks. We’re getting close though,” Jensen said. “Once we have a material that works, the plan is for the team at UI to work with partners outside the university to manufacture this material at a larger scale and use it in masks and respirators.”
Under normal circumstances, Jensen’s research focuses on removing chemical compounds known as PFAS from drinking water. The lab, now reduced to two to ensure safe working conditions during the pandemic, typically has half a dozen students synthesizing nanomaterials, each with a different focus. This experience with nanomaterials is what led Jensen’s team to adapt their research.
Jensen has a year and half before defending her dissertation and completing her degree in civil and environmental engineering with a focus on water and the environment.
“I would not be where I am today without the constant support of my Coe professors and mentors, both then and today, as well as the knowledge, skills and research experience I gained while studying at Coe,” Jensen said. “To the Kohawk community, I hope everyone is staying safe and healthy in these challenging times.”