Rhett Bryant is a 2022 Canada Student Merit Award winner. He achieved this award for obtaining the highest standing of his class in the fourth and final year of his degree. Here is a brief biography of the winner.
Rhett was born and raised in the prairies of Brandon, Manitoba, Canada. It was there that a high school teacher named Ashley Dyson first introduced Rhett to chemistry. Rhett soon developed a passion for chemistry and, after graduating, moved to Calgary, Alberta, to study chemistry at the University of Calgary.
While at the University of Calgary, Rhett began his research career working in physical chemistry under the supervision of Dr. Peter Kusalik, where he developed mathematical models to predict the stability of aqueous nanobubbles and their mobility in the presence of electric fields. In his 3rd year, Rhett developed a passion for synthetic inorganic/organometallic chemistry and its applications in industry. He then joined the lab of Dr. Warren Piers, where he conducted his honours research on the synthesis of iron amido and imido complexes supported by a novel monoanionic pentadentate ligand. Rhett graduated from the University of Calgary in 2022 with a Bachelor of Science in chemistry with honours, first class.
After his undergraduate degree, Rhett began his PhD in chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley, in the fall of 2022. At Berkeley, Rhett is conducting research in Dr. Don Tilley’s group, where he focuses on the molecular organometallic chemistry of transition metal silylene and silicide complexes. He hopes that further development of molecular silicides in particular will help deepen our understanding of the Müller-Rochow (direct) process, which has been proposed to occur through copper silicide intermediates.
When not in the lab, Rhett enjoys being active outdoors with many activities such as hiking, skiing, camping and biking.
Rhett is honoured to be a 2022 SCI Canada Student Merit Award winner.
Visit Blog