From Independence to Innovation, Department of Defense’s SMART Scholar Leads Groundbreaking Mass Spectrometry Research

Courtesy Photo | SMART scholar Patrick Fedick, Ph.D. and mentor Benjamin Harvey, Ph.D.  

VA, UNITED STATES

03.06.2023

Courtesy Story

SMART Scholarship Program

The Department of Defense (DoD) Science, Mathematics, and Research for Transformation (SMART) Scholarship-for-Service Program scholar Patrick Fedick, Ph.D., and his mentor, Benjamin Harvey, Ph.D., are making significant contributions to the Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division (NAWCWD), ultimately supporting the warfighter’s mission to protect national security. The mentee/mentor pair is leading new research and innovations while inspiring the next generation of scientists, influencing the Department for years to come. For their collaborative efforts, Fedick and Harvey were recently awarded the 2022 Scholars and Mentors of the Year Award as a SMART scholar with a doctoral degree currently in the post-service commitment.

Fedick is currently fulfilling his SMART scholarship post-service commitment as a seasoned DoD science and technology professional at NAWCWD. For Fedick, Harvey has served as a mentor leading by example as a role model to a young researcher starting an independent career. Fedick often jokes, “I want to be like Ben when I grow up”. Harvey, a senior scientist, a NAWCWD research fellow, and a member of the National Academy of Inventors, inspires Fedick in his own research career and becoming a mentor himself.

The pair have established a renowned collaborative relationship through this mentorship. Harvey, who maintains an incredible 83 peer-reviewed papers and astonishing 81 patents, has mentored Fedick through process of how to publish and patent results as a starting scientist. Harvey has also guided Fedick through the grant writing process to obtain funding opportunities and establishing independent research as a post-doctoral scholar. Even though mass spectrometry is not Harvey’s area of expertise, together, they have written several grant proposals and two manuscripts.

Driven by innovation, Fedick established a world-class mass spectrometry laboratory at NAWCWD’s Chemistry Division, leading groundbreaking ambient ionization mass spectrometry research for the United States in under four years. In addition to supporting his laboratory, Fedick collaborates with other DoD laboratories and centers, as well as academia, such as Purdue University and Illinois State University.

Fedick’s research focuses on ambient ionization mass spectrometry to aid in environmental issues and threat detection. His work is currently pending a patent for a 3-D printed cone spray ionization (3D-PCSI) ion source. Additionally, Fedick has two other invention disclosures that are pending patent applications for his reproducible automatic sampling device and coupling 3D-PCSI to additional instrumental technology for field testing. The sensors developed have been adapted for field testing of explosives, chemical warfare agents, drugs and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances. Fedick is also looking to improve the DoD’s speed and efficiency when developing new energetic materials. To do this, he uses novel mass spectrometry techniques to synthesis energetic compounds through high-throughput reaction screening.

To date, Fedick has received nearly $6 million in independent funding from the Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP), Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), and the Navy’s Environmental Sustainability Development to Integration (NESDI) to establish his independent research. Fedick’s research efforts have resulted in 33 manuscripts, five invention disclosures, one submitted patent, two patent applications, and 53 presentations to national and international audiences. Fedick’s most recent publications are in Reaction Chemistry & Engineering, International Journal of Mass Spectrometry, and Chemosphere.

Having been vital to his own academic to career journey, Fedick takes an active role mentoring future scientists. Fedick has grown his research group welcoming a handful of researchers, including two post-secondary students through the Naval Research Enterprise Internship Program (NREIP) – a summer opportunity for undergraduate and graduate students to participate in research under the guidance of a research mentor at a participating Navy laboratory. Additionally, his mentee, Hilary Brown, Ph.D., won the Post-Doctoral Career Development Award from the American Society of Mass Spectrometry while working in Fedick’s laboratory. Fedick also serves on the executive committee for the local Mojave Desert chapter of the American Chemical Society and on its Younger Chemist Committee where he leads a symposium for undergraduate and graduate students on how to obtain a government position.

Taking a full turn, Fedick also volunteers as a reviewer of SMART program applications and SMART Phase 2 Research Grant proposal review committee. Together, Fedick and Harvey exemplify the vision of the SMART Scholarship-for-Service Program – to create a highly skilled STEM workforce that competes with dynamic trends in technology to aid the warfighter.

Annually, SMART recognizes scholar and mentor pairs who embody the SMART vision of creating a highly skilled DoD workforce that competes with the dynamic trends in technology and innovation to protect national security. These awards recognize outstanding scholar achievements as well as the valuable guidance provided by their mentor at a SMART sponsoring facility.

• Date Taken: 03.06.2023
• Date Posted: 03.06.2023 09:48
• Story ID: 439756
• Location: VA, US