Mohaanavarshini Samanthavada Chandrasekar won the Student Scholarship Award at the Tennessee Environmental Network Show of the South (TENSOS) Conference held in Chattanooga from May 14–16. 

Chandrasekar, a rising sophomore electrical engineering major, presented her research on the development of biosensors for detecting PFAS contamination in water. Her poster, entitled “Low-Cost and Ultrasensitive Capacitive Sensor Detection of Per-fluorooctanoic Acid Based on Molecular Imprinted Polymer” was reviewed by a panel of judges. 

Chandrasekar, who is mentored by EECS Professor Jayne Wu, was the only undergraduate student selected among the six finalists for the Student Scholarship Award. 

“This achievement would not have been possible without the guidance of both Dr. Wu and Dr. (Niloufar) Amin, who taught me every step of the research process,” Chandrasekar said. “Winning first place at my very first conference—especially one of this scale and prestige, with participation from distinguished leaders and industry professionals—was truly a memorable and meaningful experience.”