Little Rock teen wins $50,000 grant at international science fair; classmate earns full scholarship

Meghana Bollimpalli (left) and Anusha Bhattacharyya, both Little Rock Central High School students, won awards for their research at the International Science and Engineering Fair, held the week of May 13, 2018, in Pittsburgh.
Meghana Bollimpalli (left) and Anusha Bhattacharyya, both Little Rock Central High School students, won awards for their research at the International Science and Engineering Fair, held the week of May 13, 2018, in Pittsburgh.

Two Little Rock students won awards for their research at the International Science and Engineering Fair held in Pittsburgh last week.

Meghana Bollimpalli, a 17-year-old Little Rock Central High School student, was one of two participants from around the world to receive a $50,000 grant from Intel, the fair's sponsor, according to a news release from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.

Bollimpalli discovered a way to synthesize materials and cut the production and energy costs of making electrodes for devices like supercapacitors, the school said, adding that she also earned the chemistry category's $8,000 first prize. She is reportedly the first top awardee from Arkansas since 1996.

Anusha Bhattacharyya, a 16-year-old who also attends Central High, won a full scholarship to Arizona State University and a $1,000 third-place award for developing an efficient and environmentally friendly absorbent to remove organic pollutants from water, according to the release.

Four other Little Rock students also competed in the event: Pulaski Academy student Mohammed Abuleum and Central High students Sanjana Padala, Hetvi Shah and Chengyue "Oscar" She.

All six reportedly won top prizes at the Central Arkansas Regional Science and Engineering Fair, held at UALR earlier this year. Nearly 1,800 students competed at the international fair, according to Intel.

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