**In accordance with updated guidelines from our university’s youth programs office, we will no longer display the name, school or district information of TXSEF finalists on our website. This change aims to limit the amount of identifiable information available online, thereby enhancing the protection of student finalists’ identities and personal information. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.
2025 Special Award Winners
Broadcom Coding with Commitment
Frequency Analysis: Cracking the Code Again!
Carter, DeLuca & Farrell LLP
A Machine for Converting Yard Waste into Glue
NeuroFlex: A Cost-Effective, Non-Invasive EEG-Controlled Bionic Prosthesis for Transfemoral Amputees
Dr. Cortlan Wickliff
Utilizing Ants to Mitigate MSW Landfill-Derived Methane Production through Novel Aerobic Digester System for Anthropogenic Food Waste Decomposition
A Green Alliance: Evaluating the Synergistic Dynamics of PETase Expression and Plant-Microbe Interactions in Enhancing Microplastic Degradation Pathways in S. alterniflora
Deere Family Special Award
Invader to Innovator: Bioplastic Synthesis from Carrizo Cane
Wearable Gesture Recognition Device for Integrating Home Automation Healthcare Accessibility
Garver Engineers of Tomorrow Award
A Machine for Converting Yard Waste into Glue
Eco-Stepping Stones: Recovering Waterway Waste to Address Food And Clothing Insecurity Year 2
ExxonMobil
- Chemistry
- Junior
- Computational Simulations of Antibody Binding to VAPB Receptors for Targeted Therapy in Medulloblastoma
- Senior
- Translation Between the Opacity of Photochromic Dye and UV Index
- Junior
- Earth & Environmental Sciences
- Junior
- The Ground Truth: A Novel Approach for Landslide Prediction with a Deep Learning Framework
- Senior
- Acoustic Filtration II: Scaling an Ultrasonic Microplastic Filtration Device and Exploring the Physical Phenomenon of Acoustic Blocking
- Junior
- Embedded Systems
- Junior
- Foundation Tilt Prevention System: Protecting Structural Integrity Against Moisture Fluctuations While Optimizing Water Usage
- Senior
- Giving Robot Hands a Feeling
- Junior
- Energy: Sustainable Materials & Design
- Junior
- Micro’fat’ories: Increasing microalgal biomass and lipids for biofuel production
- Senior
- Enhancing Efficiency in Quantum Dot Solar Cells through Quantum Computational Simulations for Sustainable Energy and Environmental Health
- Junior
- Engineering Technology: Statics & Dynamics
- Junior
- Flying High
- Senior
- HandTalk: A Two-Way Translation System for American Sign Language
- Junior
- Materials Science
- Junior
- Development and Characterization of Hydrogel Systems for Encapsulation and Controlled Release of Model Compounds
- Senior
- Anticorrosive Strategies for Cu-Al Wire-Bonded Devices in Extreme Automotive Applications
- Junior
- Mathematics
- Junior
- Beyond the Curve: A Novel Mathematical Formula for Measuring Volume Under a 3D Parabolic Arch for Sustainable Agricultural Water Consumption.
- Senior
- A Novel Optimizer Equation to Predict KI67 Scores from Breast Cancer WSIs with CNN
- Junior
- Robotics and Intelligent Machines
- Junior
- Smartphone-Integrated Retinal Imaging and Skin Analysis System Utilizing Neural Networks
- Senior
- AutoMates: Automating With Self-Learning Intelligent Agents
- Junior
The Lemelson Early Inventor Prize
Utilizing Car exhaust to generate pressure and electricity, which will in turn charge a battery to optimize the efficiency and power usage of combustion engines.
Lonestar GC3
Enhancing Autism Therapeutics: The Influence of Acute Cannabidiol Treatment and the Estrous Cycle on Social Behavior and Hormone Changes in Adult Male and Female Mice
Paving the Path to the Impossible: Regenerating Neurons using Prostaglandin E2 regulation as a therapeutic strategy
HMM & Structural Docking In Silico Framework for Identifying & Inhibiting CCN3 Protein Pathway Mutations for Osteosarcoma
Neuroprotective Effects of Nutraceutical Supplementation for Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy
Naval Science Awards Program
Senior Division:
- OncoAI: Integrating a Computationally Efficient Deep Learning Model into a Multi-Platform Universally Accessible Application for Accurate Detection of Multiple Cancers Across Diverse Imaging Modalities
- Generation of 3D Human iPSC from Thermo-Responsive Micropatterned Polymer Regulation
- Tackling “Forever Chemicals PFAS” for Environmental Stewardship
- The Evaluation of the Combined Efficiency of Bio-Coagulants and Acacia-Senegal Gelatin-Based Hydrogels in the Sequential Purification and Desalination of Turbid and Brackish Water
- Development of an Ecofriendly and Economic Alternative to Oak Wood In Construction, utilizing a composite prototype of recycled Polyethylene terephthalate (PET), Polycarbonate, and Agave sisalana (Year 4).
- A Comparative analysis of strains of Mus musculus (laboratory mice) for CA19-9 and Ki-67 biomarkers to asses each strain’s ability to support a foreign cell culture and act as a human model for Insulinoma Cell Transplantation, as a novel cure for Diabetes Mellitus: Phase 1
- A Children’s Book about the Union-Closed Sets Conjecture
Junior Division:
- Comparing Coherent and Incoherent Light Waves
- Mosquito Attractants: A Two-Year Study
- Carbon Capture from Wood Combustion
- Reducing Risk of Cancer Through Antioxidants
- A Natural Cost-Effective Solution to Degrade Polyethylene Utilizing Bacillus Subtilis and Oscillatoria Formosa
- The Impact of Water Type, Alkalinity, and Current Input on Green Hydrogen Production Efficiency in Water Electrolysis
- Bio-Styro: An Insulative Biodegradable Alternative to Styrofoam
Regeneron Biomedical Science Award
Autonomous Tissue Retraction Robot to Aid in Minimally Invasive Surgery
Samsung
Modality Matched Sensory Smart Skin System To Restore Tactile Sensation for Amputees with Adaptive Visuo-Tactile Predictive Texture Recognition
Science Toy Magic Award
- Animal Science: Utilizing Ants to Mitigate MSW Landfill-Derived Methane Production through Novel Aerobic Digester System for Anthropogenic Food Waste Decomposition
- Biochemistry: Efficiently sequestering CO₂ from the ocean and atmosphere using different types of algae
- Cellular and Molecular Biology: Regulating Ligninolytic Enzymes to Improve Agrowaste Pretreatment Methods for Bioethanol Production
- Chemistry: Transforming Hydrofluorocarbons Into Safer Compounds: A Cost-Effective Process For Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions
- Earth and Environmental Sciences (9-12):
- Livestock Emissions and Coconut Waste: Analyzing the Inhibitory Potential of Coconut Waste Products in Cattle Manure Methane Emissions
- Catch Your Breath: Innovative Methods for Carbon Capture and Storage
- Earth and Environmental Sciences (6-8):
- Ocean Acidification Impacts and Potential Plant Solutions
- Bio-Concrete: Using Living Bacteria to Create Self-Healing Concrete and perform Carbon sequestration
- Acidifying Ocean (The Chemical And Structural Consequences On Marine Life)
- Energy: Sustainable Materials and Design: Utilizing Pyrogenic Carbon, and Calcium Carbonate Dust to Enhance Compressive Strength and Mitigate CO2 Emissions in Concrete Curing Processes for Seismic Regions.
- Engineering Technology: Statics & Dynamics: Design Optimization of Aircraft Wings Implementing Features from Nature
- Environmental Engineering (6-8):
- Carbon Capture from Wood Combustion
- Building a Carbon-Free Future: Exploring Optimal Conditions For Carbon Capture
- Materials Science: therma-Q 2.0: A comparative analysis in thermal performance of two, bio-based, carbon-neutral insulations.
- Microbiology: Optimizing Storage to Reduce Food Waste
- Plant Sciences: Carbon Sequestration And Evapotranspiration in a Changing Climate: Water fluxes in Semiarid Agro Ecosystems Mediated by Plants
- Robotics and Intelligent Machines: A Real-World Application of AI: Recycling
- Systems Software: Create a sustainable future: AI powered app for predicting future greenhouse gas emissions.
Science Toy Magic – Scholarship
Building a Carbon-Free Future: Exploring Optimal Conditions For Carbon Capture
SpaceX
Revolutionizing Rocket Propulsion: Development of a 3D-Printed Regeneratively Cooled Aerospike Nozzle for Extended Burn Propulsion
Analyzing the Efficiency of Aircraft with Biomimetic Wings
State of Texas Chapter –Health Physics Society
The Power of a Star in a Jar: Using Nuclear Fusion for Medical Radioisotope Production
Summus Industries
The Blockchain Exploit Playground: Learning Real-World Blockchain Vulnerabilities through an Open-Source Educational Platform for a Secure Future
AssemblyComplete: 3D Combinatorial Construction with Deep Reinforcement Learning
Taking the Pulse of the Planet Award (NOAA)
The Effects of Climate Change on Hurricane Intensity: Analyzing Data to Predict Future Storm Strength
Texas Master Naturalist
Eco-Stepping Stones: Recovering Waterway Waste to Address Food and Clothing Insecurity Year 2
The Algae-nator
United States Air Force
Senior Division:
- Ionic Wind Thruster
- Comparing the Lift Generated by Rotorcraft Blades in Low-Density Atmospheres
- Design and Aerodynamic Testing of Two Different Airplane Models
Junior Division
- Flying High
The Algae-nator
Wayne Squires
The Power of a Star in a Jar: Using Nuclear Fusion for Medical Radioisotope Production.
