The father of two children, ages seven and five, Ouellette postponed college to enlist in the U.S. Army and was named Soldier of the Year in 1989.  He graduated from SUNY Cortland in 1996 with a B.S. in chemistry and worked for several years in research and development in a Syracuse-based company.  After the birth of their second child in 2002, Ouellette and his wife, a special education teacher, decided the time was right for Ouellette to become a student again and pursue his dream of becoming a chemist. 

Shortly after arriving at SU in 2002, Ouellette began working with Distinguished Professor of Chemistry Jon Zubieta, department chair, whose research includes creating new kinds of materials by combining organic and inorganic substances.  Ouellette has focused on developing new types of microporous materials by combining different metals with triazolate, an organic compound commonly found in antifungal products and some pharmaceuticals. The chemical reactions produce tiny crystals whose properties vary, depending on the type of metal used.  In addition to being microporous, some of the materials exhibit magnetic properties while others exhibit colorful luminescent properties. 

“Microporous materials could potentially be used in optical sensors, as catalysts to create new materials, or to store large quantities of hydrogen at lower pressures than is currently available,” Ouellette says. “If we could find better and safer ways to store hydrogen, it could be used as a source of energy for heating and cooling buildings. But, in order to design such materials, we first need to understand how substances react with each other—we need to understand the basics. That’s what I’m focusing on in my research.”

A native of Sinclair, Maine, Ouellette has published 35 articles over the last five years, 18 of which he is the primary author. Three of his publications in Inorganic Chemistry are among the journal’s top 20 most accessed articles.