From CrossSections, UT Physics and Astronomy, Fall 2015/Winter 2016
Bob Compton retired in Summer 2015 after almost 20 years being a Professor of Chemistry and Physics at UT Knoxville.
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Curtis Anderson, a third year graduate student in the Long Research Group, recently published a paper titled “Redox-Active Ligands: An Advanced Tool To Modulate Polyethylene Microstructure“ in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, the flagship journal of the American Chemical Society.
Anderson’s research is focused on the development and utilization of transition metal-based catalysts bearing redox-active ligands. In this report, Anderson found that a particular class of well-known nickel-based catalysts could readily be reduced in situ, providing a controllable and predictable route to polymers with tailored branching content. “This work represents the first example of using a single catalyst to generate more than one distinct polymer microstructure using redox-activity,” said Anderson. This work was performed by Anderson, along with Dr. Jennifer Rhinehart and Professor Brian Long of the Department of Chemistry at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and Professor Andrew Tennyson, an assistant professor at Clemson University.
“For years, researchers have probed the effects of ligand electronics in catalytic olefin polymerization by meticulously synthesizing libraries of discrete catalysts,” said Long. “While those studies are foundational to our work, Curtis’ recent report provides fundamental, proof-of-principle evidence that the catalytic activity and reactivity of a single olefin polymerization catalyst can be easily modulated via the addition or removal of a single electron.”
JACS is the world’s preeminent journal in all of chemistry and interfacing areas of science. It is devoted to the publication of fundamental research papers and publishes approximately 19,000 pages of Articles, Communications, and Perspectives a year. Published weekly, JACS provides research essential to the field of chemistry.*
Anderson was raised in Hiram, Georgia. He obtained a B.S. in Chemistry from Southern Polytechnic State University in Marietta, GA. During his time at SPSU, Anderson performed undergraduate research in forensics under Dr. Wei Zhou. Following that experience, he worked for Dr. Rajnish Singh, studying the interaction of cancer cells with natural antioxidants. Anderson joined the Department of Chemistry at UTK in Fall 2013 to pursue a Ph.D. degree in inorganic chemistry and became a member of the Long’s Research Group in December, 2013. His current research focuses on homogeneous catalysis for polyolefins.
*From JACS website
Kenneth O’Neal, a fourth year graduate student in Musfeldt’s Group, first-authored a manuscirpt that was accepted at Nano Letters, a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal published by American Chemical Society.
O’Neal’s study, titled “High pressure vibrational properties of WS2 nanotubes“, focuses on the high-pressure response of Tungsten Disulfide (WS2) nanotubes. “WS2 nanotubes are some of the world’s best solid-state lubricants.” O’Neal said. “We used the synchrotron light source at Brookhaven National Lab to take infrared spectra of the nanotubes with up to 20 GPa of applied pressure, as well as Raman data to the same pressures. Comparing the two techniques revealed that a Raman-active mode is twice as pressure sensitive as every other mode, making it a strong candidate as part of the nanotube breakdown pathway. We also observed some percolation effects as the nanotubes were compressed.”
Nano Letters publishes studies in all branches of the theory and practice of nanoscience and nanotechnology. Nano Letters ranked number four among journals in the field of nanoscience and nanotechnology based on its 2013 impact factor of 12.94, and ranked number one based on its 2013 Eigenfactor® Score of 0.37484. “It is quite exciting to be accepted at such a high profile journal.” O’Neal said.
O’Neal obtained his Bachelor’s degree in chemistry at Baldwin-Wallace University. After working an entry-level industry job, O’Neal joined the Department of Chemistry in 2011 to purse a Ph.D. degree in physical chemistry. His current research focuses on two main areas: (i) size-dependent optical properties of nanoparticles and (ii) structure-property relations in molecule-based magnets. O’Neal has been the main student involved in Musfeldt’s research group’s new high pressure spectroscopy initiative.
Lauren Brown, a fourth year chemistry Ph.D. student in the Long Research Group, was awarded the ACS Women Chemists Committee and Eli Lilly & Company Travel Award. As part of this award, Brown will present a poster titled “Enhancing Lactide Polymerization Control through the use of Redox-active Catalysts” at the Spring 2016 ACS National Meeting in San Diego, CA.
Brown grew up in upstate South Carolina. After earning her B.S. degree in Chemistry from Wofford College, she worked at Milliken & Company in Application Development for Performance Colorants and Additives. In 2012, Brown joined the Department of Chemistry at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville to pursue a Ph.D. degree. Later that year, she became part of the Long Research Group.
“Lauren has quickly become a leader within the Long Research Group.” Brian Long, Assistant Professor of Chemistry, said. “A portion of her hard work was recently published in the high-impact journal ACS Catalysis, and will be the topic that she will present at the upcoming ACS National Meeting in San Diego, CA.”
Awarded biannually, the Travel Award is intended to provide funding for undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral female chemists to travel to meetings to present the results of their research. Including Brown, a total of 11 researchers from all around the country received this award that will allow them to attend scientific meetings between Jan. 1st and June 30th, 2016. Awardees were selected on the basis of scientific merit and financial need.
“I am so proud of Lauren’s accomplishments to date,” said Long. “Lauren was selected to present her work at the Excellence in Graduate Polymer Science Symposium, which in itself is quite an honor. I expect that she will receive many more before she completes her doctoral work here at UT.”
Sheng Dai, a professor of chemistry with a joint appointment at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, has been named to a list of the most highly cited researchers in the world.
Thomson Reuters Highly Cited Researchers is an annual list that recognizes some of the world’s leading researchers in the sciences and social sciences. About three thousand researchers were named to the 2015 list.
A low-cost chemical sensor invented by a UT chemistry professor in partnership with the Y-12 National Security Complex has been recognized by R&D Magazine as a top technology product in the marketplace.
The invention, the product of Chemistry Professor Michael Sepaniak and collaborators at Y-12, was selected this weekend for the 2015 R&D100 Award—known in the field as the “Oscars of innovation.” The award recognizes the top 100 technology projects of the year and honor the inventors.
OAK RIDGE, Tenn., Oct. 29, 2015 – Catalysts that power chemical reactions to produce the nylon used in clothing, cookware, machinery and electronics could get a lift with a new formulation that saves time, energy and natural resources.
The catalyst developed by researchers at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory and highlighted in a paper published in Nature Communications features unprecedented selectivity and a conversion rate nearly twice that of conventional catalysts. Selectivity refers to the ability to target a specific chemical bond. It is also significant that the catalyst can break the carbon-hydrogen bonds in hydrocarbons such as cyclohexane, the precursor of nylon, without using noble metals. This has been considered a bottle-neck step in the production of nylon.
“The greater the selectivity, the more products that can be derived,” said ORNL chemist, Professor of Chemistry at the University of Tennessee Knoxville, and lead author Sheng Dai of the Chemical Sciences Division. “The catalyst is the main ingredient to speed up desired chemical reactions, and we have created one for synthesizing the nylon precursor that is especially effective at activating the carbon-hydrogen bonds.”
ORNL’s successful approach lies in the formation of an ultrahigh concentration of active sites – for breaking the carbon-hydrogen bonds — from a 50-50 atomistic mixture of manganese oxide and cerium oxide. This creates a catalyst that is extremely porous and features a high surface area, making it efficient at breaking these bonds. The high efficiency, or conversion rate, of the ORNL catalyst means more nylon can be produced from cyclohexane in less time.
Dai emphasized that this success was a team effort as he enlisted the help of ORNL postdoctoral research associate Pengfei Zhang, visiting scholar Hanfeng Lu of Zhejiang University and others to test his concept.
“Our catalyst has created a sustainable way to prepare complex mesoporous metal oxides and demonstrates outstanding performance in the selective oxidation of various hydrocarbons by oxidation,” Zhang said.
This research was funded by DOE’s Office of Science. A portion of the work was done at the Center for Nanophase Materials Science, a DOE User Facility at ORNL. The paper, titled “Mesoporous MnCeOx solid solutions for low temperature and selective oxidation of hydrocarbons,” is available online.
Other authors were Li Zhang, Zilu Wu, Shize Yang and Hongliang Shi of ORNL, Ying Zhou, Quilian Zhu and Yinfei Chen of Zhejiang University and Shize Yang and Hongliang Shi of the University of Tennessee.
UT-Battelle manages ORNL for the DOE’s Office of Science. The Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States, and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time.
MEDIA CONTACT: Ron Walli
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Communications
(865) 576-0226
Jeff Kovac, Professor of Chemistry, was elected one of the 13 senators of the Phi Beta Kappa Society on October 9th at the Society’s 44th Triennial Council in Denver, Colorado. The Society is the nation’s oldest academic honor society founded December 5, 1776.
Senators serve as directors who guide the Society on policy matters that are carried out by the national office of Phi Beta Kappa, and set the direction for the Society’s future. The normal Senate term of office is six years. Four people are returning to the Senate for a second term. Kovac is among the nine who are new to the Phi Beta Kappa Senate. “Being elected to the Phi Beta Kappa senate gives me an opportunity to have a larger impact nationally as an advocate for the liberal arts.” Kovac said.
“Phi Beta Kappa is very fortunate that these distinguished individuals are willing to volunteer their time to serve as Senators,” said John Churchill, Secretary of the Society. “Their skills and expertise will enhance those of our current Senators. They bring a variety of perspectives for assessing the best ways to advance the values of liberal arts and sciences education in America. I look forward to working with them.”
Kovac earned a Ph.D. in 1974 from Yale University. After completing two years as a postdoctoral research associate at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, he joined the Department of Chemistry at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, in 1976. During Kovac’s career here at the University of Tennessee, he has served as the director of General Chemistry from 1999 to 2011, the director of the Governor’s School for the Sciences and Engineering, and the director of the College Scholars program. Kovac also directed Tennessee Science Olympiad State Tournament for four years. His contributions were recognized both locally and nationally. Kovac was named AAAS Fellow in 2001.
The University of Tennessee’s Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa, officially known as Epsilon of Tennessee, was formally installed in 1964 and has more than 120 members as of 2013. Kovac currently serves as the Chapter President and one of the five judges for the Society’s $10,000 National Book Awards in Science.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) — Dr. Al Hazari is a man who knows how to make an entrance.
The retired UT chemistry professor has spent the past 25 years putting on science shows for audiences all over East Tennessee.
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