Chemistry Department Held 2012 Honors Day

April 30, 2012 by chemweb

UNDERGRADUATE AWARDS

CRC Press General Chemistry Award – Russell T. Smith
C. W. Keenan Outstanding General Chemistry Student Award – Emma K. Hollmann
Dr. Lucy E. Scroggie Scholarship – Desta D. Bume
C. A. Buehler Chemistry Scholarship – Burton K. Mandrell
East Tennessee Section, ACS, Award – Britta A. Johnson
Hach Foundation Scholarship – Maria C. Owens
Melaven-Rhenium Scholarships – Desta D. Bume, James R. Humble, Karson N. Lurie, Matthew A. Messer, Christopher E. Freye
Honors Chemistry Recognition – Mikhail Androsov, Desta D. Bume, Maria J. DeLucia, Jamie Dreher, Xin Huang, Hunter A. Johnson, Simone Ilia, Nathan Kenner, Genesis N. M. Minter, Andrew P. Moss, Molly E. Payne, Thomas R. Fleming, Hardie V. Sorrels, Elisabeth M. Spratt, Lauren T. Swientoniewski, Andrew G. Taylor, Rachel C. Wooliver
Chancellor’s Honors and Office of Research Summer Internships – David A. Cooper, Christopher E. Freye, Alexander S. McCullough, Andrew P. Moss
Chancellor’s Honors Top Collegiate Scholar – Sean Forrest

STAFF AWARDS

Outstanding Service Award – Pamela D. Roach, Beverly Adams Rosenbalm
Carol Moulton ACGS Service Award – James W. Gurley
James F. Green ACGS Service Award – Pamela D. Roach

GRADUATE AWARDS

Second Year Candidacy Award – Brianna C. Hughes
Outstanding Teaching Awards – James F. Patton, Kelly E. Hall
C. W. Keenan Outstanding Graduate Teaching Award – Christopher R. Murdock
Graduate Fellowship for Achievement in Inorganic Chemistry – Steven A. Cramer
Eugene John Barber Fellowship in Physical Chemistry – Peng Chen
Burchfield Burridge Warner Fellowship in Polymer Chemistry – Chaitra V. Deodhar
East Tennessee Section, ACS, Graduate Fellow – Amanda L. May
Gleb Mamantov Graduate Chemistry Scholar – Xiaojun Wang
SAACS Outstanding Chemistry T. A. Award – Naixiong Jin
UT Scholarly Activity Incentive Fund, Research Assistants – Heather M. Bass, Vighter O. Iveri
Joint Institute of Neutron Sciences Fellowships – Seth C. Hunter, Adam E. Imel, George H. Rouvelas
Society of Electroanalytical Chemistry Travel Award – Stefanie A. Bragg
Winners of the Board of Visitor’s Poster Competition – Heidi E. Bostic, Christopher P. Bennett

FACULTY AWARDS

SAACS Outstanding Chemistry Professor Award – Dr. Jeffrey D. Kovac
Ziegler Professor Announcement – Dr. Bin Zhao
ACS Fellows – Dr. Alan A. Hazari, Dr. Jimmy W. Mays
New Faculty – Dr. Brian K. Long

A Chemist in the Making

April 24, 2012 by chemweb

Someone who looks at Britta Johnson’s resume will find a number of impressive achievements, including several semesters of undergraduate research in the University of Tennessee’s Department of Chemistry.

In recognition of her research efforts, Johnson was awarded a Best Presentation prize during UT’s 2012 Exhibition of Undergraduate Research and Creative Achievement (EUReCA).
The project she presented, “Dynamics of He adsorption on
MgO(100) surfaces,” focused on theoretical studies of the bound states of He atoms that are adsorbed on the surface of an MgO crystal.

Some of Johnson’s results were published in the Journal of Physical Chemistry* in 2011, in an article titled “Pairwise Additive Model for the He-MgO(100) Interaction.” Johnson was the article’s first author.

Britta’s co-author, Robert Hinde, has been Johnson’s undergraduate research mentor.  The two have worked together since summer 2009.  “Britta has been a great student and a great collaborator,” Hinde said.  “Her research has taught us a lot about fundamental atom-surface interactions.  A better understanding of these interactions can ultimately help scientists understand in more detail how chemical catalysts work.”

Johnson joined UT as a College Scholars major with a program of study titled “Quantum Dynamics and Mathematics.” When asked how she became interested in chemistry, Johnson responded that, “I knew I wanted to at least try research and see if it was something I would want to do… my Honors Chemistry professor (Dr. Kovac) had suggested I look into doing research with Dr. Hinde, and I’ve never looked back.”

Hinde’s research area is computational and theoretical chemistry, which might not be what most people think about when they first hear the word “chemistry.”  Research projects in theoretical chemistry frequently combine topics from chemistry, physics, and mathematics, and the projects often involve the use of computer programs to solve mathematical equations or perform simulations of chemical phenomena.

“I think it is amazing that basic mathematical concepts can be used to understand and model increasingly complex chemical systems,” Johnson said.  She added that she also found writing her own computer programs to be somewhat “intimidating” at the beginning; as she persevered, however, she became more fluent in programming and started writing, from scratch, the programs that she used in order to conduct her research.

Johnson felt grateful for having Hinde as her mentor. “I could not have asked for a better research advisor; whenever I have questions, whether they be about research, classes to take, or graduate school applications, I can always go to Dr. Hinde for advice.”

Johnson grew up in Knoxville and went to Karns High School before she joined UT.  While at UT, she was named a Goldwater Scholar.  After graduating this spring, Johnson will attend the University of Wisconsin to earn a Ph.D. degree in Physical Chemistry.

*The Journal of Physical Chemistry A (Dynamics, Kinetics, Environmental Chemistry, Spectroscopy, Structure, Theory) publishes studies on dynamics, clusters, and excited states; kinetics, and spectroscopy; atmospheric, environmental, and green chemistry; and molecular structure, quantum chemistry, and general theory. Out of 121 journals in the Physical Chemistry category, The Journal of Physical Chemistry A ranks #7 in total citations with 48,355 total cites. The Journal of Physical Chemistry also ranks #4 in citations out of 32 journals in the Atomic, Molecular and Chemical Physics category. The Journal received an Impact Factor of 2.732.* *Based on the 2010 Journal Citation Reports® by Thomson Reuters

UT Chemistry: World Top 20

April 23, 2012 by chemweb

A report funded by National Natural Science Foundation of China and Chinese Academy of Science listed University of Tennessee as one of the World’s Top 20 universities with their analytical chemistry articles most cited in 2007.

Undergraduate Chemistry Major Receives Summer Internship

April 17, 2012 by chemweb

Chris Freye, a rising senior in the Chemistry undergraduate program, and a member of the Chancellor’s Honor Program received 2012 undergraduate summer research internship from the UT Office of Undergraduate Research.

Freye will be working in Professor Sepaniak‘s lab on a project labeled Advanced Separation Techniques Employing a Novel Means of Detection.

“I will be integrating thin layer chromatography with surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy.’ Freye said, “The goal of the project is to carry out a separation on a TLC plate, transfer the analytes from the plate to nanocomposite which would be analyzed by raman spectroscopy.”

Freye is extremely excited for receiving this internship opportunity. “I have been working for Dr. Sepaniak for the last year; however, I have had to pay attention to my school work. This summer, I will be able to fully concentrate on my project and hopefully excel.”

Freye is also very thankful that his mentor Professor Sepaniak and UT Office of Research could provide him with this great opportunity.

Undergraduate summer research internships are funded by the UT Knoxville Chancellor’s Office and Office of Research. Up to 75 interhships at $2,000 each are awarded each year to support students who will work on a research or creative project with a UT Knoxville faculty mentor during summer time.

Click to view a list of 2012 recipients

Chemistry Board of Visitors Chair Received The Henry Hill Award from ACS

April 10, 2012 by chemweb

Dr. Diane Grob Schmidt, UT Chemistry Alumnus and Chair of the Chemistry Department Board of Visitors (2011-12) received The Henry Hill Award presented by the American Chemical Society Division of Professional Relations during 2012 ACS National Meeting held in San Diego, CA on March 27.

Schmidt was recognized for her services and leadership in ACS for over twenty years. She has chaired or served on more than 20 ACS task forces and working groups that have helped advance the profession. In addition she was elected to the ACS Board of Directors and its Executive Committee.

Around the same time, Schmidt was also named as a Director-at-Large of the Board of Directors at the Oak Ridge Associated Universities.

The Henry Hill Award was established in 1984 by the ACS Division of Professional Relations to honor distinguished service and achievement towards the advancement of professional relations. It honors Dr. Henry Hill, distinguished chemist, a Director and Past President of the American Chemical Society.

View list of previous awardees

Iberi and Simmons Received ACS Outstanding Poster Award

April 9, 2012 by chemweb

Vighter Iberi and Philip Simmons, two graduate students from Dr. Camden’s Group received American Chemical Society Physical Chemistry Division Outstanding Student Poster Award presented at the 243rd National ACS Meeting in San Diego, CA on March 25.

During the poster session, Simmons and Iberi presented some results of their project aiming to correlate plasmon data obtained from optical microscopy and electron microscopy with theory. “Vighter did the experimental and I did the theory work.” Simmons said.

Iberi and Simmons both described their working experience with each other as fun and rewarding. “Working with DJ (Simmons) has been fun!” Iberi said. “He (Simmons)’s been very helpful in doing all of the complex classical electrodynamics calculations related to our experiments.” Simmons added that while both theory and experiment parts are challenging and call for a tremendous amount of work, “working together we’ve been able to accomplish much more than we would have just working solo.”

They are looking forward to continuing this project. “Work still has to be done in understanding the behavior of electromagnetic hot spots that are responsible for surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) when excited by an electron beam.” Iberi said.

Iberi obtained his B.S. degree from Campbellsville University in 2008 and joined Camden Group in 2009. Now a 3rd year graduate student, Iberi’s research area focuses on the plasmonic studies of nobel metallic nanostructures by using the powerful tools of electron and dark-field optical microscopy. After graduation, Iberi hopes to pursue a career in a research institution such as a National Laboratory or a company with an intellectually stimulating Research and Development division.

Hailed from Buckhannon, West Virginia, Simmons joined the Camden Group in 2011 after obtaining his B.S. from Fairmont State University in 2009. His research involves computational electrodynamics of plasmonic nano-structures and Raman spectroscopy. Although it might still be early to think about career after graduation, Simmons hopes to join the computer hardware industry eventually.

Burton Mandrell and David Cooper, two undergraduate students from Camden Group also attended meeting and presented their research.

Two Chemistry Students Won 2012 EURēCA Awards

April 4, 2012 by chemweb

The University of Tennessee’s sixteenth annual Exhibition of Undergraduate Research and Creative Achievement (EURēCA) was held March 28-29 at the Carolyn P. Brown Memorial University Center Ballroom. The event highlights research and creative projects completed by UT Knoxville students in collaboration with a faculty mentor.

Chemistry students Britta Johnson and Andrew Moss won two out of three awards given in the Physical and Earth Sciences division.

Andrew Moss’ winning project entitled Ongoing Synthesis of Galactose Disaccharides for Binding Studies was guided by David Baker, Professor of Chemistry, and Irene Abia, faculty member at the Chemistry & Biochemistry Department of the University of Mississippi, and a recent graduate from Baker’s group.

Working on the project, Moss concentrated on the synthesis of galactose disaccharides for investigation into lectin binding using Atomic Force Microscopy and Förster resonance energy transfer.

Moss was excited for receiving this award. “I have put much effort into my research and enjoyed the opportunity to present it to peers and professors.” Moss was also very grateful for the help from Professor Baker. “Dr. Baker is always very helpful in guiding the synthesis and providing feedback on ideas and problems encountered.” Moss said.

Born and raised in Cookeville, TN, Moss attended Cookeville High School before he joined UT in the Fall of 2010. He has been working in Baker’s lab since the first week of his freshman year. Prior to this research presentation, he also participated in the poster presentation at the National Collegiate Research Conference at Harvard University in Jan. 2012 and gave an Oral presentation at the Annual Undergraduate Research Conference at the University of Memphis in Feb. 2012. Most recently, he gave a presentation at U.T. in the 3rd Annual Honors Symposium.

Another winner, Britta Johnson presented her project entitled Dynamics of He Absorbates on Mg0(100) Surfaces, guided by Robert Hinde, Professor of Chemistry.

More about Britta Johnson

Stefanie Bragg Article Featured in Analytica Chimica Acta

April 4, 2012 by chemweb

Stefanie Bragg, a graduate student from Professor Xue‘s Group recently published an article in Analytica Chimica Acta.

The article entitled “Flower-like self-assembly of gold nanoparticles for highly sensitive electrochemical detection of chromium(VI)” co-aothored with Dr. Ruizhuo Ouyang, Post Doctoral Research Associate in Professor Xue’s group, and Dr. Jim Chambers, Professor Emeritus,, was printed as a Featured article on the outside front cover of an April 2012 issue.

Earlier this year, Bragg received Society for Electroanalytical Chemistry (SEAC) Student Travel Award and presented her research at 2012 International Pittsburg Conference in Orlando, Florida on March 11th.

Chemistry Undergrad Published in J. Phys. Chem.

February 29, 2012 by chemweb

William Hembree, a chemistry major, published a paper Three-Dimensional Mapping of Microenvironmental Control of Methyl Rotational Barriers last June in the Journal of Physical Chemistry as the first author.

Hembree started working on the project with his mentor Dr. Jerome Baudry, Assistant Professor of the Department of Biochemistry & Cellular and Molecular Biology in the summer of 2008. Baudry was proud of what Hembree was able to achieve.

“…it is rare for an undergraduate to be the first author of a peer-reviewed publication, in particular on a paper of ACS caliber.” Baudry said. On top of that, being one of the two authors means Hembree “did the bulk of the work himself.”

Scientific research is not all about glamorous or exciting moments like some might think. Obtaining data can be a boring process. Baudry pointed out that persistence is what leads to success. “William’s project was challenging…he  was willing and able to put a lot of work in  sometimes tedious tasks and never get discouraged or frustrated.”

Hembree is grateful of what this research experience has given him. “I was fortunate enough to work at Oak Ridge National Labs and the University of Tennessee with many top-level scientists. The knowledge and instruction they gave me has been invaluable in my studies. Above all, I owe many thanks to Dr. Baudry for all his help.” Hembree said.

Undergraduate research is much encouraged in all science fields, especially in a Research I Institute like the University of Tennessee. The students who participate will not only gain research experience, but can also find out if doing scientific research is something they will enjoy for their future career.

“…doing good scientific research means that one must like the “journey” as much (if not more) as the ‘destination'” Baudry said, “…if you wake up every morning hoping to get something unexpected and exciting in the lab, then you are a researcher. If you do that in computational chemistry and computational biology, like William did, then you are a scientific researcher. ”

Hembree is graduating this May with a degree in Chemistry and a degree in German. He is excited to see what future will bring him. “My plans are uncertain after graduation;  I am in the process of applying for a post at the IAEA in Vienna, Austria.  I am considering graduate school as well.”

Note:  Out of 127 journals in the Physical Chemistry category, The Journal of Physical Chemistry B ranks #1 in total citations with 113,180 total cites. The Journal received an Impact Factor of 3.603.*

*Based on the 2010 Journal Citation Reports® by Thomson Reuters

Department Hosted 2012 Research Open House

February 28, 2012 by chemweb

The past weekend was truly an exciting one for many faculty members, students, and staff of the Chemistry Department. 35 students from all around the nation (even world) participated in the 2012 Research Open House hosted by the Chemistry Department on Friday, Feb. 24 and Saturday, Feb. 25.

The two-day event started with a meet and greet reception in Four Points, and ended with a dinner banquet inside Neyland Stadium. The Department organized faculty poster session, student and alumni presentations, facility tour, program introduction, meetings with faculty, graduate students panel, and student organization social to introduce the Department as a whole to the prospective students. View more pictures of the event.