Faculty Research
Analytical Chemistry
Dr. Joe Foley
Separation science, especially the fundamentals and biomedical/pharmaceutical applications of the following voltage- or pressure-driven separation techniques: capillary electrophoresis, electrokinetic chromatography, capillary electrochromatography, and micellar liquid chromatography. Within these techniques, we explore novel separation modes and surfactant aggregate pseudophases (micelles, vesicles, microemulsions); chiral separations; and physicochemical measurements.
Dr. Frank Ji
Micromechancial sensors for biological and environmental applications; Nanomechanical drug screening technology.
Dr. Kevin Owens
Mass spectrometry research, including the development of matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) time-of-flight mass spectrometry (TOFMS) techniques for use with biological and synthetic polymer systems, and the development of chemometric techniques for improved data analysis.
Dr. Jun Xi
Sensor technologies in biological science with an emphasis on obtaining a fundamental understanding of biological processes.
BioInorganic Chemistry
Dr. Anthony Addison
Design and synthesis of novel biomimetic and oligonuclear chelates of copper, nickel, iron and vanadium. Their interpretation by magnetochemical, electrochemical and spectroscopic methods, including electron spin resonance. CD and ESR spectroscopy and kinetics for elucidation of molecular architecture of derivatives (including NO) of oxygen-binding and electron-transfer heme- and non-heme iron metalloproteins of vertebrate and invertebrate origins.
Dr. Elizabeth Papish
Our goal is to mimic the structure and function of important metalloenzymes. New ligands are designed to mimic the secondary coordination sphere and provide water-solubility, properties that should lead to fast catalysis of important hydrolysis reactions. The scope of potential research applications is large and includes modeling various esterases, carbonic anhydrase and oxygenases. Model complexes could provide catalysts for green chemistry applications.
Chemical Biology
Dr. Jun Xi
Mechanistic study of biological machineries, pre-steady state enzyme kinetics, macromolecular interactions.
Chemical Education
Dr. Daniel King
Development of inquiry-based labs for general and physical chemistry and incorporation of environmental data into lecture modules for general, physical and environmental chemistry.
Dr. Sally Solomon
Laboratory experiments and textbooks using household chemicals. Green chemistry in the laboratory and classroom. Lecture demonstrations for the overhead projector. Outreach program for Philadelphia public schools (Science in Motion). Intelligent tutoring systems with natural language understanding.
Materials Chemistry
Dr. Frank Ji
Organic nanomaterials for solar cell and battery; Nanoelectronic and optoelectronic materials; Highly conductive polymers.
Dr. Lynn S. Penn
Construction of complex and controlled polymer brushes for functional surfaces; experimental study of diffusion into polymer brushes and comparison with theoretical predictions; surface and interface chemistry, including wetting and adhesion; real-time monitoring and quantitative analysis of chemical reactions and adsorption on surfaces.
Dr. Karl Sohlberg
Dr. Sally Solomon
Synthesis of noble metal nanoparticles.
Dr. Yen Wei
Organic Chemistry
Dr. Jean-Claude Bradley
The design, synthesis and testing of novel anti-malarial and anti-tumor compounds using combinatorial chemistry strategies like the Ugi reaction. Mechanistic investigation of acid catalyzed cleavage of furfuryl groups. Real time collaboration using Open Notebook Science.
Dr. Frank Ji
Organic and organometallic photochemistry; electron and energy transfer processes; fluorescent sensors; Combinatory chemistry; host-guest interaction; molecular recognition.
Dr. Peter Wade
Our work focuses on three main areas: 1) exploration of a newly discovered [3,3]-sigmatropic rearrangement in which O-allyl nitronic esters are thermally converted to g,d-unsaturated nitro compounds; 2) development and exploitation of a carbon-based hemiacetal mimic; and 3) exploration of cycloaddition reactions involving nitroethylene derivatives and novel nitrile oxides.
Dr. Jun Xi
Design and synthesis of anti-cancer reagent and immunosuppressant.
Organometallic Chemistry
Dr. Elizabeth Papish
We are synthesizing new N-Heterocyclic carbene (NHC) chelating ligands to replace phosphines in catalytic processes. We are specifically interested in designing catalysts for hydrogenation reactions, because few catalysts are selective for C=O bonds over C=C bonds. Additionally, most commonly used reagents for hydrogenation reactions in organic synthesis generate a lot of waste because they act in a stoichiometric fashion.
Physical Chemistry
Dr. Reinhard Schweitzer-Stenner
Vibrational Spectroscopy, with an emphasis on Raman and resonance Raman spectroscopy; structure analysis of peptides in solution; understanding the coil state of peptides and proteins; protein folding of Heme proteins (cytochrome c, myoglobin, horseradish peroxidase), particularly the relationship between heme-protein interactions and function; theoretical modeling of ligand-receptor interactions and transmembrane signaling in mast cells.
Theoretical and Computational Chemistry
Dr. Carey Rosenthal
Dr. Kevin Shuford
Theoretical/computational physical and materials chemistry with research interests that include the following: nanoparticle optics, applied nanophotonics, surface enhanced spectroscopies, chemical/biosensors, ultrafast spectroscopy, nonlinear optics, surface science, electrical energy storage, photovoltaics, catalysis, coherent control, method development of continuum electrodynamics, quantum dynamics, and classical molecular dynamics.
Dr. Karl Sohlberg
Theoretical and Computational Physical and Materials Chemistry, including first principles studies of: catalytic materials, kinetics and thermodynamics of hydrogen in catalytic materials, and surfaces of heterogeneous catalysts. Development of theoretical models for both electrical and mechanical molecular devices.
