Chemistry students can conduct research in collaboration with faculty research through several programs, including the Welch Scholar Program, UGROW and EURECA. Research areas for faculty are listed below, along with a faculty contact link.
Dr. Hallford's students work on the development of high-level inorganic-organometallic ab initio analysis and investigations with computed thermodynamic and spectroscopic analysis. These projects have focused ini the combined area of inorganic-organometallic computational methods and spectroscopic analysis of phthalocyanine precursor moieties in collaborative work with Dr. Chris Hansen and Dr. Jianguo Shao. The particular interest is in catalytic development for the reduction of DDT in contaminated biospheres.
Dr. Hallford is also a member of the Non-Linear Research group headed by Assistant Professor of Physics Dr. Preet Sharma. Non-linear phenomena are common in living systems and, in particular, failures of these systems. Investigation is principally theoretical biophysics with some computational components.
Dr. Hansen's students work in several areas of organic synthesis primarily targeting small molecules. Examples include the synthesis of aryl substituted methylene malonates and macrocyclic and substituted azadipyrromethenes. Molecules are studied for their electrochemical properties and use in catalytic dechlorination of chlorine-containing chemicals.
Dr. Liang's students work in the elucidation of biochemical and biophysical properties of protein molecules with primary focus on protein aggregation-prone diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. Research involves protein purification using fast-protein liquid chromatography (FPLC) and protein characterization by SDS-PAGE, Western blotting, fluorescence microplate reading, NMR spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Other research involves evolution of chaperone, protein targeting and translocation across cellular membranes.
Dr. Machunis-Masuoka holds joint appointments in biology and chemistry. Her students use biochemical tools to study the spread of antibiotic-resistance genes among migrant and resident bird populations. The lab focuses primarily on investigating the correlation between metabolic and genetic diversity in gut bacteria and the manifestation of resistance phenotypes in birds.
Dr. Shao's students work in the electrochemistry and spectroelectrochemistry of macrocyclic phthalocyanines, porphyrins, porphoryrazines and corroles. The lab also explores the use of these macrocyclic molecules in the electro-catalytic dechlorination of chlorine-containing pesticides.