Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry

Issue: VIISpring 2010

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Department of Chemistry and BiochemistryAlumni Newsletter Issue: VII, Spring 10 Page: I

During Maymester 2009, Dr. Mark Mitch-ell and a group of five chemistry and biol-ogy students (Colin Blenis, Marcus Harrison, Judith Heitz, Amanda Stephens, and Alyse Thacker) participated in a study abroad trip to China. This was the first study abroad trip for the Chemistry Department, the title of it was “A Clean Environ-ment: Technolo-gies for Pollution Prevention and Remediation”. The group was privileged to ac-company Dr. Jun Ji and the math-ematics students on a trip to China. Since Dr. Ji had been on a previous study abroad trip to China, his enthusiastic sup-port and encouragement was a welcome addition to our program. The following is Dr. Mitchell’s account of the study abroad trip. The trip began with a 14-hour flight from At-lanta to Tokyo. We stayed overnight in Tokyo and then arrived in Shanghai the next day. We spent some time touring Shanghai seeing the Jin Mao Observatory, which is the 88th floor of the Grand Hyatt Hotel in central Shanghai. The Observatory windows line the perimeter of the floor providing an amazing view of the city of Shanghai. We also went tothe Yuyuan Garden; a beautiful and surpris

China Study Abroad Trip - Maymester 2009By: Dr. Mark Mitchell

KSU 2009 Study Abroad Trip to Changsha, Hunan, China

ingly peaceful garden in old downtownShanghai and the Shanghai Museum. After touring a local silk factory, the last event of the day was spent attending an outstanding performance of the Shanghai Acrobatic Troupe. The performance was an incredible spectacle: lots of juggling, stacked chairs, human towers, tumbling and

contortionists. We stayed the night at East China Normal University. The next day we flew to Changsha Universi-ty in Changsha, Hunan province, the host uni-versity during our stay. Dr. Peter Liu, Vice

President of Changsha University and the staff of Changsha University Study Abroad program treated the group

to a wonderful banquet. The next seven days were spent at Changsha University. Our host, Dr. Jiangshe Zhang, Chair of the Department of Bioengineering and Environmental Studies, his staff and students were very gracious and eager to help. There were about fifty Chinese students, along with our five students, in class-es each morning and afternoon. We had about a two hour break between classes for lunch. In addition to lectures on environmental chemistry, we were taught about Chinese culture and his-tory by Changsha faculty members. Dr. Zhang, whose expertise is environmental chemistry,

Department of Chemistry and BiochemistryAlumni Newsletter Issue: VII, Spring 2010 Page: II

Deputy Director of the Center of Environ-ment and Energy. He provided us with a wonderful introduction to the university and the research it carries out, a tour of the cam-pus, and a great luncheon. Later, we toured the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square followed by a rickshaw tour of one of the old sections of Beijing. We then went to the 2008 Summer Olympic Games site, including the Water Cube and a tour of the Bird’s Nest. On the last day of our stay in China we went to see a sec-tion of the Great Wall near Beijing, toured the Sum-mer Palace, (not far from Beijing in the mountains) where the Chi-nese emperors and their families spend the sum-mer months. We had oppor-tunities in Beijing to visit different shopping districts. The shops were very small stalls, stuffed with merchandise, with salespeople who absolutely expected you to haggle on a price. Some of the students became pros. The study abroad trip was a fantastic experience. The greatest part was the ex-posure to a culture that is so different from our own and meeting wonderful people who were more than happy to share their culture with us. I know that I had a great time on the study abroad trip and took a wealth of en-lightening experiences away from it; I hope the students did too.

presented one of the lectures. When not in class, we tried to learn as much as possible

from the students and staff about the Chinese culture and food (al-though several of the KSU students gave in and ate at the Pizza Hut or McDonald’s in downtown Changsha). The KSU students were guests of honor

at both Changsha University and Hunan For-eign Studies College. While at Changsha University, we toured Shaoshan (birthplace of Mao Zedong), Hu-nan Normal University (one of the most respected normal, i.e. teacher education, universities in China), Changsha Kaifu Tem-pe (a Buddhist temple more than 1000 years old), and Yuelu Academy, (an ancient site of learning in China, one of the four most pres-tigious learning academies in China, which was founded in 976 CE). We left Changsha and flew to Xi’an, home of the Terra Cotta Soldiers. These ancient, life-sized statues were discovered buried underground in 1974, by a farmer drilling for water in his rice fields. It is now estimated that there are close to ten thousand clay sol-diers, along with more than a hundred clay chariots, and several hundred clay horses buried in three large pits, and arrayed in columns. The next day we visited the old city of Xi’an, the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, and the Great Mosque, (spiritual home to approxi-mately 60,000 Chinese Muslims living in the old city of Xi’an). We left Xi’an and rode the overnight train to Beijing. We met Dr. Daq-iang Cang, the Director of the Department of Ecological Science and Engineering and

Chemistry group at the Forbidden city(L to r, Dr. Mitchell, Alyse, Marcus,

Colin,Judy and Amanda

KSU and Changsha students after class.

Department of Chemistry and BiochemistryAlumni Newsletter Issue: VII, Spring 2010

Three faculty members (Drs. Lewis, Koether and Powers) and two undergraduate research students (Judith Heitz and Vera Koganov) travelled to SERMACS in Puerto Rico in Oc-tober 2009 to present four oral presentations and two poster presentations. Judith Heitz was travelling on a CETL Undergraduate Re-search Student Travel Award as well as CSM Mentor-Protégé Travel Funding. Both Dr. Koether and Vera Koganov were also travel-ling on CSM Mentor-Protégé Travel Funding. One of the symposiums (Current Trends in Environmental Chemistry) was sponsored by the ACS Division of Environmental Chemistry and was organized and presided over by Dr. Koether. In 2013, the Georgia Local Sec-tion of the ACS will be hosting SERMACS in Atlanta, GA.

SERMACS 2009San Juan, Puerto Rico

On September 18th 2009, Kennesaw State University, Emory University, Georgia Gwin-nett College, and Georgia State University, all participated in the 75th Herty Medal celebra-tion organized by the Georgia Section of the American Chemical Society. That morning these institutions hosted the “Future Medalists’ Symposium” for area high school and middle school students. Students were also invited to enter their original 500-1200 word essays about “CHEMISTRY FOR LIFE IN THE SOUTHEAST” in the essay competition. Each symposium featured a speaker who was a recent recipient of the Herty Medal award. The keynote speaker at the Kennesaw State University Symposium was this year’s Herty medalist, Dr. Craig Hill, the Goodrich C. White Professor of Inorganic Chemistry at Emory University. Over 40 area high school students attended the symposium at KSU and were provided with an exciting day of learning about chemistry that featured Dr. Hill, current Kennesaw students, and the chemistry facilities at Kennesaw State University.

KSU participates in the 75th Herty Medal Celebration

Page: III

Vera Koganov, Dr. Marina Koether, Judy Heitz

“Undergraduate research continues to be a focus of the Chemisty and Biochemistry

department.”

Department of Chemistry and BiochemistryAlumni Newsletter Issue: VII, Spring 2010 Page: IV

Since 1995 the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry has enjoyed a wonderful relation-ship with the KSU Annual Symposium of Student Scholars hosted each spring by the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL). At the 14th Annual Symposium held in April 2009 there were 29 oral and poster presentations from our department representing one third of the total submissions to the conference. However, as our department has grown, there has been a clear need to provide an additonal outlet for student research presentations in the fall semester. To answer this call, Dr. Christopher Dockery (Assistant Professor – Forensic and Analytical Chem-istry) organized the first “annual” Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry Fall Symposium of Undergraduate Research held on December 4, 2009. We had an opening reception with coffee, juice and snacks, and a pizza lunch provided by the KSU chapter of the Student Affiliates of the American Chemical Society (SAACS). Eighteen posters were presented representing 6 faculty and 25 student coauthors. The posters were judged by KSU faculty Drs. Chris Dockery, Greg Ga-briel, Janet Shaw, and Daniela Tapu. Results from the judges were tabulated and the top posters in research and coursework are listed below. First Place - Research CategorySergey A. Isarov and Dr. Gregory J. Gabriel, “Synthesis and thermal analysis of phosphonate poly-mers for fire-resistant materials”.Second Place - Research CategoryIsrael Scott, Lewis Kraft, and Dr. Jonathan L. McMurry, “Development of a real time optical biosen-sor assay for amoxicillin in complex samples”.First Place - Coursework CategoryJessica Rioux, Mark Segall, and Dr. Christopher R. Dockery, “Characterization and Differentiation of Trace Glass Fragments Using Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy”. CHEM 4300L.Second Place - Coursework Category Kelsey Uberto and Dr. Marina C. Koether, “Analysis of Table-top Sweeteners”. CHEM 3030L.

Congratulations to all of our faculty and students on a fantastic job!

Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry1st Annual Fall Symposium of Undergraduate Research

RESEARCH

Awards Day

Department of Chemistry and BiochemistryAlumni Newsletter Issue: VII, Spring 2010 Page: V

On November 17, 2009 KSU’s Beta Upsilon Chapter of Phi Lambda Upsilon, the chemistry honor society with 111 years of tradition nationally, inducted 11 new members. The ceremony was presided over by president, Gerhard Kummerow, vice-president Michele Gouws, secre-tary Mark Segall and treasurer Judith Heidt. Numerous faculty members were in attendance as well as family and friends of the inductees to recognize the honor being bestowed upon the students. The society was pleased that both Dr. Mark Mitchell, chair of the Depart-ment of Chemistry and Biochemistry, and Dr. Larry Peterson, dean of the College of Science and Math-ematics, were on hand to give welcoming remarks to guests and new members Sabrina Davila, Osamudiame Dawodu, Antoinette Duverneau, Julia Gran, Jonathan (JP) Parker, Michelle Pierre, Maria Quiroz, Roxanne Tetrault, Elizabeth Thompson, Emily Wysocki, and Michelle Razumov.The Beta Upsilon chapter has continued its tradition of service by volunteering to welcome ap-proximately 40 high school students to KSU as a part of the 75th Anniversary Herty Celebration on September 18, 2009. The students participated in a panel discussion and led tours of the science building. They will also be volunteering at the American Chemical Society Southeastern Regional Undergraduate Research Conference (SURC) which KSU is hosting in April. We hope some alumni will be in attendance and be able to meet some of the current talented KSU chem-istry majors.

Phi Lambda Upsilon

“Our mission is to provide our

students with an outstanding education...”

Department of Chemistry and BiochemistryAlumni Newsletter Issue: VII, Spring 2010 Page: VI

SEMINARS

February 25, 2010 -Dr. Ganesh Deka - Neenah Paper & Forest Products - “Neenah Paper Technical Products”

This presentation will begin with a brief overview of Neenah Paper Inc., then the focus will shift to the technology and processes used to manufature polymer impregnated and coated papers engineered for highly technical applications such as medical packaging, t-shirt decorating, and automotive surface paint preparation. This will be followed by a discussion of attributes and performance needs associated with the end use applications of such products.”

March 4, 2010 - Dr. Craig Hill - Emory University -”Water oxidation catalysts (WOC) and artificial photosynthesis”

An analysis of current and projected global energy consumption strongly suggests that even with continued use of fossil fuels and all the alternative energy sources, the use of hydrogen fuel from the sunlight-driven splitting of water (H2O - H2 + ½ O2) is ultimately unavoidable to fuel our civilization. The market value and the environmental price of fossil fuel consumption will continue to rise making alternative sources of energy, by contrast, more economically viable. However, great improvements in the science of solar water splitting (current popular phrase: “solar fuel production”) are needed as soon as possible to confront the likely future need.

The features of both biological and synthetic devices to convert light into chemical energy will be outlined. Many advances are needed in (1) light collection systems, (2) catalysts for water reduction/hydrogen evolution and (3) catalysts for water oxidation/oxygen evolution as well as facile and controllable communication between these 3 units. No challenge in solar fuels research is technically harder or more generally pressing than realization of viable (robust, fast and selective) water oxidation catalysts (WOCs). We have sought viable WOC prototypes that are homogeneous (versus heterogeneous) for 3 reasons: (1) they can be interfaced with the widest range of photosensitizers and H2-evolving systems; (2) they can be studied and understood in far greater detail at the molecular level and thus consequently optimized far more effectively, and (3) they require less active metal (possibly a costly noble metal) than heterogeneous WOCs.

April 8, 2010 - Dr. Jason Locklin - University of GeorgiaSurface-initiated polymerization reactions are rapidly developing as methods to prepare functional, high-tech coatings. This is a technique based on the growth of polymer molecules at the surface of a substrate (such as glass, metal, or plastic) in situ from a surface bound initiator, which results in the covalent attachment of polymer molecules to this substrate. Polymer layers in which the polymer chains are irreversibly immobi-lized to the substrate are especially attractive for a wide variety of applications, as these layers have excel-lent long-term stability, even in rather adverse environments. In addition to improved stability, the number of functional groups present at a surface can be greatly enhanced by connecting large polymer molecules with functional groups (present in each monomer repeat unit) to the surface instead of binding the functional group directly to the surface. This transition from a two-dimensional to a three-dimensional arrangement has been called the “skyscraper” approach, and allows for high densities of functional groups to be obtained in a limited area. We are currently developing new polymerization methodologies for the following applica-tions: Light induced mechanical motion, sensors for biological arrays, antimicrobial coatings and enzymatic biofuel cells.

Publications

Department of Chemistry and BiochemistryAlumni Newsletter Issue: VII, Spring 2010

Page: VII

B. Huskins* and C. R. Dockery, "Detection of Psilocybin Mushroom Analogs in Chocolate: Incorporating Current Events into the Undergraduate Teaching Laboratory," The Chemical Educator. 2009, 14(6), 236-238.

J. L. Shaw, C. R. Dockery, S. E. Lewis, L. Harris*, and R. Bettis*, “The Trans Effect: A guided inquiry experiment for upper-division inorganic chemistry,” Journal of Chemical Education. 2009, 86(12), 1416-1418.

R. Stefan, C. R. Dockery, A. A. Nieuwland, S. N. Roberson*, B. M. Baguley. J. E. Hendrix, and S. L. Morgan, “Forensic analysis of anthraquinone, azo, and metal complex acid dyes from nylon fibers by micro-extraction and capillary electrophoresis,” Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry. 2009. 394(8), 2077-2085 Invited Special Issue on Forensic Analysis.

R. Stefan, C. R. Dockery, B. M. Baguley, B. C. Vann, A. A. Nieuwland, J. E. Hendrix, and S. L. Morgan, “Microextraction, capillary electrophoresis, and mass spectrometry for forensic analysis of azo and methine basic dyes from acrylic fibers,” Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry. 2009, 394(8), 2087-2094. Invited Special Issue on Forensic Analysis.

C. R. Dockery, A. R. Stefan, A. A. Nieuwland, S. N. Roberson*, B. M. Baguley, J. E. Hendrix, and S. L. Morgan, “Automated extraction of direct, reactive, and vat dyes from cellulosic fibers for forensic analysis by capillary electrophoresis,” Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry. 2009. 394(8), 2095-2103. Invited Special Issue on Forensic Analysis.

C. Dockery and J. Cody, 2009. Instructor’s Manual to Accompany Chemistry: Principles and Practice, 3rd Edition, Brooks/Cole Cengage Learning. ISBN: 0495559776

M. Kaledin, J. M. Moffitt*, C. R. Clark*, F. Rizvi*, Ab initio molecular dynamics simulations of the infrared spectra of H3O2(-) and D3O2(-)., J. Chem. Theory and Comp. 5 (2009) 1328.

M. Kaledin, A. L. Kaledin, J. M. Bowman, J. Dong, K. D. Jordan, Calculation of the Vibrational Spectra of H5O2+ and its Deuterium-substituted Isotopologues by Molecular Dynamics Simulations, J. Phys. Chem. A 113 (2009) 7671.

Koether, M. Indirect Gravimetric Determination of Waters of Hydration. Chemical Educator. 2009, 14, 219-220.

Marina Koether. Personalized numerical and word assignments, quizzes and tests using mail-merge. Teaching Notes, January 2009, Vol. 6(2), pages 1-2, Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning, Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, GA.. http://www.kennesaw.edu/cetl/resources/publications/teaching_notes/index.html

Konishi, M., Kanbe, M. McMurry, J.L. and Aizawa, S.-I. (2009) Flagellar formation in C-ring defective mutants by overproduction of FliI, the ATPase specific for the flagellar type III secretion system. Journal of Bacteriology, 191, 6186-91.

Department of Chemistry and BiochemistryAlumni Newsletter Issue: VII, Spring 2010

Page: VIII

Rust, M., Borchert, S., Niehus, E., Kuehne, S.A., Gripp, E., Bajceta, A., McMurry, J.L., Suerbaum, S., Hughes, K.T. and Josenhans, C. (2009) The Helicobacter pylori anti-sigma factor FlgM is predominantly cytoplasmic and cooperates with the flagellar basal body proteins FlhAc. Journal of Bacteriology, 191, 4824-4834.

“Synthesis and characterization of a series of diphenyldipyrazolylmethane complexes with zinc(II).” Janet L. Shaw**, Kevin P. Gwaltney and Nikky Keer*, Inorg. Chim. Acta 2009, 362, 2396-2401.

“Attitude Counts: Self-Concept and Success in General Chemistry.” Scott E. Lewis**, Janet L. Shaw, Gail H. Webster, Judith O. Heitz*, Journal of Chemical Education 2009, 86(6), 744-749.

Daniela Tapu,** David A. Dixon, Christopher Roe “13C NMR Spectroscopy of “Arduengo-type” Carbenes and Their Derivatives” Chemical Reviews 2009, 109 (8), pp 3385–3407.

Daniela Tapu,** “N,N,N’,N’-Tetraethyl-P-phenyl-phosponous diamide” e-Encyclopedia of regents for organic synthesis 2009 (DOI: 10.1002/047084289X.rn01106 – March 15, 2009).

Daniela Tapu,** Clayton Owens,* Donald Vanderveer, Kevin Gwaltney “The First Phenanthrene-Fused Imidazol-2-Ylidene and its Transition-Metal Complexes” Organometallics, 2009, 28 (1), pp 270–276 (peer-reviewed)

Kennesaw State University is pleased to an-nounce that its new ATOMS (Advancing the Teaching of Math and Science) Center will host its first comprehensive Advanced Placement Summer Institute (APSI) for Science and Math this summer. The ATOMS Center will encour-age ongoing support to and collaboration with APSI participants from the Atlanta metropolitan area and further continuing education in the fu-ture. This summer’s schedule will include the following courses:

AP Biology, AP Physics B, and AP Statistics – June 28th – July 1st.

AP Calculus AB, AP Chemistry, and AP Environ-mental Science – July 19th – July 23rd.

The APSI for Science and Math at KSU was initiated last summer with AP Chemistry taught by Jim Cortez and Dr. Greg Rushton. Jim Cor-tez will be returning to teach the AP Chemistry course again this year.

For more information and registration materials, please contact Michael Petelle, mpetelle@ken-nesaw.edu .

ATOMS

Advancing the Teaching of Math and Science

Publications (continued)

In the next newsletter, we will be sharing informa-tion on new faculty, awards day, and our new lab science building.

A Word From Our Alumni

Department of Chemistry and BiochemistryAlumni Newsletter Issue: VII, Spring 2010 Page: IX

Lewis Kraft - 2009 - Ph.D. student at Vanderbilt University.Esha Patel - 2009 - Accepted into Union University School of PharmacyJulie Turner - 2009 - Analytical chemist with Air Quality Sciences in Marietta, GA.Jennifer Yancey - 2009 - Accepted into Morehouse School of MedicineDustin French - 2008- Accepted into Nova Southeastern Medical School in Ft. Lauderdale, FL.Lindsay Harris - 2008 - Working in Forensic Toxicology with the GBI.Sean Hipps - 2008 -Working for GBI.Suk Kim - 2008 - Accepted into Medical College of Georgia, MD program.Adam Kleg - 2008 - Working as a compliance officer at Medical Neurogenetics in Atlanta, GA.Natalia Kyriacou - 2008 - Accepted into Mercer University MD Program.Amber Morris -2008 - Working at Applied Technical Services.Viet Nguyen - 2008 - MS student at Morehouse College.Mary Rau - 2008 - Accepted into P.A. program at South University, Savannah, GAMatthew Rosenberg - 2008 - Grad student at Western Carolina University.Ken Staples - 2008 - Ph.D. student at University of Pittsburg.Deborah Gaddis-Ask - 2007 - Lab supervisor at OPSU Murphy-Brown Water Quality Testing lab.Caroline Cushman - 2007 - Teaching school in Canton, GA.Michael East - 2007 - Grad student at Emory University.Amanda Hess - 2007 - Working at Superior Essex, Inc.Nick Patel - 2007 - Working as a Technical Service Engineer/Chemist at Atotech.Laura Brooks - 2006 - Works in Pharmaceutical Sales at Takeda Pharmaceuticals.Allen Stokes - 2006 - Medical student at Mercer University.Ivan Stefanov - 2006 - PhD Research Assistant at Ghent University in Gent, Belgium.April Stevens - 2006 - PhD student at Clark Atlanta University.John Cagle - 2005 - Attending Medical School at GA-PCOM.Kim Kellett Arrowood - 2005 - Working as a lab instructor at Kennesaw State University.Tiffany Bryant - 2005 -Working as a Laboratory Analytical Chemist at Ajay North America LLC.Angela Carmack - 2005 - Working at Deerland Enzymes.Hazem Kanaan - 2005 - Received his D.O. from WV School of Osteopathic Medicine.Ryan Moore - 2005 - Executive VP at ChemLink Laboratories LLC in Kennesaw, GA.Nicholas Marshall - 2004 -Grad student at University of Georgia.Ikenna Okpareke - 2004 - Resident in the Dept. of Anesthesiology and Critcal Care, at the Univer-sity of Chicago Hospitals.Kathleen M. White -1999 - Working as a Senior Scientist, Savannah River National Laboratory.Guillermo Ramirez - 1984 - Working as a Facility Manager for Ashland, Inc.

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