TCNJ News

For Immediate Release

July 22, 2008

EWING, NJ … The College of New Jersey received a generous $25,000 donation from The National Starch and Chemical Foundation to support five student researchers in the Mentored Undergraduate Summer Experience (MUSE) this summer.

National Starch and Chemical Company, a member of the ICI Group, is headquartered in Bridgewater and is a worldwide manufacturer of adhesives, specialty polymers, electronic materials and specialty industrial and food starches, with nearly 9,000 employees worldwide and 2007 sales of $4 billion. This donation is part of National’s commitment to the communities in which it operates. National Starch and Chemical Company has been a supporter of research at TCNJ since 1997, with support increasing each year.

“TCNJ offers students the possibilities to work closely with the equipment and faculty to accomplish what most schools do not achieve,” said Bob Billmers, business scientist, in the surface chemistry division of AkzoNobel at National Starch. “As a company steeped in technology, attracting and keeping the best scientists and engineers are critical to our future success. As a benefit, the students from TCNJ are from, and familiar with, the area. Many have family here and tend to want to stay employed in this state. They are less concerned about the economic factors that drive many graduates to other parts of the country.”

Katherine Davis, is developing a new method for synthesizing a general compound structure called a vinyl ether. Vinyl ethers are key intermediates in the synthesis of vinyl fluoride compounds, which are used as powerful insecticides. A chemistry major, Davis will be a senior at TCNJ this fall. After graduation, she plans to attend graduate school to earn a Ph.D. in organic chemistry.

Michael Nardone, is conducting research in organic chemistry to develop a procedure that promotes a carbon-nitrogen ring opening side reaction on a benzene ring. If the desired result is achieved, it will have application in pharmaceuticals. Nardone, who will enter this junior year this fall, is majoring in chemistry, with a minor in art history. His goals are to attend graduate school and, afterwards, to work in chemical research.

Joseph A. Macor, is investigating a unique form of the Bischler-Napieralski reaction to determine why certain amino acid derivatives do not behave in the expected way. The products he is working on hold potential to have fungicidal properties. Macor, who is entering his senior year, plans to attend graduate school to obtain a Ph.D. in chemistry. Afterward, he will seek employment in the R&D department of a pharmaceutical company.

Sergio Hernando Pulido, a chemistry major and rising senior, is conducting two research projects. One involves the synthesis of nanoparticles metal sulfides that can be converted into metal nitrides. The metal nitrides Pulido is studying have luminescent properties, which can be applied to high efficiency light sources. Some may hold potential for energy storage in making new electronic capacitors. In his second project, Pulido is studying magnetic properties of novel selenide compounds related to superconducting materials. The magnetic selenide compounds will provide insights into the behavior of unpaired electrons in metal ions, which might enable the design of new high-temperature superconductors. After graduation, Pulido will either attend medical school or a chemistry graduate program.

Dominique Sauro, will be a junior this fall and is majoring in chemistry, with a minor in mathematics. In her research project, Sauro is studying the reactions of silyl ketone rearrangements, also known as Brook Rearrangements, which involve the bonds between silicon and oxygen. She will prepare a variety of materials and react them under varying conditions to see which conditions favor the rearranged reaction in ring systems. This research will have synthetic applications and can be used to produce different ring systems. Sauro plans to attend graduate school, specializing in organic chemistry, and might then decide to pursue a career in the pharmaceuticals industry.

The students will work with faculty in TCNJ’s School of Science, including David Hunt, professor of chemistry; Lynn Bradley, associate professor of chemistry; and Benny Chan, assistant professor of chemistry.

"We are very pleased to contribute towards advancing education through TCNJ’s MUSE program,” said Rama Chandran, vice president for science & technology research, development and innovation at AkzoNobel Applied Research Laboratory in Bridgewater. “On behalf of the National Starch Foundation, we wish the current and past participants in the Summer Internship program a rich experience that they can build on in their future career endeavors."

For more information, please contact Georgia Arvanitis, professor of chemistry, 609.771.2917

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About The College of New Jersey

TCNJ currently is ranked as one of the 75 "Most Competitive" schools in the nation by Barron's Profiles of American Colleges, is rated the No. 1 public institution in the northern region of the country by U.S. News & World Report, and is one of Kiplinger's Personal Finance's top educational values in the country. In 2006, the College joined an elite group of institutions when it was awarded a Phi Beta Kappa chapter. Fewer than 10 percent of the nation's colleges and universities share this honor.