Department of Chemistry – UNC Chapel Hill Chemistry Department

Department News

Creativity Hubs Project Aims to Position UNC as Leader in Solid-State Battery Technology

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is embarking on a groundbreaking project that aims to position the school and State of North Carolina as leaders in lithium-ion battery research and development.

Breakthrough Achieved in Production of Key Component of Solar Technology

UNC researchers, led by Wei You and Xiaowei Zhong, have made a significant breakthrough in the production of electronic acceptors, a key component of organic solar cells to make solar energy more accessible and affordable

Exploring Chemical Methods to Overcome Renewable Energy’s Biggest Challenge

With a team of dedicated graduate and undergraduate students, Jackson’s lab is making significant strides in developing advanced electrode materials that can efficiently store energy generated from solar and wind sources.

Researchers Design Enzyme-Mimicking Polymers Promising Greener Industrial Practices

Researchers in the Knight Group have unveiled significant advancements in the design and functionality of synthetic polymer catalysts, which could have major implications for various industrial chemical processes.

Using AI, Researchers Launch Database to Predict Cancer DNA Anomalies

3d rendered medically accurate illustration of a cancer cell

UNC-Chapel Hill researchers have launched a database called CytoCellDB to address a significant gap in cancer research, particularly focusing on extrachromosomal DNA.

Innovative Fuzzy Graphene Technique Paving the Way for Carbon-Neutral Economy

Oluwaseun Oyetade, lead author of the paper and a postdoctoral research associate, stands beside a plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition system (PECVD) for thin-film growth of carbon nanostructures which have specific properties for use in various applications, such as electronics, photovoltaics and sensors.

Researchers have developed a groundbreaking method to enhance the efficiency and stability of solar-driven, carbon-dioxide reduction, a crucial process for achieving a sustainable and carbon-neutral economy.

Participants complete 4th Cyclic Voltammetry Boot Camp

Group of people in lab coats standing in the middle of a lab featuring glove boxes and other laboratory equipment. The photo angle implies that the photographer was standing on a chair above the participants.

Thank you to all who helped make the 4th Cyclic Voltammetry Boot Camp such a success!

Appointment of James Cahoon as New Department of Chemistry Chair

UNC Chemistry appoints James Cahoon as New Department of Chemistry Chair and thanks outgoing Chair Wei You for his service.

Research

Fluorescence shadow imaging of Hypsibius exemplaris reveals morphological differences between sucrose- and CaCl2-induced osmobiotes

Herein, an approach for discriminating between tardigrade morphological states is developed and utilized to compare sucrose- and CaCl2-induced tuns, using the model species Hypsibius exemplaris.

Architectural Editing of Polyesters and Polyurethanes via Palladium(II)-Catalyzed [3,3]-Sigmatropic Oxo-Rearrangements

Herein, we disclose a backbone rearrangement approach to tune the short-chain branching of polymers.

Reductive Dynamic and Static Excited State Quenching of a Homoleptic Ruthenium Complex Bearing Aldehyde Groups

A new homoleptic Ru polypyridyl complex bearing two aldehyde groups on each bipyridine ligand, [Ru(dab)3](PF6)2, where dab is 4,4′-dicarbaldehyde-2,2′-bipyridine, was synthesized, characterized, and utilized for iodide photo-oxidation studies.

Valence can control the nonexponential viscoelastic relaxation of multivalent reversible gels

Here, we propose a model where the relaxation of polymer gels in the dilute regime originates from elementary events in which the bonds connecting two neighboring cross-linkers all disconnect.