AliQuotes v31n2
Save the Date!
Virtual Meeting of the Princeton ACS Section
Wednesday Sept 15th at 6:30pm
“A mass spectrometry journey across life sciences: protein characterization, metabolomics and high-throughput analysis to advance industry R&D”
Sergio Nanita, Principal Investigator, International Flavors & Frangrances, Inc.( IFF) Advanced Bioanalytical Sciences, Wilmington, Del.
Biography: Dr. Sergio Nanita is an expert in mass spectrometry and separation sciences, working in the private sector R&D for more than 15 years. He is currently a Principal Investigator at IFF, where he focuses on developing state-of-the-art analytical methods and providing proteomics, metabolomics and structure elucidation expertise for the discovery and development of new IFF products.
Prior to IFF, Sergio worked at DuPont Co., where he held various scientific roles across multiple divisions. He provided analytical chemistry expertise to advance R&D programs and support worldwide operations at DuPont Nutrition & Biosciences, DuPont Crop Protection, and DuPont Corporate Center for Analytical Sciences. Sergio is known for his innovative mass spectrometry methods that have improved food security and advanced environmental, agricultural, and biochemical research. He has been a volunteer at ACS since the 1990s, serving across many units of the Society, including Student Affiliate Chapters, Local Sections, Committees, and Technical Divisions. Recent highlights of Sergio’s volunteerism include service at ACS Corporation Associates (2019-2020), ACS Committee on Ethics (2012-2015) and the ACS Career Consultants Program (2018-2021). He also served as secretary, chair-elect, and chair of the Delaware Valley Mass Spectrometry Discussion Group from 2011 to 2015 ((ACS Philadelphia Local Section). Sergio currently serves as Chair, ACS Committee on International Activities.
He was born in Dominican Republic, earned a B.S. in chemistry from the University of Puerto Rico and a Ph.D. in analytical chemistry from Purdue University. He was recognized as one of the top 40 analytical chemists under 40 worldwide in the 2014 and 2018 Power Lists published by The Analytical Scientist magazine. Sergio is an ACS Fellow, class of 2020.
The Princeton Section of ACS
Presents the third annual symposium
Synthesis on Scale: Process Chemistry in the Pharmaceutical Industry
Friday, January 14th, 2022
10:00 AM – 3:45 PM EST
Remote via Zoom
Agenda and speakers will be posted soon. Check our website for updates at:
The Future of Process Chemistry
“New bond forming processes and novel strategies continue to be discovered at an ever increasing rate due to the ingenuity of chemists worldwide. Process intensification concepts, improvements in process analytical technologies (PAT), high throughput methods, and continuous processing combined with machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) techniques are creating a new vision and new opportunities for the future.
The industry is also leading the field in terms of improved sustainability and in the development of the next generation of the green agenda. These are, indeed, exciting times for the process chemist.”
Prof. Steve Ley, Cambridge, UK, 1 January 2021 (excerpted)
SOS Symposium Organizing Committee:
Spencer Knapp , Rutgers University
Mukund Chorghade, Princeton ACS Section
David Carrick, Princeton ACS Section
Louise Lawter, Princeton ACS Section
Lisa Veliath, Princeton ACS Section
Mini Leadership Development Institute
Saturday, September 11, 2021
St. Joseph’s University, Philadelphia
Join the Philadelphia, Lehigh Valley, Princeton, and Trenton local sections of the ACS for an opportunity to take two leadership development courses and participate in a networking lunch on Saturday, September 11 at St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia. The leadership courses have been designed by chemists specifically to enhance the professional development of those in the chemical community.
Register for your morning and afternoon Leadership Course with Networking Luncheon here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/delaware-valley-leadership-development-institute-tickets-158514476065 Registration is limited and is expected to fill up quickly. Please register early to ensure course availability. Discounted tickets are available for students and ACS Members. Non-members will receive a 50% off membership voucher following the event. Ticket prices include all fees and range from $18-$82 depending on membership status.
Options for Leadership Courses include:
Fostering Innovation: Gain the understanding and tools to help you tap into your innovation style and learn how to stimulate innovative thinking among team members and colleagues.
Learn how to increase performance, expand the skills of your team, encourage creativity and improve the morale of team
Developing Communication Strategies:
Develop and practice your own effective communication strategy and discover how communication can make your goals possible.
Collaborating Across Boundaries:
Learn strategies and tools to be more effective in leading collaborative efforts. Gain practical skills that can be applied immediately in the lab, at school, in the office or at ACS.
Chemagination at Princeton
a Virtual STEM Competition
by Barbara Ameer, Chemagination Committee Chair and Local Section Competition Coordinator
Congratulations to finalists in our June local section competition, which was asynchronous/remote for the second consecutive year in its 19-year history.
First-place teams (or second-place teams as alternates) are eligible to participate in the regional (MARM) competition in late Spring 2022.
Category: Alternate Energy Sources
1st Place
Title: Dual-Ion Batteries: The Journey to a Greener World
School: Hightstown High School
Students: Akkshath Subrahmanian, Akul Solanki, Nikhilesh Machan
2nd Place
Title: Wave toward Clean Energy and Water
School: Wallington High School
Students: Marta Rzeszutko, Paula Wasik, Omar Alghondakly
Category: Medicine/Health
1st Place
Title: mRNA Vaccines: Advancements Toward a New Panacea
School: Hightstown High School
Students: Suraj Neelamagam, Pratik Kang
2nd Place
Title: Leadless Pacemakers: Leading the Way for Modern Cardiac Pacing
School: Hightstown High School
Students: Julia Kim, Simranjot Mann
In teams of 2 or 3, students selected their category of interest. There were no entries in the categories of Environment, New Materials or Proteins/Protein Chemistry.
Students tackled the question: How might chemistry be used to improve our lives 25 years in the future? Teams prepared cover art and a feature story for the high school chemistry magazine ChemMatters.
We appreciate the cooperation of the New Jersey high school chemistry teacher-mentors listed below, and Randy A. Weintraub, chemistry teacher at Princeton International School of Mathematics and Science, who organized the judging team of PhD and MD scientists.
Barbara Safira, Wallington High School; Erine D’Alessandro and Kenneth Lisk, Hightstown High School
Altered school schedules and uncertain availability of SARS-CoV-2 vaccines certainly impacted our academic ecosystem this year. Late dates of standardized examinations also made it impractical for several local high schools to participate this year but teachers across the board confirmed interest in future competitions.
2021 Alyea Awards
This award, sponsored by Princeton University and the Princeton Section of the American Chemical Society, is given annually to qualifying senior level students who attend high schools within the geographic area of the Princeton ACS Section. The namesake of this award, Hubert Alyea, was a Professor of Chemistry at Princeton University who was world renowned for his scientific demonstrations, his enthusiasm, and his love of scientific discovery.
This award is unique in that it leaves the criteria for the award at the discretion of the Science Department of each high school. The one stipulation made by the Award Committee is that the award not be based on test scores or grade point averages alone. We seek to recognize the student who is excited by scientific discovery, as was the award's namesake, Hubert Alyea.
This year’s winners are:
· Angela Cirelli, Stuart Country Day School
· Aditya Ganesh, Robbinsville High School
· Yangjie Lin Hu, Princeton International School of Mathematics and Science
· Alex Liang, The Lawrenceville School
· Sean Liu, Montgomery High School
· Varun Rao, Princeton Day School
· Mariana Salama, Nottingham High School
· Yixuan (Angelina) Shi, The Hun School of Princeton
· Amritha Sypereddi, Lawrence High School
· Zixing (Flossie) Zhang, Princeton High School
Due to the Covid 19 restrictions, the traditional award ceremony during the Princeton University Chemistry Department's Alyea Memorial Demonstration Lecture could not be held. Prizes were mailed directly to the students.
Local Teams Win at
2021 MARM Chemagination Competition
The 2021 MARM Chemagination Competition took place on Saturday, June 12, in conjunction with MARM 2021. The competition was virtual and consisted of a brief introduction followed by virtual interviews by the judges. Each team was interviewed by two different judges. Theses were done on Zoom, in breakout rooms.
For the competition the students had to submit an article and cover art about their discovery 25 years in the future for ChemMatters. They also had to provide answers to three specific questions about their research. This was evaluated by the judges prior to the interviews and winners were selected based on this material and the interview itself.
Twenty teams total, from the Lehigh Valley, New York, North Jersey, Philadelphia, and Princeton/Trenton Local Section competitions competed. First and Second Place awards in each category were given. We are pleased to announce that teams representing the Princeton and Trenton ACS Chemagination Sections won the following:
First Place, Alternative Energy - “Harnessing the Untapped Potential of Thorium”, Rahul Chauhan, Pradyun Kamaraju and Tejas Khare, Hillsborough High School
Second Place, New Materials - “Aerogel Composites and their Invaluable Properties”, Kabir Nagpal, Sennet Senadheera and Derek Wang, Hillsborough High School
Other First or Second Category Winners were:
First Place
Environment - “Pedaling to a Greener Future, One Gem at a Time”, Christian Homa, Malgorzata Kielska and Melanie Reyes, Wallington High School
Medicine/Health - “No More Forget Me Nots”, Mariam Hassan and Seohyun Lee, Half Hollow Hills High School West
New Materials - “A Sense of Security for Plants”, Sophia Colacino, Ava Mania and Yastika Singh, Passaic Valley High School
Second Place
Alternative Energy - “Scorption Strategies to Fight Global Warming”, Sylvia Diaz and Erin Gately, Garden City High School
Environment - “Brackish Water Desalination by Compact and Cost-Effective Shock Electrodialysis System, Oliwia Lidwin and Lindsey Wiessner, Bergen County Academies
Medicine/Health - “Echolocation and its Impact on the Visually Impaired”, Haley Hong and Hailey Junk, Upper Dublin High School
Congratulations to all the winners and thank you to all the students who participated. We also wish to thank the teachers who supported their students throughout competition process, our judges for their hard work and the Local Section Chemagination Competition organizers who helped to make this all possible!
Shara Compton and Louise Lawter,
2021 MARM Chemagination Co-Chairs
2021 Chemistry Olympiad Competition
Danielle Jacobs, Trenton Section member, once again coordinated the Chemistry Olympiad program for both the Trenton and Princeton Sections. Local exams took place this past March and those students that qualified went on to take the national exam in April. This exam is comprised of multiple choice and problem-solving questions, and a lab practical. The top 50 test takers are designated with High Honors and the next 100 with Honors.
Those taking the USNCO test from Princeton Section, along with honors attained, were:
Praytoy Biswas, West Windsor Plainsboro High School South, Honors
Jenny Fan, Princeton Day School
Alexander Huang, West Windsor Plainsboro High School South, Honors
William Shen, Princeton International School of Mathematics and Science, Honors
William Wu, Princeton International School of Mathematics and Science, High Honors
David Yang, Princeton High School, Honors
Zixing Zhang, Princeton High School
Qiyang Zhou*, Princeton International School of Mathematics and Science, High Honors
The top twenty finalists went on to attend virtual study camp that was hosted by the University of Maryland at College Park in collaboration with the American Chemical Society.
The team members that will attend this year’s International Chemistry Olympiad, to be hosted remotely by Japan July 25 to August 2, were chosen from this group.
We are pleased to announce that Qiyang Zhou of the Princeton International School of Mathematics is one of the four students who will be representing the US. Congratulations to Qiyang and the rest of the Princeton Section winners listed above!
Derk Huibers – Rest in Peace
With sadness I report that Derk Huibers, a long-time Princeton ACS member, died this past July 6, 2021, after a brief illness. He attended our PACS meetings regularly and engaged us all with amusing conversation. He will be missed.
His obituary can be found at https://obits.nj.com/us/obituaries/trenton/name/derk-huibers-obituary?pid=199448594.
As is our tradition, we asked our ACS 50-Year Member Awardees to share some insights on chemistry and their careers. Enjoy Derk’s article below, which was originally published in the November/December 2010 issue of AliQuotes.
Derk Huibers
50-Year ACS Member 2010
I am honored to be recognized as a 50-year member of the American Chemical Society. I signed up in 1960, when I had my first job in chemical process development at the Lucidol Division of Wallace and Tiernan in Tonawanda, NY. It is of interest to note that both Wallace and Tiernan went to the Lawrenceville School. Their names are on the wall in the auditorium. I discovered an easy process to make ADA (azodicarbonamide) agent to blow little nitrogen bubbles in PVC plastic sheets to give it a leather like feel, by chlorinating a urea solution. Wallace and Tiernan would have liked that if they would still be living. Anyway, it led to my first patent.
It occurred to me then that I was wasting my chemical engineering education. I wanted to do some real engineering and joined Lummus, an engineering construction company. Meanwhile in 1965, I was selected to go to Italy to improve a process for caprolactam (CL), the raw material for nylon-6. The process involved the reaction of hexahydrobenzoic acid (HHBA) with nitrosyl sulfuric acid (NSA), discovered by Werner Muench, a German chemist working in the laboratory of Snia Viscosa, an Italian fiber company.
In 1966, I decided to join Airco in Murray Hill as manager of process engineering. I supervised 22 engineers on a large number of interesting projects, including fueling the Saturn V rocket with liquid hydrogen and oxygen.
As a result of this involvement I was invited to become US citizen. End 1968, I met with the CEO of the Dutch company which is now called AKZO Nobel. He wanted to expand the company in the US and he hired me to help in this effort. First I had to go back to Holland for a year to get more acquainted with the company. I became manager of new venture development, also involved with acquisitions such as Armour Chemicals and Materials, a.o. involved in the manufacture of fatty amines. We had significant economic setbacks caused by the 1973-74 oil embargo. The resulting oil shortage eventually led me to Hydrocarbon Research in Lawrenceville, where I worked on developing new catalysts for converting coal to oil (the US has a 200 year coal supply). The H-Coal project was sponsored by the newly created Department of Energy (DEP). I also started a biochem lab to convert cellulose via glucose into chemicals like ethanol, sorbitol and glycerol. Ethanol blended with gasoline was called gasohol in those days.
I stayed in cellulose in 1983 by joining the Princeton R&D department of Union Camp. While supervising the chemical pilot plant, my main task was to redesign the distillation plants for tall oil (Savannah, Georgia) and turpentine (Jacksonville, Florida). An important component of turpentine is beta-pinene. This can be converted to myrcene, a raw material for geraniol, an important odor component. I designed a pyrolysis furnace to make myrcene by high temperature and short residence time and by steam dilution, analogous to the ethylene manufacturing furnaces designed by Lummus.
My final project at Union Camp was the recovery of beta-sitosterol. The Fins discovered that this component lowers cholesterol. It is now used by J&J in the manufacture of Benecol, a cholesterol lowering margarine. I eat it every day.