High Voltage Cathodes

The performance of Li-ion batteries with high-voltage cathodes continues to be impractical for commercial devices due to several materials' limitations. In a recent article in collaboration with Samsung, Eric McCalla and co-workers systematically addressed these issues by using high-throughput screening with dopant selections covering much of the periodic table to achieve dramatically improved energies and extended cycling.

Dance in support of Ukraine

Our own Aleksei Kavun, a Ph. D. student from the Li lab, participated in the Révolution dance competition with a political message supporting Ukraine. His heartfelt dance was broadcasted on the TVA channel on September 18th. Aleksei's Ukrainian father, Mikhail Kavun, was illegally detained in Russia and later recognized as a political prisoner.

Come join our faculty! Apply to our faculty position in Polymer Chemistry before October 15 2022

We are currently holding a search for our next faculty member. Please share widely the job post for an assistant professor position in Polymer Chemistry. Find out all the information here: https://www.mcgill.ca/chemistry/jobs/faculty-positions.

 

A Novel Technology for Real-time Detection of Toxic Particle Contaminants in a blink of an eye!

The Ariya group demonstrates the detection of viruses like MS2 bacteriophage, mercury-containing particles, and other heavy metals as common toxic contaminants, as single particle in real-time or the cluster of particles, in a blink of an eye (milliseconds). Particle contaminants in water systems can come from man-made or natural origins, and there is still much to learn about their interactions and transformations in the environment.

The Department of Chemistry releases a special issue to Celebrate McGill’s Bicentennial

2021 marked McGill’s bicentennial and the department produced a Special Issue in the Canadian Journal of Chemistry  to celebrate this important hallmark and provide an overview of the breath of research produced by our community. This special occasion also was a good time to reflect on our recent past, and this the Special issue includes an overview of the Department’s history from 1965-2019.

Visualizing how polarons form in the best thermoelectric material yet developed

Thermoelectrics can generate electrical power from waste heat and could make an important contribution to sustainable energy production if their efficiency is improved. Engineering efficient thermoelectrics, however, requires a sophisticated understanding of the fundamental interdependencies between electrical and thermal transport, for which improvements in our understanding of how charge carriers are coupled to lattice vibrations (phonons) is needed.

Passing of Professor Emeritus Adi Eisenberg (1935-2022)

With heavy hearts, we announce that Professor Emeritus Adi Eisenberg (1935-2022) has passed away on January 12, 2022. A Holocaust survivor, Dr. Eisenberg has earned his Ph.D. from Princeton University in 1960, worked as a NATO post-doctoral fellow at the University of Basel with Werner Kuhn (1961-1962), and joined UCLA in 1962 as an Assistant Professor.

The emissions of BC and other air pollutants in Montreal, and impacts of COVID-19

Graduate student Houjie Li and Professor Parisa Ariya discovered that the concentrations of black carbon (BC), PM2.5, CO, NOx decreased up to 72% in downtown Montreal during COVID-19 lockdown period, revealing those human activities account for most air pollutants in the cities.

Hassan Fakih Awarded the 2021 Dr. Alan M. Gewirtz Memorial Scholarship

Hassan Fakih who is a PhD Candidate in the Sleiman Lab has been awarded the 2021 Dr. Alan M. Gewirtz Memorial Scholarship.

To read more, please visit: https://www.oligotherapeutics.org/2021-dr-alan-m-gewirtz-memorial-scholarship-award-for-graduate-students/.

Passing of Dan Petrescu (1991-2021)

It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of Dan Petrescu on Sunday, October 3rd, 2021. Dan was born in 1991 in Germany but raised in France. He left Europe for the United States in 2009 to pursue his education. Dan studied for his B.A. in Chemistry from 2009-2013 at Boston University. He then went on to obtain his M.A in Physical and Biophysical Chemistry at Boston University from 2013-2015.

Two grad students win First Place Award for oral presentation at IUPCA/CCCE 2021 Virtual conference

The department of chemistry is really proud of graduate students Zi Wang, from the Ariya group, and Kayrel Edwards, from the Barrett group, for being award two first place award for the oral presentations they delivered at the virtual #IUPCA/CCCE conference on August.

Passing of Dr. David A. I. Goring (1920-2021)

A graduate of McGill and Cambridge, Dr. Goring has passed away at the age of 100. Dr. Goring joined Paprican Institute in 1955, with his labs on the third floor of the Pulp and Paper building. Through his affiliation with the Chemistry Department, he taught graduate courses and supervised approximately 20 graduate students, most of whom went on to research positions in the Canadian Pulp and Paper Industry. Dr.

Passing of Dr. James M. Fresco (1926-2021)

It is with great sadness that we share the news of the passing of Dr. James M. Fresco, a former Associate Professor in the Department of Chemistry, McGill University, on Sunday, May 23, 2021, just a few months short of his 95th birthday.

A Sustainable Technology for Quantification of Micro- and Nano-plastics in the Environment

Global plastic productions have increased remarkably over the past few decades. Unwanted plastic inputs, specifically, micro- and nano-plastics, into the environment become emerging concerns across the world. However, the quantitative analysis of micro/nano-plastics still remains a major challenge, especially in the complex environmental matrices.

Intelligent polymeric nanoformulations sense and deliver at precise locations

Delivering active pharmaceutical agents to target sites continues to pose tremendous challenges. Much effort has been devoted to formulating endogenous stimuli-sensitive nanocarriers that could load sufficient cargo, stay intact during their passage to desired locations, and provide controlled release pathways.