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Inorganic Chemistry
Synthetic inorganic/organometallic chemistry and polymer research is her passion.
Christine R. de Denus' interest in polymer research has continued from her years as a student to her current assistant professorship. Currently, de Denus is studying the construction of polymer chains with attached metal groups and light-sensitive materials. The purposes of such chains are manifold, from industrial uses to biological.
Research in the de Denus group is aided greatly by the active involvement of undergraduate students. Since her arrival at the Colleges, de Denus has mentored a total of 15 undergraduates who have worked with her during the academic year or as summer research scholars. The work of these students has resulted in 1 publication in a peer reviewed journal and 15 student presentations at regional and national conferences.
Synthetic chemistry refers to the practice of learning about research that is needed to be done in a particular area and then producing hypothetical results to be tested in a laboratory. de Denus' role as a synthetic chemist is crucial as one of the many steps involved in scientific inquiry and discovery. Her research in inorganic and organometallic polymers, synthesis, characterization and electrochemical investigations is vital to later experimentation , data collection and analysis.
The ubiquity of polymers in the everyday world and discoveries in their growing number of uses makes for interesting and important research. Light-sensitive materials and heat-sensitive materials (like self-tinting window panes and children's thermometers) make use of polymer chains and their property-changing abilities. New avenues exist for discovery in this area of chemistry and continuing research is essential to further development.
de Denus maintains connections with her Canadian counterparts and continues to follow their developments in this and other areas of chemistry research and discovery.
A recent list of publications include:
Book Review "Inorganic and Organometallic Polymers" Christine R. de Denus, J. Inorg. and Organomet. Polym., 2001, 11, 199-201.
H.R. Allcock, S.D. Reeves, C.A. Crane, and C.R. de Denus, "Influence of Reaction Parameters on the Living Cationic Polymerization of Phosphoranimines to Polyphosphazenes", Macromolecules, 2001, 34, 748-754.
H. R. Allcock, C. R. de Denus, W. R. Laredo, and R. Prange. "Synthesis of Norbornenyl Telechelic Polyphosphazenes and Ring-Opening Metathesis Polymerization (ROMP) Reactions", Macromolecules, 2001, 34, 2757-2765.
C. R. de Denus, L. M. Hoffa*, A. S. Abd-El-Aziz, and E. K. Todd. "Synthesis of Oligomeric and Polymeric Ethers Containing the Cp*Ru+ and CpFe+ Metal Moieties", J. Inorg. and Organomet. Polym, 2000, 10, 189.
H.R. Allcock, J.M. Nelson, C.R. de Denus, and I. Manners, "Design, Synthesis and Uses of Phosphazene High Polymers", p165-173 in Tailored Polymers and Applications, VSP International Science Publishers: Netherlands, 2000.
Abd-El-Aziz, A. S., de Denus, C. R., Todd, E. K., and Bernardin, S. A. "Design of Polyaromatic Ethers Using Cyclopentadienyliron Complexes" Macromolecules, 2000, 33, 5000-5005.
Interview opportunities and additional background information may be requested through the Office of Communications, Hobart and William Smith Colleges, Geneva, New York. Phone: (315) 781-3540. After business hours, Communications staff members are accessible through contact information on their answering machine at that number.
Christine de Denus received her Ph.D. from the University of Manitoba in 1997 and her B.S. from the University of Winnipeg in 1993. Prior to becoming an assistant professor of chemistry at Hobart and William Smith Colleges in 1999, she completed a prestigious two-year Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) post-doctoral Fellowship in the department of chemistry at The Pennsylvania State University.
de Denus' post-doctoral Fellowship with NSERC was preceded by a research assistantship in the chemistry department at the University of Winnipeg, where she also instructed introductory, inorganic and organometallic chemistry laboratories. Her research has been detailed in 28 manuscripts in journals such as Journal of the Chemical Society: Dalton Transactions and Perkin Transactions, Chemical Communications, Journal of Inorganic and Organometallic Polymers, Macromolecules, Organometallics, and the Canadian Journal of Chemistry. In addition to publishing her work, de Denus is an active reviewer for the Journal of Inorganic and Organometallic Polymers, International Journal of Science and Technology, and the American Chemical Society: Petroleum Research Fund.
Christine de Denus' professional affiliations include: The Council on Undergraduate Research; The American Chemical Society; The Canadian Society for Chemistry; Sigma Xi Scientific Research Society.
To date, de Denus has received external funding for her work from the Council on Undergraduate Research and the National Science Foundation.