Welcome to the Department of Chemistry

Chemistry, the central science, is an integral part of modern life and forms the basis for advances in nearly all areas of science and technology.  Students and faculty in Chemistry at the University of Maine work together to answer questions related to major societal issues:  energy, the environment, modern materials, and health and medicine.  We invite you to explore our undergraduate and graduate programs and to learn more about our research.  If you have questions or would like to make arrangements for a tour of our department, please contact Dr. Alice Bruce, Chair, 152/271 Aubert Hall, 581-1168/ 581-1182, abruce@maine.edu

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Department News

Chemistry Department Seminar Series

Please mark your calendars.

The Chemistry Department is pleased to welcome Dr. Ron Zuckermann from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory for a special guest lecture next Tuesday, November 12, 2024 at 11:00 a.m. in Room 316 Aubert Hall.  Dr. Zuckermann will present on “Folding biomimetic peptoid polymers into protein-like nanostructures.”  Dr. Zuckermann will meet with students for lunch following the presentation and will visit with faculty following the lunch.  

Research and Publication Highlights


Another publication from the Gramlich research group that provides insight into the challenges with using Pickering emulsions and how to overcome them to create barrier coatings on paper. This was made possible through the hard work of Chidubem Uchefuna and Doug Bousfield.

Montmorillonite pigment effects on the water barrier properties of paper coated with latexes synthesized through surfactant and Pickering emulsion methods

sciencedirect.com 


Recent publications from the Rasaiah research group include a publication from D. Charitha Perera, now a post-doc at Indiana Univeristy.  The article is here.


Members of the Gramlich research group published an article where they show how to improve the mechanical properties of poly(lactic acid) composites using modified cellulose nanofibrils. The link to the article is here.

Strengthening polylactic acid (PLA) composites with poly(methyl methacrylate)-functionalized cellulose nanofibrils created through grafting-through emulsion polymerization

Hathaithep SenkumabPeter V. KellyabAhmad A. L. AhmadabSiamak Shams Es-haghibc and William M. Gramlich


Robin Hurst, PhD, undergraduate alumnus, Angel Nieves, and faculty member, Dr. Matthew Brichacek, published an article, “Synthesis of Small Molecules Flourescent Probes and their Applications from Sensing to Imaging” in a special edition of Molecules (ISSN 1420-3049).  The link to the article is here.