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Three longtime members of Hamilton’s science faculty retired during the last academic year. Eugene Domack, Timothy Elgren and Ernest Williams had a combined 79 years of service at Hamilton.

Ten current and former Hamilton Chemistry Department faculty members co-authored a chapter titled “A Departmental Focus on High Impact Undergraduate Research Experiences” in a recently published edition of the American Chemical Society Symposium Series dedicated to “Developing and Sustaining a Successful Undergraduate Research Program.”

Professor of Chemistry Tim Elgren recently published a paper in the Journal of Molecular Catalysis B: Enzymatic with James Russell '09 and collaborators from Marquette University.

Professor of Chemistry Tim Elgren has received a grant from the Noyce Foundation administered by the National Center for Science & Civic Engagement.  The objective of this three-year project is to develop research opportunities for undergraduate science students that couple analytical toxicology with public policy and civic engagement.

Professor of Chemistry Tim Elgren’s response to a New York Times article appeared as the lead letter in the paper’s Aug. 27 Science Times section. Writing in response to “Is There Danger Lurking in Your Lipstick?,” Elgren pointed out that “We are exposed to harmful chemicals every day, often unnecessarily so. The 1976 Toxic Substance Control Act grandfathered in more than 60,000 chemicals and does little to protect public health or the environment.”

Because Bisphenol A, or BPA, has been identified as a factor in conditions including obesity, ADHD, reproductive complications and behavioral abnormalities, consumers and health officials have been alarmed at the presence of the chemical in food and drink products for years. In a summer research project,  Lisbeth DaBramo ’15 and Rachel Sobel ’15 are measuring BPA levels in bottles and cans to identify how this toxic compound is introduced into our systems.

Enzymes and proteins, typically when left unattended or unprotected, can easily lose their structural integrity and fall apart. Sol-Gel is an emerging material that helps encapsulate the enzymes and protect them from the dangers of degradation. The technology can be used in numerous applications, one of them being a new method for slow-release medications. These slow release medicines allow for the introduction of necessary chemicals over a period of time, avoiding any negative side effects from releasing all the medication at once.

Greg Rahn, analytical instrumentation specialist, and Tim Elgren, professor of chemistry, presented a poster titled "A New and Improved Method for Monitoring Beer Vicinal Diketones as Maturation Markers" at the World Brewing Congress in Portland, Ore.  The work was done in collaboration with the Matt Brewery in Utica.

A paper co-authored by Professor of Chemistry Tim Elgren was recently published in the Journal of Inorganic Biochemistry. “Photo-induced H2 production by [NiFe]-hydrogenase from T. roseopersicina covalently linked to a Ru(II) photosensitizer” was written in collaboration with scientists at Montana State University. Hydrogenases are enzymes that convert protons and electrons into hydrogen gas.

Enzymes serve as catalysts to many biological processes, and so they are not used up in reactions and they may be recovered and reused. However, in a laboratory setting, reactions involving enzymes can leave the enzyme unrecoverable. Kevin Boettger ’13 and Christopher Richardson ’14 are spending the summer working under Professor of Chemistry Tim Elgren to trap enzymes in Sol gels, making them more stable and recyclable. Their project is titled “Encapsulation of Enzymes.”