The Blakemore Laboratory
Inspired by sustainability and stewardship, our group synthesizes new compounds and studies reactivity involving actinides, lanthanides, and light gases. We draw on perspectives from inorganic/organometallic chemistry, molecular electrochemistry, and surface science.
RECENT BLAKEMORE GROUP NEWS
6 May 2026 – Congratulations to our undergraduate student Noah Tucker, who has been selected to conduct a summer of collaborative research at Brookhaven National Laboratory! Noah will be collaborating with Dr. Dmitry Polyansky and Dr. David Grills on studies of metal-oxo bond activation with pulse radiolysis and stopped-flow methods. Noah is being supported by the DOE SULI program, which aims to help the United States to maintain a “highly skilled scientific and technical workforce.” As a SULI student, Noah will use advanced instruments available at the Accelerator Center for Energy Research (ACER) at BNL as well as the laboratories of the Artificial Photosynthesis Group. Congratulations, Noah!
1 May 2026 – Congratulations to our senior undergraduate Tej Gumaste, who has been named the recipient of a 2026 Tradition of Excellence Award by the KU Alumni Association! Students selected as recipients “exemplify the highest standards of student excellence” at KU and are “recognized for their transformative contributions to KU.” Tej is graduating this year from KU with a B.S. in Computer Science, and published a paper on his undergraduate research with us in the area of chemical informatics applied to crystallography earlier this year. Congratulations, Tej!
28 April 2026 – Our graduate student Ty OJanovac has been named a recipient of the Madison and Lila Self Graduate Fellowship! The fellowship will provide support for Ty over the next four years (2026 to 2030) and is the most prestigious award at KU for graduate students. Congratulations, Ty!
17 April 2026 - Congratulations to our undergraduate Andrew Jacobs, who has been named a 2026 Stephen C. Glover Summer Research Scholar. The support from this scholarship includes a full stipend as well as funds for research supplies and travel. With this support, Andrew will be continuing his studies of heterobimetallic vanadium-uranium compounds, supported by his co-mentor Grant Arehart. Way to go, Andrew!
16-17 April 2026 – This week, James was thrilled to visit Prof. Charlotte Williams and the Williams Research Group at the University of Oxford. Although motivated by different goals, the Williams Group and our own have kindred interests in chemistry. On Thursday, we discussed quantifying the effective Lewis acidity of metal cations, as well as the concept of Lewis acidity as a descriptor in multimetallic chemistry and catalysis. On Friday, James delivered an invited seminar on our approaches to quantification of Lewis acidity and understanding heterometallic effects in platinum-templated macrocycles. Thanks to Charlotte for the invitation—a real pleasure to meet and discuss the bright future of multimetallic chemistry!