Nathan Contrella Email & Phone Number

Rahway, New Jersey, United States

Greater New York City Area

Rahway, Nj

Chicago, Il

- National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship, 2011-2015- Designed and tested a new class of organometallic catalyst for ethylene polymerization and copolymerization with polar vinyl monomers- Developed a multifunctional phosphine ligand to enable formation of a dipalladium ethylene oligomerization catalyst and designed appropriate multi-step syntheses to such targets- Prepared and purified air-sensitive organic and organometallic compounds by Schlenk and glovebox techniques, with attention to synthetic method development and optimization- Synthesized ethylene polymers and copolymers by catalyzed high-pressure ethylene polymerization/copolymerization- Analyzed ethylene homopolymers and copolymers by multidimensional NMR and DSC to establish composition and microstructure, and by GPC to determine molecular weight- Characterized small molecules by multinuclear and multidimensional NMR, mass spectrometry (GC, LC, MALDI), x-ray diffraction, and FT-IR spectroscopy, requiring detailed spectral analysis and interpretation

Chicago, Il

- Inorganic Chemistry II (advanced inorganic and organometallic chemistry)- Maintained regular office hours, facilitating one-on-one teaching- Helped to prepare and grade students’ problem sets and examinations

Chicago, Il

- Organic Chemistry I and Organic Chemistry II- Supervised undergraduate laboratories.- Held discussion sections to teach lab and course material in a group setting.- Maintained office hours to teach students individually.- Helped to prepare and grade students’ problem sets and examinations.

Lewisburg, Pa

- Advisor: Eric Tillman- Radical-mediated and anionic polymerization, alkoxyamine synthesis, and ring-growing polymerizations- Synthesized end-labeled polymers via radical-mediated (NMP, SRAA, ATRP, RATRP) and ionic polymerization methods- Developed a diblock (poly(styrene)-block-poly(methyl methacrylate) copolymer synthesis with a chromophore-labeled, single carbon atom (9-fluorenyl) at the junction- Verified labeling by GPC, UV-vis, and fluorescence; monitored kinetics by NMR- Received funding through the Pfizer Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (Summer 2008) and the Accenture Technology Discovery Undergraduate Research Fund (Summer 2007)

Lewisburg, Pa

- Subjects included Organic Chemistry, Calculus, Classical and Modern Physics- Responsible for explaining concepts and helping students solve associated problems

Lewisburg, Pa

- Courses: Organic Chemistry I, Organic Chemistry II, Inorganic Chemistry I, General Chemistry II- Responsible for ensuring availability of materials, answering questions regarding concepts and experimental procedure, and grading student work

Doctor Of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Chemistry, 4.00/4.00

- Advisor: Richard Jordan - National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship, 2011-2015 - Gerhard Closs Teaching Award in Organic.

Master'S Degree, Chemistry, 4.00/4.00

Bachelor'S Degree, Chemistry, 3.97/4.00

- summa cum laude - American Chemical Society Susquehanna Valley Section Senior Chemistry Award, 2009 - University Prize in Chemistry.