The Nomad Postgrad

THE BLOG IS OFFICIALLY MOVED TO INSTAGRAM: @thenomadpostgrad Studying the beautiful mysteries of chemistry. My adventures as a PhD researcher in the scary world of university, research, teaching, and industry. Currently postgrading in organic chemistry...

[nomadpostgrad]

Moving to Instagram!

Hi everyone, so I started this blog many years ago and I really appreciate all the support and messages I’ve gotten over the years!

However, this website/app is just not working for the blog anymore. So I’ve moved over to Instagram! IG: @thenomadpostgrad

Its the same content I’ve been posting before, so make sure you check it out if you enjoy my posts.

Unfortuantely I probably won’t be posting on here anymore, so again, FOLLOW THE INSTAGRAM BECAUSE THE CHEMISTRY DONT STOP.

Peace, one love,

- The nomad postgrad

[nomadpostgrad]

The blog has moved! Follow me on Instagram: @thenomadpostgrad

[nomadpostgrad]

Moving to Instagram!

Hi everyone, so I started this blog many years ago and I really appreciate all the support and messages I’ve gotten over the years!

However, this website/app is just not working for the blog anymore. So I’ve moved over to Instagram! IG: @thenomadpostgrad

Its the same content I’ve been posting before, so make sure you check it out if you enjoy my posts.

Unfortuantely I probably won’t be posting on here anymore, so again, FOLLOW THE INSTAGRAM BECAUSE THE CHEMISTRY DONT STOP.

Peace, one love,

- The nomad postgrad

[nomadpostgrad]

[nomadpostgrad]

Reactions I’ve done so far …

• Acylation of alcohol (synthesis of Aspirin, my first ever reaction!)

• dehydration of alcohol

• oxidation of alcohol

• reduction of aldehyde/ketone/ester

• Fischer esterification

• ester hydrolysis

• Cannizzaro

• Claisen-Schmidt condensation

• asymmetric Aldol using Evans auxiliary

• Diels Alder [4+2] cycloadditon

• diazotization

• diazonium coupling

• sulfonation/nitration of aryl rings

• Friedel Crafts

• Sandmeyer

• Grignard

• Diekmann condensation

• Robinson annulation

• Ferrocene synthesis

• BOC protection/deprotection

• EDC/DCC peptide coupling

• chlorination of carboxylic acid

• acylation of an amine

• Beckmann rearrangement

• Brown hydroboration

• Wittig

• Horner-Wadsworth-Evans

• [1,3]-dipolar cycloadditon

• Huisgen [1,3] CuAAC

• imine formation

• 1,4 Michael addition

• alkylation of sulfide to sulfonium salt

• Menshutkin 

• Corey-Chaykovsky

• TBDMS protection/deprotection

• radical bromination

• bromination/chlorination of arene 

• oxidation of amine to N-oxide

• Polonovski

• Pd/C hydrogenation

• Cham-Lam coupling

• Heck coupling

• Goldberg coupling

• reductive amination

• [3,3]-Claisen rearrangement

• Smiles rearrangement

• Benzyne formation/addition 

I think this is everything so far … Any reactions you would love to try some day? I’d love to give a Birch reduction a go.

[nomadpostgrad]

Add Buchwald-Hartwig coupling to that!

[nomadpostgrad]

Reactions I’ve done so far …

• Acylation of alcohol (synthesis of Aspirin, my first ever reaction!)

• dehydration of alcohol

• oxidation of alcohol

• reduction of aldehyde/ketone/ester

• Fischer esterification

• ester hydrolysis

• Cannizzaro

• Claisen-Schmidt condensation

• asymmetric Aldol using Evans auxiliary

• Diels Alder [4+2] cycloadditon

• diazotization

• diazonium coupling

• sulfonation/nitration of aryl rings

• Friedel Crafts

• Sandmeyer

• Grignard

• Diekmann condensation

• Robinson annulation

• Ferrocene synthesis

• BOC protection/deprotection

• EDC/DCC peptide coupling

• chlorination of carboxylic acid

• acylation of an amine

• Beckmann rearrangement

• Brown hydroboration

• Wittig

• Horner-Wadsworth-Evans

• [1,3]-dipolar cycloadditon

• Huisgen [1,3] CuAAC

• imine formation

• 1,4 Michael addition

• alkylation of sulfide to sulfonium salt

• Menshutkin 

• Corey-Chaykovsky

• TBDMS protection/deprotection

• radical bromination

• bromination/chlorination of arene 

• oxidation of amine to N-oxide

• Polonovski

• Pd/C hydrogenation

• Cham-Lam coupling

• Heck coupling

• Goldberg coupling

• reductive amination

• [3,3]-Claisen rearrangement

• Smiles rearrangement

• Benzyne formation/addition 

I think this is everything so far … Any reactions you would love to try some day? I’d love to give a Birch reduction a go.

[nomadpostgrad]

One of the in house crystallographers taught me how to use the X-ray diffractometer XRD is awesome!

[nomadpostgrad]

My supervisors plan for my PhD

[nomadpostgrad]

I passed my candidacy exam!!!

[nomadpostgrad]

That fresh-tank-of-argon feeling

[nomadpostgrad]

And this is what the joint between the condenser and the flask looked like. I'm just a crazy person looking at droplets

[nomadpostgrad]

Testing out a new macro lens for my phone: it makes everything look so cool!

This is what one of my refluxing reaction mixtures looks like up close

[nomadpostgrad]

To be fair, they knew the concept and just needed a gentle reminder!

[nomadpostgrad]

Bonus crystals of my new complex! I hope to get a time lapse of their growth one day because it's so stunning to watch Off to the diffractometer!

[nomadpostgrad]

I've been busy writing my report for my first year progression review and I hate neglecting this blog. But I've found that growing crystals is a very therapeutic way of taking a break from writing

[nomadpostgrad]

[nomadpostgrad]

This is one of my counter ion exchange reactions I do on a regular basis. Brings me back to some of the first experiments I did when I was a first year undergraduate!

[nomadpostgrad]

Chemistry PhD Protip

Befriend the crystallographers, they are wonderful people