Jeffrey Self

"ChatGPT is great for brainstorming!"

Actually we have a tool for that already! It's called thinking. We use our brain. It's called brainstorming! Clue is in the name.

Vat Photopolymerization of Supersoft Acrylamide-Based PDMS Bottlebrush Elastomers Bottlebrush polymers, defined as polymers densely grafted with polymer side chains, have gained much attention for their unique mechanical properties. When cross-linked into a bottlebrush polymer netw...

I'm excited to announce the Self lab has published our first paper! Kamyar Nikoo did an awesome job leading this project on the development of low viscosity resins leveraging acrylamide functionality to enable VPP printing of bottlebrush elastomers. Check it out: pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...

Can seaweed decarbonize cement? 🌱🏗️
In our new study w/
@msftresearch.bsky.social, we show that #Ulva (a green seaweed) can be directly added to cement - no chemical preprocessing - cutting CO2 while preserving strength.
🔗 msft.it/6049SAKeJ
#Seaweed #Cement #AI #Sustainability #MaterialsScience #LCA

Beneath the blazing sun, Black Phoenix sows community - High Country News Climate change is creating a mental health crisis in Phoenix. A budding movement in the desert might solve it.

Climate change is creating a mental health crisis in Phoenix, especially for Black residents. A budding movement might help address both issues.

buff.ly/7zmPxTL

first Loo Lab paper is out now in @pubs.acs.org! here we show how polymer blends can tune Li ion solvation site and enhance ion transport

read it here: pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...

In the spirit of @sorheology.bsky.social and “Everything Flows”, look at these beautiful “streamlines” of shale around a rock.

Taken at Watkins Glen State Park

Alright, this is an awesome experiment - complexation, solubility, indicator acid/base, it’s got everything!! pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...

All of this is written on my blog, Chemjobber: chemjobber.blogspot.com/2025/04/pred...

Multiple milestones for the Khoury Lab this week for our undergrads! Marie Byrne defended her honors thesis, and Rohan Bulusu was recognized as the ASU nominee for the ACS Undergraduate Award in Inorganic Chemistry.

It was amazing having a fellow alumni Dr. Fauci and his wife Dr. Grady stop by the lab to talk wine chemistry and hear about the work my students are doing. Thank you for being on campus and sharing yourself with our entire community

Just dropped a new video + blog post with Ariel for RSC Applied Polymers, and we had a blast making it! 🧪✨ We went full infomercial mode to show off how these dynamic foams achieve next-level expansion & mechanical properties: tinyurl.com/balloondogfoams
@ronsmaldone.bsky.social

Our colleague Tomislav Friscic in full flow for his inaugural lecture at @uobchemistry.bsky.social. A fantastic evening hearing about his journey as a chemist.

A new chiral macrocycle which shows three-way switching of its chiroptical properties out in @angewandtechemie.bsky.social Work by @denishartmann.bsky.social in TAB Lab & fantastic collaborators at Durham University and @zwijcompchem.bsky.social at @uclchemistry.bsky.social doi.org/10.1002/anie...

I’m very excited to finally share the results of a passion project that has been on my mind for nearly a decade. You can find the pre-print below, but what follows is the saga of how this project came to be:

Q&A: How a UW teaching professor adds the context behind the science in her chemical engineering courses Alex Prybutok, UW assistant teaching professor of chemical engineering, studies anti-racism, diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in engineering education.

To celebrate the first day of winter quarter, I talked with @alexprybutok.bsky.social, assistant teaching professor of ChemE, about her journey to becoming a teaching professor and her work to explain the context behind the science in her classes.
Story: www.washington.edu/news/2025/01...

3D Printable Polymer Foams with Tunable Expansion and Mechanical Properties Enabled by Catalyst-Free Dynamic Covalent Chemistry Thermoset foams are some of the most common polymer materials in our lives. Despite their prevalence, they are notoriously difficult to form into complex shapes and finding a balance between mechanica...

Using my first post here to say…I’m on my way… to better foams, sweet foams! 🎸 Our latest preprint showcases a Motley Crue of improved properties—enhanced expansion and mechanical strength in 3D-printed foams. Check it out: chemrxiv.org/engage/chemr...
@ronsmaldone.bsky.social

Snapshot from a page with "CHE 211 - [Extra Credit] for Exam 2" written at the top and a bulbous frog character drawn below with a text bubble saying "i did it".

If this fella can do it, we all can

Stenhouse Salts: Visible Light Photoswitches for Protic Environments Designing photoswitches that have large structural changes, are visible-light responsive, and are compatible with water is a major challenge for moving toward applications in biological systems. Despite the potential for Stenhouse salts to be a water-compatible counterpart to the popular DASA photoswitches, there has not yet been any major investigation into their properties as a photoswitch. Here, we report a series of aniline-based Stenhouse salt (AnSten) photoswitches with electron donating and withdrawing groups. AnSten photoswitches reversibly switch from a visible light absorbing isomer to a visible light transparent isomer upon irradiation with green light. The dark equilibrium and switching kinetics are dependent on the electronics of the aniline. These molecules switch reversibly in common protic solvents including water and hydrogels. Stenhouse salts show significant potential as a visible light active, water compatible, negative photochromic, T-type photoswitch with a large structural change.

Great paper from the Peterson lab--developing new photoswitches for protic solvents.

pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...

Window sill in an office with a series of potted plants and a newly installed elevated wooden shelf with more potted plants resting on top.

I'm floored by this phenomenal window shelf a student made for my office (the eponymous "Self Shelf")--effectively doubling my garden space!

Took my class on a field trip to North America's largest metals/glass/plastic materials recovery facility. Check out half a days worth of NYC recycling in this pile! Material can come in by truck or by barge. Amazing visit. Thanks to Princeton's ProCES program for the support!

We're hiring a postdoctoral researcher to join the Long lab and Self Lab in our SM3 Center at ASU. Experience in polymers, synthesis, and/or photochemistry is desired.

More information here: labs.engineering.asu.edu/self/opportu...

Please retweet and share! #chempostdoc

A graphical abstract for the Chemical Science pick of the week that coves the chemical recycling of waste PVC into value-added products.

In the #ChemicalScience Pick of the Week. Anne McNeil et al. (University of Michigan, USA) provide an overview of poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) functionalisation through a lens of chemical recycling.

You can read the work here, in full and for free: pubs.rsc.org/doi/D3SC06758K

#ChemSky 🧪

Me as a grad student: why won’t people reply to my emails

Me as a professor: please dear god do not reply to my emails

This was a welcome surprise! It's great to see ACS working to address some of their conference shortcomings that people have identified. #chemsky

Great pictures! And congratulations to both the newly minted Dr. and his advisor!

A screenshot of a figure from a paper showing the radius evolution plots and neck shapes of a generic mayo sample to two other vegan mayo samples.

Just when I thought my day couldn't get any better, Vivek Sharma publishes this great paper comparing the rheology of real mayo and vegan mayo: pubs.rsc.org/en/Content/A...

Two part figure with part a) showing the structural isomerization of a conjugated polymer under different pH conditions, and part b) showing a series of cuvettes with lightly colored solutions and markings that--combined with a well-placed meniscus--make them appear to be smiling.

This is a great read: pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/... . Look how happy the cuvettes are.

Happy to share the latest work from my group on controlling NHC organocatalysis, now published in Angew! I’m really proud of the team for being resilient to get this over the finish line! t.co/g2OEZjVnj4

Paper cup full of Fruit Loops

The best part of a hotel stay