Erik McLane

Background

About Erik McLane

I recently earned a B.S. in Chemistry from the University of Pittsburgh, with a concentration in materials science. The requirements for this concentration included several high level courses, in addition to the already rigorous curriculum involved in earning a BS in Chemistry. Nonetheless, I was extremely grateful for the knowledge I gained from these highly demanding classes. I was especially thankful for the laboratory coursework, which allowed me the opportunity to become familiar with basic polymer characterization techniques such as NMR spectroscopy, Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), and Size Exclusion Chromatography (SEC). Furthermore, my lab courses provided me with hands-on synthesis experience in several step-growth and chain-growth polymerization techniques, especially free radical polymerization. I furthered this experience during my undergraduate research in materials science. Specifically, our group’s focus was on developing hydrogels as a potential prosthetic limb-skin interface. This experience was invaluable, as it not only made me more comfortable with synthesizing materials via free radical polymerization, but it also introduced me to the intensive and demanding process of conducting research. The most valuable contribution I made to this process was suggesting the addition of clay nanoparticles, and testing their effects on the material properties of our gels. The results showed that our already strong dual-network (PAMPS–PAAm) gel became even stronger, by creating a nanocomposite with the clay nanoparticles. This improved strength allowed the group to begin developing prototypes, and the nanocomposite formulation was eventually adopted in the final prototype.