Recently Lauren has been working on the hydrogenation of nitrous oxide, a potent greenhouse gas and ozone depleting agent. Using homogeneous catalysts, nitrous oxide is typically very difficult to activate under mild conditions, and so Lauren and her colleagues have been studying the details of a unique mechanistic pathway under which this reaction proceeds. They hope to eventually use nitrous oxide in a useful way for oxy-functionalization reactions.
Lauren credits the fantastic instructors and professors that she’s been able to learn from throughout her studies.
I find that as you learn more about chemistry, you start to see the world a little differently. Chemistry makes up everything in and around us, and so everyday things become that much more compelling.
During her time at Dalhousie (another Killam institution) as an undergraduate, Lauren was able to learn about different areas of research in chemistry but found she was most interested in organometallic chemistry. Warren Piers is one of the leading Canadian researchers in this area, and so I chose to undertake my graduate studies in his lab at the University of Calgary.
Lauren is taking advantage of her proximity to the Rockies and enjoys hiking and rock climbing when she’s not in the lab. While she prefers to stay on the trail outside on bad weather days she certainly doesn’t mind getting lost in a good book!
