Emilie Gautriaud is a Master student in the Department of Polymer Science, The University of Akron. She obtained a BS in Chemistry at the University of Bordeaux 1, France in 2001. She was then involved in research in competitive kinetic processes in the thermal rearrangement of 1,1-difluoro-2-(dideuteriomethylene)-cyclopropane as well as in the control of anionic polymerization of propylene oxide. She graduated with a MS in Chemistry and Polymer Science at the University of Bordeaux 1, France in 2003.

She joined the Puskas group in January 2004. She has been working on an exhaustive review of natural rubber biosynthesis and the synthesis of model intermediates for the preparation of a macroinitiator for the in vitro synthesis of a polyisobutylene-polyisoprene diblock copolymer.

Review of Natural Rubber Biosynthesis and Synthesis of Model Intermediates for the Preparation of a Macroinitiator for the In Vitro Synthesis of a Polyisobutylene-Polyisoprene Diblock Copolymer

 

Visualization of natural rubber (cis-1,4-polyisoprene) synthesis in vivo

Puskas, J.E.; Gautriaud, E.; Deffieux, A.; Kennedy, J.P. “Natural Rubber Biosynthesis – A Living Carbocationic Polymerization?” Prog. Polym. Sci. 2006, 31(6), 533-548.

Synthesis of PIB-NPP

Proposed synthetic strategy to produce the polyisobutylene-neryl pyrophosphate macroinitiator PIB-NPP

Step 4 and a model reaction for step 5 have been completed