One of Department of Chemistry's newest graduate students has won the MSED Undergraduate Thesis Award.
The Macromolecular Science and Engineering Division (MSED) of the Chemical Institute of Canada is dedicated to promoting the interests of the Canadian polymer science and engineering communities. Their Undergraduate Thesis Award, given yearly, recognizes an outstanding thesis in the field of polymer science and engineering, undertaken during the academic school year as part of the student’s undergraduate degree requirement
This year's recipient, Tejveer Singh Plaha, has joined The Kumacheva Group as a PhD student after completing his undergraduate degree in Chemistry here at U of T. We profiled Tejveer last year as part of our Elements of Success undergraduate profile series, where he talked about how an interest in fashion led him to confront the environmental cost of synthetic fabrics used within that industry. Now Chemistry Stories is catching up with him as he settles into life as a graduate student, and celebrates receiving this recognition from the Chemical Institute of Canada.
We asked:
We featured you as a 4th year undergraduate, and now you’re embarking on a PhD. Can you tell us a little about committing to graduate school and joining the Kumacheva Lab?
It all seems so natural. I don’t think there was ever a moment where I was unsure about committing to a PhD. Being able to contribute to projects in both Winnik and Kumacheva groups throughout my undergraduate degree allowed me to be sure in my decision and confident in my abilities. I like science, it’s fun.
The transition was made even easier due to the fact I did my fourth-year thesis in the Kumacheva group. My day-to-day hasn’t really changed, hence so far, PhD has not really been any different for me. In a way, it’s nothing.
What made you decide to stay at UofT for your graduate work?
I was always considering staying at UofT, despite applying elsewhere. I specifically wanted to stay in the Kumacheva group. This allows me to continue the project I got accustomed to in my fourth year. I dove really deep into this field, and as a result I have many ideas for new projects and systems to work on. With all these ideas and prospects, I became a bit selfish. I want to be the one to do this.
What was your winning thesis about?
Life uses ions as signal carriers to facilitate physiological functions. These ions move through biopolymer matrices within your body. We are interested in how the molecular composition of biopolymer networks influences the movement of ions in your body.
Specifically, we are interested in how changing the fraction of charged groups along the polymer chain, and the concentration of ions, influences ion transport properties. We synthesized a library of negatively or positively charged polyelectrolyte hydrogels as a model representing biopolymer matrices and examined their ion transport properties using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy.
We consulted Professor Monica Olvera de la Cruz’s group from Northwestern University for theoretical insights. We found that the dependence of ion mobility on ion concentration transitions from strong to weak as the fraction of charged groups along the polymer chain increases.
This work is very fundamental as it provides insights into how ion transport behaviors and mechanisms can vary in biology and offers design principles for developing synthetic materials with controlled ion transport properties. We recently published this work in ACS Nano, where more details can be found.
Recognition from the CIC at this early stage of your career must be exciting. What does this award mean to you?
It’s cool. I hate to not be too excited for the reason I am doing this interview, but I am not too big on my personal achievements. I’m kind of detached from them. In my personal experience, placing too much importance on awards and accomplishments can divert my attention and hinder my work. My focus is on what I am doing now, and my plans for the future. Awards are nice, but nothing I dwell on too much.
Who was the first person you told?
This is a funny story. I was TA’ing CHM217 when I got the email. I just decided to show one of my students for fun. Her name is Aster Fan, so shoutout to her. She has very cool style. Other than that, I don’t remember telling anybody else. Eugenia sent an email to the group, and everybody proceeded to congratulate me. I got a sweet text from my mentor and friend, Dr. Junjie Yin, who is in China for vacation. The project was her idea, so I told her the award is basically hers, hahaha.
Do you know what you’ll be working on next?
This first paper marks the start of a new program in our group, which is very exciting. I am currently continuing to explore the relationship between polymer composition, and ion transport properties in more complex, biorelevant systems. We moved towards polyampholytes, which like biopolymers, feature both negative and positive charges on the polymer chain. The complex interactions present in these systems, and the resulting ion transport behaviors are very interesting. That is where my focus is now. For the future, I have many ideas.
You were really drawn to polymer chemistry, I remember. What’s the attraction?
I love how diverse the field is. Everybody is doing something different, even within my own group. Whatever you want to work on, you can find your own niche. There is a lot of freedom and creativity in this field that I don’t believe you can say about every subdiscipline, at least to the same extent. This makes it easy to learn something new every day. 
We’d love to share more about your journey as a scholar, student and human being. Is there anything more you'd like to tell your fellow students?
Sometimes my friends say it’s very funny that I became a scientist. In many ways they’re right, it is really funny. I have always been drawn to more artistic endeavors, and my personality and style don’t really match being a typical scientist. Many times, it feels like I am out of place and too different. I have learned that being unapologetically yourself is powerful and really cool. I make it a point to not conform, it makes me feel free.
Related links:
To read Tejveer Plaha's Elements of Success profile, click here.
ACS Nano article: Ion Conductivity of Polyelectrolyte Hydrogels with Varying Compositions
I have learned that being unapologetically yourself is powerful and really cool. I make it a point to not conform, it makes me feel free. --Tejveer Singh Plaha