My teaching interests are in the areas of physical and analytical chemistry. My recent courses include:

CHY 434 Analytical Chemistry of Complex Samples: This course has evolved over the years and now focuses on two broad topics: (1) methods of determining speciation of metals in environmental samples and (2) chemometrics. There is an associated project laboratory in which students have to answer an analytical question with tools they find around the lab.

CHY 445 Materials Chemistry: This course is usually team taught so that students can get synthetic and physical/analytical perspectives on materials chemistry. I focus on the physical side and discuss the collective properties of semiconductors, superconductors, conducting polymers, liquid crystals, and nanoporous and nanocrystalline materials.

I have also taught:
CHY 090: Introductory Chemistry
CHY 102: General Chemistry
CHY 203: Instrumental Analysis
CHY 213: Analytical Chemistry I
CHY 223: Analytical Chemistry II
CHY 272: Organic Chemistry II (for Chemical Engineering)
CHY 330: Inorganic Spectroscopy
CHY 381: Physical Chemistry I
CHY 382: Physical Chemistry II
CHY 482: Selected Topics (team taught); module on scanning probe microscopies
ES 8901: Chemical and Biological Pathways, M.A.Sc., Env.Ap.Sci. & Mgt (team taught)
MS 8106: Materials Science, M.Sc., Molecular Science (team taught)

My scientific training is in surface photochemistry: the study of light-induced chemical reactions on single crystal surfaces in the ultrahigh vacuum environment. My research remains focused on surfaces and interfaces, but has moved out of the realm of ultrahigh vacuum and into water and air environments. I have employed vibrational spectroscopy (Raman microscopy and infrared spectroscopy) to study adsorption and photoreactions on titanium dioxide photocatalytic surfaces. I have also used atomic force microscopy (AFM) to study the surface morphology of photocured adhesives. Recently I have been involved in a number of projects with collaborators, including:

• Developing rapid analytical methods for use with wood. We have used Raman microscopy to study the penetration of polyethylene glycol into wood cell walls and to study the penetration of propiconazole into wood blocks. This work is in collaboration with Paul Cooper at the Faculty of Forestry in the University of Toronto. Recently, Ekaterina Tounis (Master's candidate in the Molecular Science programme) has been studying near infrared spectroscopy as a means of distinguishing wood species.

• Use of wavelength dispersive x-ray fluorescence to quantify trace metals in teeth. This method holds great promise as for rapid diagnosis of chronic metal exposure. The project is in collaboration with Ana Pejovic-Milic at the Department of Physics at Ryerson University. Eric DaSilva (Master's candidate in the Molecular Science programme) has started the Canadian Tooth Fairy project to determine the distribution of manganese in baby teeth across Canada.
  See our website at http://www.toothfairy.physics.ryerson.ca.
  If you are curious about manganese exposure in your child's teeth, we can help!

• Release of fluorescent markers from hydrogels cross-linked by genipin, a food-grade crosslinking agent. This work was a collaboration with Derick Rousseau

DaSilva, E., M.Sc. Mol. Sci., Ryerson (co-supervised with A. Milic), "Teeth as a biomarker for toxic trace metal exposure"

Tounis, K., M.Sc., Mol. Sci., Ryerson (co-supervised with R.S. Wylie, P. Cooper), "Near IR spectroscopy as a means of distinguishing tree species"

Completed

Komarova, K., M.Sc., Environ. Appl. Sci. Man., Ryerson 2008 (co-sup. G. Turcotte), "Tentative Immobilization of a Cellulase Via its Active Site Domain"

Abassi, A., M.A.Sc., Chem. Engin., Ryerson 2007 (Co-sup. D. Rousseau), "The Development of Crosslinked Gelatin Thin Films as Controlled Release Matrices"

Au, B., M.Phil., Teesside U. 2005 (Co-sup. A. Matchett), "Raman microscopic investigations of adsorption and catalytic photodegradation of organic pollutants in aqueous solution"

McFadden, S., M.Phil., Teesside U. 2005 (Co-sup. A. Matchett), "ATR-FTIR investigations of adsorption and catalytic photodegradation of organic pollutants in aqueous solution"

Kurti, E., M.A.Sc., Chem. Engin., Ryerson 2004 (Co-sup. R.S. Wylie), "Quantitation of propiconazole in white spruce by Raman microscopy"

A. Abbasi, M. Eslamian; D. Heyd; D. Rousseau, Controlled release of DSBP from genipin-crosslinked gelatin thin films, Pharmaceutical Devel. Technol. 2008. 13, 549-557

E. DaSilva, A. Pejovic-Milic, and D.V. Heyd, The use of teeth as the site for the in vivo or ex vivo quantification of skeletal strontium by energy-dispersive x-ray fluorescence spectrometry: A feasibility study, J. Anal. At. Spectrom. 2008. 23, 527-534

D. Jeremic, P. Cooper, and D. Heyd, PEG bulking of wood cell walls as affected by moisture content and nature of solvent, Wood Sci. Technol. 2007. 41, 597-606

M.T. Nickerson, J. Patel, D.V. Heyd, D. Rousseau, and A.T. Paulson, Kinetic and mechanistic considerations in the gelation of genipin-crosslinked gelatin, Int. J. Biol. Macromolecules. 2006. 39, 298-302

D.V. Heyd and B. Au. Fluorescence development during 514-nm irradiation of catechol adsorbed on nanocyrstalline titanium dioxide. J. Photochem. Photobiol. A: Chem. 2005. 174, 62-70

Erlet Kurti, D.V. Heyd, and R. Stephen Wylie. Raman microscopy for the quantitation of propiconazole in white spruce. Wood Sci. Technol. 2005. 39, 618-629