Profile
Ken Marcus
Chemistry
Professor
Robert Adger Bowen Professor of Chemistry
864-656-5011
AG Biotech/Biosystems Research Complex / BRC 102 [Lab]
AG Biotech/Biosystems Research Complex / BRC 102A [Research Laboratory Service]
AG Biotech/Biosystems Research Complex / BRC 106 [Office]
AG Biotech/Biosystems Research Complex / BRC 136 [Research Laboratory Service]
AG Biotech/Biosystems Research Complex / BRC 148 [Research Laboratory Service]
Educational Background
BS, Chemistry (w/ honors), Longwood College, 1982
BS, Physics, Longwood College, 1982
Ph.D., Chemistry, University of Virginia, 1986
Profile/About Me
Dr. Marcus earned B.S. degrees (1982) in chemistry and physics from Longwood College and a Ph.D. (1986) in analytical chemistry from the University of Virginia. He serves on the editorial advisory board for three international journals and was the recipient of the 2001 S.C. Governor¹s Award for Excellence in Science Research. In 2010, Professor Marcus was named a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry (FRSC), in 2012 a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (FAAAS), in 2016 a Fellow of the Society for Applied Spectroscopy, and in 2018 a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors. In 2019, Marcus was awarded the inaugural Clemson University Researcher of the Year designation. Marcus has been on the Clemson faculty for 35 years, graduating 41 Ph.D. and 12 MS students.
Research Interests
The development and application of new plasma techniques for the atomic spectroscopic analysis of diverse materials is a major focus of this research group. Included in this work is the design of atomic emission and mass spectrometry instrumentation employing glow discharge (GD) sources. Instrumentation developed in the Marcus laboratory is now commercially available from a number of manufacturers. Current efforts are directed at the development of the liquid sampling-atmospheric pressure glow discharge (LS-APGD) microplasma as a spectrochemical source for optical emission and mass spectrometric analysis. The sources are being developed in efforts to affect field deployable platforms for applications in the nuclear nonproliferation and nuclear safeguards arenas. Current funding comes from the NNSA through the Oak Ridge National Laboratory. A continuing area of emphasis has been the development of novel detection methods for liquid chromatography. The most recent area of liquid chromatography development is a class of polymer fibers as stationary phases for analytical and preparative scale separations of proteins. These capillary-channeled polymer (C-CP) fibers can be extruded from simple commodity polymers, including polypropylene, polyester, and nylon. In their native states, the fibers can affect separations in reversed phase, ion exchange, and hydrophobic interaction modes. Extensive efforts are directed at the development of straight forward, on-column, surface modification chemistries that add selectivity to the excellent mass transport properties of C-CP fiber columns. Most recently, efforts have moved towards the use of the fiber stationary phase for the isolation, purification, and quantification of exosomes and virus particles. Chromatography funding comes from the NSF. Finally, the unique attributes of the microplasma ionization source and the fiber stationary phase have been combined to assess the state of metal speciation in CHO cell bioreactors, and is funded by the Advanced Mammalian Biomanufacturing Innovation Center (AMBIC).
Memberships
American Society for Mass Spectrometry
American Association for the Advancement of Science
National Academy of Inventors
Royal Society of Chemistry (London)
Society for Applied Spectroscopy
Honors and Awards
Clemson University Provost's Research Award, 1988
Clemson University Alumni Association Distinguished Researcher Award, 1994
Program Officer, National Science Foundation, Analytical/Surface Chemistry, 1997-98
National Research Council Panel for Assessment of NIST CSTL, 2001-2005
South Carolina Governor’s Award for Excellence in Science Research, 2001
Longwood University Alumni Achievement Award, 2002
Clemson University, College of Eng. & Science Faculty Mentoring Award, 2004
Clemson University, College of Eng. & Science Award for Faculty Achievement, 2008
Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry (FRSC), 2010
Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (FAAAS), 2012
Lester Strock Award, Society for Applied Spectroscopy, 2015
Fellow of the Society for Applied Spectroscopy (FSAS), 2016
Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors (FNAI), 2018
Clemson University Researcher of the Year, 2019
