Merck Announces $3,000 Grand Prize Winner of Alfred R. Bader Award for Student Innovation

• Four graduate student chemists awarded for innovation in synthetic organic chemistry
• Tim Gatzenmeier, Max-Planck-Institut für Kohlenforschung, selected for grand prize

Darmstadt, Germany, October 2, 2018 — Merck, the vibrant science and technology company, recognized four graduate students for their research and innovations in synthetic organic chemistry as part of the Alfred R. Bader Student Chemistry Symposium in Darmstadt, Germany, on September 27. Students presented their research to an audience of Merck staff and guests and a panel of judges selected Tim Gatzenmeier from the Max-Planck-Institut für Kohlenforschung, Mulheim, Germany, for the $3,000 grand prize based on his research in asymmetric enantioselective organocatalysis.

“As a longstanding leader and collaborator in the chemistry space, Merck always looks forward to learning from and acknowledging the research of these young scientists,” said Udit Batra, member of the Merck Executive Board CEO, Life Science. “What is especially exciting is witnessing collaborative problem solving and curiosity in action that are driving discoveries around the world.”

Winners of $1,000 prizes were:

• Gabriel Lovinger; Boston College, USA, Conjunctive Cross-Coupling: Development and Exploration of New Reactions
• Jacob Ludwig; University of Michigan, USA, Catalytic Carbonyl Olefin Metathesis
• Hiroki Sato; University of Texas at Austin, USA, Development of new cycloaddition reactions of diols and their applications: bridge between synthetic chemistry and material science

This year’s finalists presented projects about synthetic methodologies and reactions for organic synthesis, a field ultimately focused on the creation of synthetic molecules for new drugs, performance materials and agricultural products.

The Alfred R. Bader Award for Student Innovation competition was open to advanced graduate students in synthetic organic chemistry from around the world and recognizes young chemists whose work is expected to accelerate progress in chemistry. The contest theme this year was the development of instrumentation broadly applicable to synthetic organic chemistry and the reactive use of current reagents, catalysts and ligands in methodology or total synthesis projects. The award is named for Sigma-Aldrich co-founder Alfred R. Bader.

For more than a decade, Merck has developed partnerships with academic chemists and their students in recognition of innovative chemistry through philanthropic contributions to the field.

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About Merck

Merck, a leading science and technology company, operates across healthcare, life science, and electronics. Around 58,000 employees work to make a positive difference to millions of people’s lives every day by creating more joyful and sustainable ways to live. From advancing gene-editing technologies and discovering unique ways to treat the most challenging diseases to enabling the intelligence of devices – the company is everywhere. In 2020, Merck generated sales of € 17.5 billion in 66 countries.

Scientific exploration and responsible entrepreneurship have been key to Merck’s technological and scientific advances. This is how Merck has thrived since its founding in 1668. The founding family remains the majority owner of the publicly listed company. Merck holds the global rights to the Merck name and brand. The only exceptions are the United States and Canada, where the business sectors of Merck operate as EMD Serono in healthcare, MilliporeSigma in life science, and EMD Electronics.