Dr. George Stanley of the Department of Chemistry, Louisiana State University, is supported by the Inorganic, Bioinorganic and Organometallic Chemistry program of the Chemistry Division, National Science Foundation, for his work on the bimetallic cooperativity in homogeneous catalysis, a concept discovered in his laboratory that involves a catalyst architecture that implicates two metal atoms (in this case rhodium) bridged by a tetraphosphine ligand. This architecture has shown remarkable activity and selectivity as a hydroformylation catalyst. The work will explore further the bimetallic cooperativity and examine whether it can be applied to other bimetallic systems and whether it can also be applied to other useful catalytic reactions.
The project will have a great impact on industrial catalysis, especially in hydroformylation processes. Undergraduate and graduate students will be well trained in a variety of areas connected to homogeneous catalysis, highly relevant to industrial processes in the production of (new) materials and energy. Also, efforts will be made in educational outreach to K-12 audiences involving young undergraduates.
