With this award, the Organic and Macromolecular Chemistry Program supports the work of Professor Gideon A. Fraenkel of Ohio State University. This research will involve investigation of carbanions by studying the structure and behavior of selected organolithium compounds using a unique combination of synthesis, NMR spectroscopy, X-ray crystallography and quantum chemical calculations. The dynamics and mechanisms by which these compounds reorganize and interconvert at equilibrium, the latter using NMR line shape analysis, will be determined. These studies are designed to produce a new way to count lithium atoms in clusters of organolithium compounds in the amorphous phase, a better understanding of the extent of electron delocalization in conjugated anions and a new and unusual approach to making ladder polymers.
The broader impacts of this research involve the training of young scientists, including undergraduates, women and those in underrepresented minorities in a broad variety of areas using a combination of techniques and skills. This will prepare these students for careers in industry or academia. Various industrial companies use the techniques which have been developed, for example synthetic applications in polymer chemistry and the NMR spectral technique to monitor reactions. There will continue to be a variety of collaborations with industrial companies, as well as with chemists at other universities.
