This award in the Chemical Synthesis (SYN) program supports work by Professor Karl Christe at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles to carry out fundamental studies on challenging problems in synthetic chemistry. Experimental efforts will be carried out in the following areas: (i) fluorine chemistry at the limits of oxidation and coordination; (ii) synthesis of novel cyano compounds for use as electrophilic cyanating agents and energetic fuels; and (iii) synthesis of new energetic fluorine substituted nitramines.
The proposed activities will have a major impact on science and technology and result in important contributions to fields such as more efficient and greener energetic materials and synthesis at the limits of oxidation and coordination.
The specific goals of this program were revolutionary breakthroughs in the advancement of energetic materials chemistry by theoretical predictions, synthesis and characterization of energetic materials with particular emphasis of finding higher performing and environmentally more benign propellants and explosives; the development of better understanding of the structures and bonding relationships in energetic materials; the exploitation of the synergy between theory and synthesis; the training of a new generation of energetic material scientists; the dissemination of our results through publications in high impact factor journals and the presentation of key lectures at major international and national conferences. Most of these goals were achieved. In conjunction with our ONR sponsored efforts, high-performing, green replacements for ammonium perchlorate were developed. A large number of novel polyazides were synthesized and characterized. Work in the area of polycyano chemistry was started and encouraging results were obtained. 18 peer reviewed papers were published in high-impact factor journals, and 14 invited presentations were given at major international and national conferences. 3 postdocs, 4 graduate students and 1 undergraduate student were trained in energetic materials chemistry. The following awards were received: Adamson Award, (2013), M. Rahm; Douda Award, International Pyrotechnic Society, (2013), M. Rahm; Bau Award, (2012), R. Haiges; ACS Tolman Award (2011), K. Christe; Election to the European Academy of Sciences and Arts, Salzburg, Austria, (2011), K. Christe; Election to the European Academy of Sciences, Liege, Belgium, (2010), K. Christe.
