In this project funded by the Chemical Catalysis program of the Chemistry Division, Professor Anthony Chianese of Colgate University is developing new catalysts to enable the chemical storage of solar energy and the more environmentally benign synthesis of important industrial materials. This project has potential significance in increasing the atom efficiency and sustainability of redox transformations of polar bonds. As the research is conducted entirely by undergraduate students, the project will facilitate the training of future scientists.
The project is directed at the development and mechanistic characterization of ruthenium- and iron-pincer catalysts for the hydrogenation and dehydrogenation of polar bonds. In particular, the project focuses on using the highly abundant metal iron as a replacement for rarer and more expensive ruthenium. The primary goal is to pursue the development of iron catalysts for currently unknown transformations, such as the hydrogenation of esters and amides and the hydrogenation of carbon dioxide to give methanol, as well as the corresponding dehydrogenation reactions.
